Jerky Temp

[Tinman19]

Hello all and thanks for having a place where a newbie like myself can get some advice. My wife has given me a LEM 10 tray SS dehydrator for my birthday. My question is this. The LEM only goes to 155 degrees. All of my jerky has cure #1 in it. How do I get to the safe 160 degree mark? Also I have read that you should test for internal temp. I cut my jerky on a slicer a bit larger than 1/4", I am not having luck putting a thermometer probe into this thin piece of meat. I dehydrated for about 5 hours and removed a piece, let it cool and bent it. From all that I read it was done. I saw the white threads and it bent nicely but did not break. I am pretty sure it never got to 160 because the LEM only goes to 155. Is this safe to give to people to eat? My wife both ate it and we are good...lol. Just looking for advice from the pro's....... Thanks for reading!

 

[SmokinAl]

As long as you are using cure#1, you should be good to go. When I make jerky I just go by the way it feels. I only make ground beef jerky, cause I don’t like chewing all day long!
Al

 

[chef jimmyj]

You will be Fine at 155°F, just keep your jerky Refrigerated. The 160° and testing for Water Activity is critical for storing Jerky at Ambient Room Temp safely. If you store in your refer, your jerky will be fine. Freeze more than you will eat in 2 weeks. Mold can develop and give an off flavor...JJ

 

[Gecko10]

I like to do mine until it cracks a little (not break) when I bend it. Surface should also be dry to the touch. Like Al I make my our of ground meat.

 

[boykjo]

Here is some reading for you.

Jerky and Food Safety

www.fsis.usda.gov

.

IMO the USDA makes the "code" but I consider them as guide lines. Using cure # 1 and a pasteurization chart you can finish safely under the 160 degrees

When it comes to ground jerky, common sense should come into play. Use freshly ground quality meat. Yes quality. Not from someone who has some deer and you don't know how the meat was handled. That meat is okay but I would follow the 160 degree for total destruction of bacteria

Government Pasteurization Tables
The pasteurization times for beef, lamb and pork are listed in Table C.1.
Temperature Time Temperature Time
°F (°C) (Minutes) °F (°C) (Seconds)
130 (54.4) 112 min 146 (63.3) 169 sec
131 (55.0) 89 min 147 (63.9) 134 sec
132 (55.6) 71 min 148 (64.4) 107 sec
133 (56.1) 56 min 149 (65.0) 85 sec
134 (56.7) 45 min 150 (65.6) 67 sec
135 (57.2) 36 min 151 (66.1) 54 sec
136 (57.8) 28 min 152 (66.7) 43 sec
137 (58.4) 23 min 153 (67.2) 34 sec
138 (58.9) 18 min 154 (67.8) 27 sec
139 (59.5) 15 min 155 (68.3) 22 sec
140 (60.0) 12 min 156 (68.9) 17 sec
141 (60.6) 9 min 157 (69.4) 14 sec
142 (61.1) 8 min 158 (70.0) 0 sec
143 (61.7) 6 min
144 (62.2) 5 min
145 (62.8) 4 min


Boykjo

 

[Tinman19]

Thank you all for your advice. I will keep going at 155 for around 5 hours! The chart Boykjo posted helped. Thanks again!