Dehydrating jerky in dehydrator

[Debbie P.]

I am trying to make jerky from ground beef for the first time ever. I have never made any jerky. My dehydrator has high temps of 167 degrees or 158 degrees. Which temp should I run my dehydrator on and for how long. Thank you

 

[Cj7851]

Personally I would run 167 no less than 8 hours prbly but I've only done jerky from whole cuts except once or twice. Also time is dependent on the dehydrator and how much you're doing. General rule is when you take a piece and bend it out should crack but not so dry it just snaps. I am not certain if this will apply the same to it being made from ground meat. I do know with grind beef you will need to periodically dab with paper towels as the fat will render out and you don't want that on your jerky.

 

[Debbie P.]

Personally I would run 167 no less than 8 hours prbly but I've only done jerky from whole cuts except once or twice. Also time is dependent on the dehydrator and how much you're doing. General rule is when you take a piece and bend it out should crack but not so dry it just snaps. I am not certain if this will apply the same to it being made from ground meat. I do know with grind beef you will need to periodically dab with paper towels as the fat will render out and you don't want that on your jerky.

Thank you. Everything I have watched on Youtube shows ingredients but a lot of them don't give you times and temps. I'm just nervous about making jerky. I don't want anyone to get sick on it. I have been doing a lot of dehydrating of fruits and veggies since I got my Samson dehydrator. Meat is another ballgame. Lol

 

[410mudslinger]

Try this Debbie P. I have been making jerky in a dehydrator for at least 25 years, I have never had 1 problem as long as you use a good jerky seasoning with cure.
Just read this post, I know this is way behind. Let me tell you what I have found out, I have experimented with every kind of meat mixture you could possibly think of, from a little deer, beef, chicken, pork, turkey, from mixing all different quantities and I still couldn’t get it to stay together. I just took some off the dehydrator just plain beef, ground 2 times, 2nd time through a fine plate. The best seasoning I believe is through a company called “nesco”. I also started using a meat binder from a company called “butcher and packer”. I believe it is sodium phosphate and I add it after I mix my jerky seasoning, 1 teaspoon per 2 pounds of meat. I mix the jerky seasoning with a third cup of cold water per pound of meat, and after it is mixed I add the meat binder and mix it well with the meat. I use the $20 nesco jerky gun and I have had amazing results. Feel free to as me any questions you may have. In my opinion it makes an awesome product. Good Luck. Craig

 

[Steve H]

Nesco and Hi Mountain are good kits. Just be sure to read the instructions. Some of these call for different approaches between whole muscle and ground meat for jerky.
I too, would go with 167 degrees. And 8 hours is a good point to check the jerky. You can also check the IT to be sure the meat has reached 160 degrees. Which is the safe zone. I don't grind the meat twice. And with the kit blends. I've never added a binder to the meat.
Actually, I have yet to grind the meat for jerky. I just use 90/10 or 93/7 ground from the store. And it works fine. If you use LEM blends, add some pepper to it. It is a touch bland.