newbie question

[downunderdags]

g'day everybody . i have a question . i have good mates of mine in oregon ,Wisconsin,Connecticut and Maine which i go and stay with every 2 years for a few weeks last time i was in your country. i just lived on jerky .i love the stuff .well i just started to make my own (trying to find jerky here . you have more chance of getting eaten by a wombat lol) my question is that when i make jerky it comes out well .but i just want to know that some of the jerky i love was real hard and when you ripped it open it had like a white fibre inside like cotton . i just want to know how to get jerky like this .thanks guys for your help .darren

 

[fire it up]

That's kind of strange (for me, not for you) that you can't find jerky considering it is every grocery store, gas station and Kwiki Mart everywhere in the US.
Sorry I can't offer any advice on making it but I know many here more knowledgeable than myself will be able to help you.
Do you happen to remember the brand of jerky it was that you liked the most?
That might help people know a bit better about the sort that you are looking for.
If you got it in a jar at a gas station they usually have a sticker on the jar telling you the kind.
I'm sure someone out there will be able to help you out. Just kind of late here. What is it, 12:40 am in Jersey right now so not that late, considering you guys are 12-14 hours ahead of us though, or is it behind? Ahead I believe...
And your winter is our summer, strange how different things are but yet we are all united by some fine smoke...

 

[downunderdags]

g'day fire . well it is 3.10 pm sat .we are a day a head its easter sunday in 9 hours lol. well mate i cant remember the brands i had there was so much .the best was from a small butcher in oregon .my mate told me not to bye the stuff from wal mart .and go for the home made jerky in the small country towns and markets .wow love the stuff . also mate i have been to franklin jersey .and been in rural jersey twice what a stunning place . i went to franklin nj ,becouse i am a rockhound and thay have the best fluro rocks on earth . great place .darren

 

[DanMcG]

I'm not much at making jerky. but I think if you were to remove 100% of the moisture out of the meat that's what you end up with. I tend to leave mine a little moist. My teeth ain't what they use to be :)

 

[trapper]

That is how I like mine also. I start with a good lean piece of meat. I usually use top or bottom round from the deer we kill. If you are buying beef I prefer the eye of round for jerky but top or bottom round will work also. Avoid chuck or other fatty cuts.
I slice it approximately 3/16" thick WITH THE GRAIN, not across it. Then I marinate it for a few days in the fridge. After the marinade it goes in the dehydrator until done, usually around 8-10 hours depending on how full it is and how thick I sliced it. I take it out when I can bend a piece in half and it kind of cracks but doesn't break in half.
I think the texture and the cotton like fibre you are looking for is from cutting with the grain more than anything else.

 

[tsulcoski]

Downunderdags,

The cotton fiber you are refering to is from cutting the meat across the grain, if you cut it with the grain it will not be as chewy and will not show the " cotton fiber "