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Beef Jerky

Welcome to 2011, fans and followers! Our first order of business is to thank all of you for making the first 6 months of The Food Lovers’ Primal Palate so successful. It’s hard to believe that we’ve only been jotting down our recipes here for half of a year. We have a lot of great things in store for 2011, and we think it’s going to be a wonderful year for the website. We’ve loved getting to know many of you through your personal emails, your notes on our fan page, and your always-generous comments beneath each blog post. All the personal correspondence has made this adventure ten times more meaningful for us both. Thank you all!

If you’re visiting us for the first time, perhaps you’ve recently committed to a New Year’s Paleo resolution. Good for you! I (Bill) can remember first starting Paleo. My transition was fairly easy and natural (probably due to the fact that I had Hayley guiding me through it), but Hayley and I both realize that it can be a difficult change for others. A common concern with transitioning to the Paleo lifestyle is, “what do I eat?” specifically in between meals, or on the go. Whatever the case may be, Paleo can be just as easy as any other way of eating (and in short time, will become effortless) with a little planning. We wanted to kick off the new year with a recipe that is tasty, convenient, easy to make, and highly portable.

Beef jerky is a favorite Paleo snack for all the previous reasons, but also because it packs a nutritious protein punch (and doesn’t give you a sugar crash like most SAD snacks). We used the oven for the recipe presented to you today, but you could also use a food dehydrator to create delicious jerky. Meat selection is also important here. For beef, you want a very lean cut – London broil or flank steak are good choices. Fat on the meat will go rancid more quickly than the meat itself, so trim the fat to keep the jerky fresh. A trick to getting nice even slices with ease is to partially freeze the meat. If you have some on hand, venison is also an excellent meat for making into jerky. So, without further ado lets get to the recipe.

Ingredients:

  • 2-3 lb piece of lean beef or venison
  • 3-4 cloves of garlic, minced or pressed
  • 1 cup Coconut Aminos
  • 1 tsp Salt and Pepper

Alternate Flavoring:

  • Equal parts smoked paprika, onion powder, and garlic powder
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Process:

  1. Partially freeze meat for 2-4 hours, until mostly solid.
  2. Slice meat into 1/10th inch thickness strips.
  3. Mix the coconut aminos with minced garlic in a bowl.
  4. Toss sliced beef into with the coconut aminos and minced garlic in a ziploc back.
  5. Allow meat to marinate from 2-24 hours in refrigerator.
  6. Preheat oven to 170 degrees.
  7. If using an oven, set up racks over cookie sheets lined with aluminum foil (for easier cleanup). Lay strips of beef out on racks, add salt and pepper if desired, and place racks in oven.
  8. Cook at 170 for 4-6 hours. Thinly sliced meat will take less time, thicker sliced meat will take longer. Open oven door slightly for last ~2 hours.


Beef jerky is an ideal snack for anyone on a Paleo diet that is looking to get more healthy protein on a daily basis. I like to make a big batch on a Sunday night to have it as a snack option all week long. We think this is something easy that will help Paleo newcomers stay satiated throughout the day. Happy New Year!

As always, enjoy.

Primal Palate Spice Blends

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    COMMENTS

    1. January 5, 2011

      Love your blog! I tried paleo before, gave up because I got a little constipated (lol). I want to give it another shot and was wondering if you have any suggestions? Thanks & that jerky looks so tasty!

    2. January 5, 2011

      You guys just made me SO happy. We got a dehydrator for Christmas and I've been wondering and wondering and wringing my hands over whether life could be amazing enough that coconut aminos could work for jerky. I bought my beef yesterday, lean, grass fed something-or-other, and this will be my inaugural jerky recipe. THANK YOU!

    3. January 6, 2011

      fullbodytransformation: make sure you are getting enough fat and veggies. You shouldn't get constipated that way! I personally also find that eating greens (kale, spinach, etc) helps (a lot! yikes!).

      On the jerky recipe, just a suggestion: put the oven pre-heat step after the marinate step! Looks great. One of my 2011 tasks is to make more jerky – I loved the batches I've made so far – so I'll give this a try!

    4. January 6, 2011

      thanks for the heads up on the error. we fixed it.

    5. January 17, 2011

      My sister found your blog and told me about the root vegetable hash. I tried it this morning. (and will share some with her. :)) I need to lose some weight to get back to a healthy me so I decreased the oil by half. It was delicious! I sent your blog to my son and daughter in law. I think they will like your spin on cooking. Thanks!

    6. January 19, 2011

      What kind of rack do you use? Did you use the oven rack and find a cookie sheet big enough to fit under it? I can only find cooling racks that fit over cookie sheet pans. The ones I found say not to use them in the oven. I thought with the low temperature, maybe it will work. I've been walking around with the measurements of my oven racks since you published this recipe and I can't find cookie sheets that will fit underneath them. Do you think the Calphalon cookie sheet and cooling rack will work? http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?SKU=16037958

    7. January 19, 2011

      Hey T –

      I saw your question here (and also with the stuffed mushrooms) – I'm going to post this response in both locations just so that it's seen.

      I'm no metals chemist, but I would imagine that 170 degrees is perfectly fine for putting the cooking racks in the oven (I mean, that's not even hot enough to boil water, so what could it possibly do to metal?) Even if the sizing isn't a perfect fit, you'll be fine to use virtually whatever you have for the cookie sheet and the cooling racks. The purpose of the cookie sheet is to act as a drip tray – so a 'close' fit is fine.

      I think you should go ahead and get 'drying' with that great cut of London Broil. You're going to love the jerky! Let us know if you have any questions.

    8. February 13, 2011

      for the longest time, i was convinced i was living on a different planet than you guys. my recipes never came out quite right, the product didn't look the same as the pictures you guys posted. but i am happy to report that's changed once i made this beef jerky last night. very tasty, and super easy. i don't know if i'll buy a pre-packaged jerky for a long time! ok i probably will, but only when i don't have time to make this from scratch. the only bummer is using up a whole bottle of aminos on one batch. i was hoping to be able to use it again for other dishes; guess i'll just buy another bottle.

      thanks for the recipe!

      -michele

    9. February 13, 2011

      Hi Michele –

      Glad to hear you finally found success with a recipe! Keep trying with the others – and if you ever have questions, you can email us, too – [email protected]

      Yes, it is a bummer that you can use up an entire bottle of coconut aminos on one batch of jerky. If you want an alternate version, check out the printer-friendly recipe above. We have an alternate, spice-only version of the jerky which is just as good! Its just as easy, and turns out to be a little cheaper if you already have the spices.

      Hope this helps – glad to have you following!

    10. February 13, 2011

      @sebben,
      Check the bulk section of your health food store for the Coconut Aminos, ours sells it for .55 per ounce which is about $1.70 savings in our area over buying an 8 ounce bottle.
      @Hayley and Bill thanks for the great recipe and inspiring me to go for it and make my own Jerky, so much better than store bought!

    11. February 13, 2011

      Glad you're making your own – it is SO much better than store bought. The best part, though, is knowing exactly whats going into it for ingredients.

      You're quite welcome! Thanks for following 🙂

    12. March 23, 2011

      Just a quick question regarding storing the jerky when it's done…I'm assuming that since there's no sort of preservatives, I'd want to refrigerate it, but wanted to check. I've never actually made jerky before so I didn't know if the drying process does something to it so that refrigeration isn't necessary? THanks!

    13. May 3, 2011

      I was wondering how the slicing goes… could I use a food processor to slice the meat for me? I'm new to my food processor and don't really have great knives 🙂

    14. jensonnenberg
      August 12, 2014

      What kind of beef do I buy? I’m excited to try this out. Thanks

    15. August 12, 2014

      JenSonnenberg – get grass fed beef in a lean cut (like flank steak, brisket (with the fat trimmed) or a chuck roast. Anything that’s LEAN will work great!

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