Just Jerky : The Complete Guide to Making It
by Mary Bell
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Book Summary Information
Author: Mary BellEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 1996-08
ISBN: 0965357201
Number of pages: 139
Publisher: Dry Store Pub Co
Book Reviews of Just Jerky : The Complete Guide to Making It
Book Review: It's short, fun but complete and to-the-point
Summary: 5 Stars
I can't remember exactly when I became introduced to beef jerky. I believe it was on the way to a Boy Scout camping trip when the troop stopped at a convenience store and one of my fellow scouts bought some of that weird-looking beef jerky stuff sold by the cash register.
Years later, in grad school, I realized I could make jerky in my apartment. I bought a cheap dehydrator and some mixes for making ground beef jerky, and had reasonable success with it, although I'm surprised I didn't get sick with jerky made on a machine with no temperature control and such uneven drying. It was kind of excruciating forming jerky without a jerky gun, and other things took my attention, and the dehydrator got put away.
Another six or seven years down the road, I'm in my career and my own house and the dehydrating bug hit again, encouraged by a desire to dry food for camping, but mostly still to make jerky. After inconsistent results with the old dehydrator, I got a good Gardenmaster (NESCO FD-1018 - my review is on Amazon), and picked up some ground beef jerky packets along with a jerky gun at Outdoor World in Orlando. I was back in the jerkey business, and it was good! However, I don't see the mixes in local stores, and Orlando is an hour drive each way, so I needed to make my own marinade. Would it work as well? I read reviews and finally bought JUST JERKY by Mary Bell.
This book is so very easily and quickly read, although it contains all you need to know. The introductory chapters discuss the history of drying meats, the equipment and procedures, and the physics and biology of making jerky, including discussions of the bacteria that can ruin your day. The book discusses smokers, how to select the right cuts of meat, and marinade ingredients. The author intersperses entertaining stories from her own life and those of people she knows.
Then the book gets into the recipes. There is a chapter on strip jerky (made from continuous strips of meat) which includes recipes for goat, venison, chicken as well as beef jerky (almost any kind of meat can be used with any recipe) Following that are chapters on fish jerky, ground meat jerky (formed into shapes and dried - I highly recommend a jerky gun for this), vegeterian jerky, and finally, a chapter on using jerky which includes recipes for jerky cake and jerky frosting! Really!
I actually read the book, and put it away for several months until the other day when my wife told me I could use the leftover, uncooked half of a roast. I decided to make Jordan's Rowdy Jerky since I had some leftover cheap Scotch from seasoning my bagpipes. Well, neither my wife nor I really cared for that one. Naturally, it tasted fermented, which means you couldn't really tell if it turned bad. I ate it anyway, because I like jerky. It just wouldn't be my first choice. (Or second. Or third.)
I was intrigued by reviews saying this book would show you how to make convincing vegetarian jerky. Now, I have no reason to make vegetarian jerky other than the challenge. (Really, if you're a vegetarian, why would you have a hankering for jerky?) The key ingredient is soy protein, to which the author adds certain ingredients for cohesion, texture and flavor. She recommends a brand called Hearty Natural, but says there are many brands. I don't exactly see a lot of this stuff, and what I found was Yves' Carb Fit Veggie Ground Round. I made the recipe for Tastes-Like-Meat jerky. First problem was extruding with the jerky gun. The soy protein was very lumpy. When it dried, there were individual lumps with material barely bridging to the other lumps. And lots of holes in between. When prying it off the trays, it cracked into small lumps. Now, maybe it'd work better with the Hearty Natural. Maybe I shouldn't have used the jerky gun to form it. But I wasn't impressed. It was crispy (although the author warns you that it dries crisp), and the taste was eh. Yeah. Eh. My wife said, "Tastes like dried vegetables." Which it was. Can't pull anything over on her.
Lest you think I'm nothing but a failure, I decided to try some ground beef recipes, and I'd go out and BUY the ingredients needed. My wife said, "Make some regular jerky." I explained that there is no "regular" jerky, but decided that the Soy Sauce Jerky and Teriyaki Jerky were probably closest to what you buy in the store. In short, they came out fabulously. Both were good, and similar to "store jerky," but my wife decided that the teriyaki was "regular" jerky. So if you want something familiar, I'd start with that. I don't think it was as teriyaki-tasting as store-bought jerky labelled "Teriyaki."
No more trips to Orlando to buy jerky mix. The ingredients are easy-to-find, and you can adjust these recipes to suit your taste. I think I counted 51 jerky recipes, so you can spend some time experimenting. And there are several other recipes for things to make with the jerky. I doubt I will use those personally, as I like jerky just for being jerky, but they're there for those who want them.
Each recipe has a little sidebar with a history of that particular recipe, or related story. One small complaint is that the recipes could give a little more detail, or be a little more consistent from one to the next. For example, one recipe gives more information on carmelizing onions, and another just says "carmelize the onions." Unless you read the first, you might be asking "what is 'carmelize?'" And who reads a cookbook from beginning to end?
My only other complaint is the binding. It does not want to lie flat, and I think I'm about to lose a lot of pages out of it. But if you want to make jerky, you need this book, and it may be the only book you need.
Summary of Just Jerky : The Complete Guide to Making It
Here's the do-it-yourself guide to making your own jerky in an oven, smoker, or food dehydrator with strips or ground beef, venison, poultry, fish and even soy protein.Meats Books
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