1st Jerky

[GeeBee]

OK, I'm going to try this again. I did a big writeup, then lost it, so I'm going to try and do this in sections. I've got lots to say, so bear with me. All I can say is WOW! My first attempt turned out great. I started out with 2 "Eye of Round" roasts from WalMart. I trimmed all visible fat from them then sliced them using my new jerky board.

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[GeeBee]

I got the jerky board from The Sausage Maker. It's stainless steel with an HDPE insert and comes with the knife. Without the insert, it makes slices 3/8" thick. With the insert, it makes slices a 1/4" thick. I made mine 1/4". It works very well and turns out nice consistent thickness. I cut mine with the grain, I call them planks. I then cut the planks in half lengthwise, into strips.

[GeeBee]

I ended up with 4 1/2 pounds of strips. I laid them out on wax paper, so they were touching. I ended up with what looked like a sheet of meat. I then measured out the proper amount of seasoning, put it in a pepper shaker and spread half on one side of the meat. That's right, I'm doing this dry, no marinade. I turned all the strips over and used the rest of the seasoning on the other side. I used Legg's Old Plantation Seasoning (with Instacure added) which I got from Ask The Meatman. I then stacked the strips on a wire rack placed on a cookie sheet, in a crosshatch pattern and uncovered into the 'frig overnight.

[GeeBee]

This morning I pulled the strips out, they had been resting for 12 hours, 2 ounces of hickory wood into the smoker, 145 degrees set in the PID, 3 racks of strips and hit the start button. At 2 hours in I was still getting a whisper of smoke, 144 degrees on the PID, put the James Jerky Dryer in place and turned it on. It was too cold to stand around and watch. At 5 hours, opened the door and sampled a piece, OMG was it good. Decided another hour wouldn't hurt. At 6 hours (total time) shut everything down and pulled the jerky. The flavor is outstanding. Smoke is just right, just a little zing to the seasoning, definitely a keeper. All the equipment worked and performed flawlessly, I am so impressed with the consistent temps the Auber holds with my smoker. I'm off and running.....

[DivotMaker]

Looking great, Gary!

[NDKoze]

It's got that nice dark red color like it should. Looks Awesome Gary!