Black Bear Jerky with Pics

[uncle eddie]

I make a lot of jerky and share much of it with coworkers, one of whom shot a nice black bear back in early August. He asked me to make some jerky for him out of two roasts that weighed about 2.5 pounds in total. I told 5 pounds would be better but this was all he was willing to spare. So of course I said yes because I have never had black bear jerky before.

Any time I make jerky out of wild game, I check out if there are any special things or concerns. Turns out a little research revealed that 80% of all cases of trichinosis in the U.S. are from under-cooked black bear...not pork. With that in mind, and a suggested minimum safe cook internal temp of 137F, I will set my Open Country forced air dehydrator to a minimum temp 145F for the dehydration process and bump it to 155F (the max temp it will go) for 10 minutes when it is almost done just to be sure. I have checked the temps on this dehydrator against a calibrated thermometer and the dial indicator is fairly accurate.

Here are the prep pics...Trimming the fat from the roasts, slicing up the roasts, mixing the Owens BBQ Mesquite marinate and jerky cure packs, and bagging the meat and marinate. The pics are thumbnails...click on them to make them bigger.

I will post more pics when it is dehydrating and done. Right now we are in the 24 +/- hours marinate time.

 

[motocrash]

I'm in.Have eaten bear done low and slow and it was excellent but never jerky.

 

[alaskanyoung]

Black bear jerky. Interesting! Hope it was good.

 

[myownidaho]

That should be a pile of flavor!

 

[Bearcarver]

Good you got rid of most of the Fat.

You're in for a Treat---Love Bear Jerky!!:)

No I'm not a Cannibal !!!:rolleyes:

Bear

 

[Co4ch D4ve]

When I first opened this thread I thought it was one of Bearcarver’s Step by Steps!

 

[uncle eddie]

Good you got rid of most of the Fat.
You're in for a Treat---Love Bear Jerky!!:)
No I'm not a Cannibal !!!:rolleyes:
Bear

hahaha

Fat is always nasty in jerky IMHO. No matter if beef, venison, etc. Trim all excess fat always.

Trays are loaded up and my trusted Open Country dehydrator is on 155F until the excess moisture is dried off (maybe 30 minutes), then 145F until near done, then 155F for 10 minutes to finish for reasons explained in the OP. Should be done later on this evening.

OBSERVATION: The first thing that popped in my head when I saw the black bear/marinate in the colander draining is that it looked like dove breasts.

 

[Bearcarver]

hahaha

Fat is always nasty in jerky IMHO. No matter if beef, venison, etc. Trim all excess fat always.

Trays are loaded up and my trusted Open Country dehydrator is on 155F until the excess moisture is dried off (maybe 30 minutes), then 145F until near done, then 155F for 10 minutes to finish for reasons explained in the OP. Should be done later on this evening.

OBSERVATION: The first thing that popped in my head when I saw the black bear/marinate in the colander draining is that it looked like dove breasts.

Here's one a Buddy of mine got a few years ago (535 pounder):
https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t...be-offensive-pictures-to-anti-hunters.100895/

Bear

 

[indaswamp]

Are you aware that Black bear is a carrier of Trichinosis? What precautions are you taking to ensure the meat is safe to eat?


*edit
Never mind, should have read further before posting...

 

[uncle eddie]

Are you aware that Black bear is a carrier of Trichinosis? What precautions are you taking to ensure the meat is safe to eat?

*edit
Never mind, should have read further before posting...

Thanks anyway brother. Better safe than sorry!

 

[SonnyE]

Good you got rid of most of the Fat.

You're in for a Treat---Love Bear Jerky!!:)

No I'm not a Cannibal !!!:rolleyes:

Bear

But the question remains....
Are you a termite?:confused:

LOL! ;):):D

 

[uncle eddie]

Here is the finished product. The big surprise was how much it shrunk...2.5 pounds down to just about 1 pound.

I tried it and it tasted pretty darned good, but I better let the guy who shot it have the rest haha.

 

[motocrash]

Looks really good uncle eddie.Wouldn't think it would shrink more that Beefo_O

 

[Bearcarver]

Looks Great Eddie!!!:)

Got to be Mighty Tasty!!

Bear

 

[uncle eddie]

Thanks Bear!

Here is a pic of the bear - he shot it the day before the total eclipse.

 

[Bearcarver]

Nice Bear!!
Bout 300LB ?

He shot that in August?
Our Bear rifle is in November.
Harvest between 3,000 & 4,000 in PA annually.


Bear

 

[uncle eddie]

He said it was about 250 using the skull measuring method. There was a lot bigger one on camera, but he never got to see it in daylight so he took this one on the last day of his hunt.

 

[Bearcarver]

He said it was about 250 using the skull measuring method. There was a lot bigger one on camera, but he never got to see it in daylight so he took this one on the last day of his hunt.

LOL---The closest I ever got to getting a Bear was the one year Bethlehem Steel wouldn't let me take off that day.
So another guy went with my Dad & my Brother, in my place. That guy sat at my usual spot along Red Rock Run ridge, and one came walking along the edge of the swamp, right in front of him.

Bear