rookie questions

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archer379

Newbie
Original poster
Dec 19, 2011
9
10
Peterborough Ontario Canada
  In a few days i get my new mes30 and can'twait to fire it up and try some of the great sounding recipes i have read since i found this site. I have a few questions that have come up in my research that i can seem to get a straight answer on.

  question 1- I can't get the product tender quick but have found a product call pickelcure cncentrate-red the store i bought it from said it was the same just a different brand. The ingredients list salt,sodium nitrate,and sodium. The directions say to use 1/2 oz to 10 pounds of meat for dry curing. Now the store I bought it after also sold me some seasoning that are for making jerkey but am thinking that they really dont know what they are talking about. The first packof stuff is called beef jerkey seasoning and has instuctions as to mix with water and add the picklecure. Which from what i have read seems right,  does this mean that if i add the picklecure to one of the great recipes that i have found on this site at 1/2 oz per 10 lbs of meat i will be ok.

  question 2- On the picklecure what is dry curing?

  question 3- the other packs of seasoning  that they sold me which i bought off a order sheet so i really didn't look at them until i got home. The packages are labled sausage binder and the instructions dont say to add any liquid to the mix which would make since for sausage not for a marinade for jerkey. Some of the ingredents are bread crumbs again i am new to this but dont see that for jerkey. I checked the order sheet again and they gave me what i ordered on their advice. just not sure if its the right stuff?

  I think thats all i wll ask from you fine folks for now my biggest concern is the picklecure . Dont want to make anyone sick. I would have liked to try one of the more well known sesoning packs but can't see to find any close to here. thank you for your responces
 
What are you trying to make is the first question.  Lets start with what you want to do and we can help you along those lines. 
 
I'm not a jerky expert.  In the past I have simply made it with soy sauce, spices and a dehydrator.  This is what I did during my college days backpacking trips but I am sure there are much better recipes out there then mine.   Let's see if you can get a bit more advice from someone that does this all the time!

You can use InstaCure1 (sodium nitrite with salt) or InstaCure 2(sodium nitrate and sodium nitrite with salt).

The best advice I can give you is if you want to use the mix you purchased follow their directions.   What does this mix call for as far as added ingredients? 

I am not familiar with pickle cure so I don't want to offer advice as far as a substitute in recipes.  Why not start as simple as possible, with the premixed cure and once you have given it a try then look at fine tuning your recipes and expand your experience.

Dry cure is basically everything that is not a brine.  Jerky can be made with a brine where salt, cure and spices are added to water.  The thinly sliced meat is submerged in the brine for a length of time.  Dry cure is when you rub the slices with the cure mix (salt, cure and spices) and allow the moisture to drain off the meat as it develops.  Two different techniques requiring different amounts of cure and different cure times.  

Please be careful when using cures.  They can be poisonous if used incorrectly.

Give the premix a try and get a bit of experience.  Then lets talk recipes and different treatments.

Good Luck,  looking forward to seeing pictures of the process,  call it Qview!
 
 "The directions say to use 1/2 oz to 10 pounds of meat for dry curing."

This is not the same as Tender Quick. TQ uses 1/2 oz per pound of meat. What you have sounds like Cure #1. What are the percentages of salt, Sodium nitrate and sodium nitrite?

See this link for cure info.

http://www.susanminor.org/forums/showthread.php?736-Curing-Salts
 
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Now I have never heard of this picklecure. I have been making bacons and sausage for a few years now to. If I were you I would order some cure #1 (pink salt) or Morton's Tenderquick form their repestive companys. Then use that stuff. Just make sure that you follow the direction to the tee on the packaging from which it came from. Now as for as your jerky I have always done like Al and made a marinade and then used a dehydrater.  
 
Is there a brand name on there ? I did a Google Search for what you put in the post and came up with nothing like what you describe

If you can take a pic of the package and list the ingredients we might be able to figure it out 
 
  question 1........... The ingredients list salt,sodium nitrate,and sodium. The directions say to use 1/2 oz to 10 pounds of meat for dry curing
Hey Archer can ya clarify the ingredients for us please. Salt, sodium nitrate and sodium?  Salt is sodium so could that last sodium be sodium nitrite. And more importantly does it give the percentage of nitrate in the mix.

The other packages with binder and bread crumb sound like sausage mixes, If you could post some pic's of the label we could figure it out.
 
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ok if this works here are some pictures of the stuff that i bought. I dont have much luck posting pictures but here goes
6ff326bb_IMG000006.jpg
 this is the picklecure

96625655_IMG000007.jpg
c323fca0_IMG000011.jpg
b65e53b5_IMG000012.jpg


the other is the spice i figure i understand the beef jerky seasoninig directions but as for the rest .
 
Your Picklecure is basicly cure #1,  just salt and nitrite (no nitrate)  The big question is how much nitrite. I'd give them a call at Outpost and ask them the percent concentration of nitrite in there Picklecure mix to be safe.

The other two bags are sausage mixes and I don't think they will work to well on jerky
 
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well thanks everyone for your help. dont think i am going to use the stuff that i mentioned on here. I just ordered some motons tender quick shipping hurt a bit but least i am starting out with the right stuff also ordered a bunch of the high mountain sesoning from bass pro. So again thanks i will post some pics when i get some made up
 
The stuff I use is titled Instacure #1 or Instacure #2/ aka. Prague Powder 1/2.  1 is used for cooked meat, 2 is for slow curing, long/ dry cured meat/ sausages.  Rate I use is 1+ 2/3 tsp per 5 lbs of meats/game, etc.  Never heard of the picklecure being used.
 
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