Recently I purchased a Cabela's Commercial Dehydrator, (top quality unit, 80 litre capacity, 1600W heater/fan, will go 160 deg - $300).
The two reasons I bought the dehydrator were,
1. Volume
2. I worried that my Smokette would not be able to get rid of moisture properly.
Unfortunately, the unit was damaged in shipping but Cabela's graciously allowed me to use it to finish the load of meat I had marinating before I had to send it back.
While waiting for its replacement I did a bunch of research on this forum and decided to try a load of jerky in my Smokette.
It turned out f-a-n-t-a-s-t-i-c !
Even better than the commercial dehydrator.
Now I am seriously questioning whether I will go through with replacing the Cabela�s.
My road to success went as follows;
a. Bought a 3kg (6.6 #) whole sirloin tip at Costco and trimmed it completely lean.
b. Froze the meat for a few hours then used my electric slicer to cut it 45 deg to the grain and 3/16" thick.
c. Marinated it for 2 days using Kevi's marinade (including cure)
http://mywebpages.comcast.net/ktaylor11/kevi.htm
d. Bought a couple of those mesh "disposable" BBQ screens. The sides can be folded and they can be stacked.
e. I did not rinse or wipe off the meat before laying it out on the screens
f. I loaded the Smokette with a about 2 ounces of maple and stuck a small piece of wood in the door to hold it about 1/2" ajar before securing the door with a wire around the latch mechanism.
g. Smoked at 180 deg for 2 hours with door ajar
Swapped top and bottom racks after an hour.
h. Emptied smoke box, flipped meat over, closed up door, and ran Smokette at 180 deg for another 2 hours.
Again, I opened up the unit after an hour to swap top and bottom racks.
i. Opened unit up, swapped top and bottom racks, flipped meat over, lowered temp to 140 deg, and wired the door open 1/2"
j. Checked meat every hour, swapping upper and lower racks and flipping the meat until I was happy with the dryness, (it should bend easily and just start cracking without breaking).
This final phase took about 3 1/2 hours...Remember Smokin's motto - "It's done when it's done".....
In summary;
2 Hours 180 deg with smoke - Door Ajar
2 Hours 180 deg without smoke - Door Closed
3-4 Hours 140 deg - Door Ajar
Afterwards, I left the jerky on an oven rack on the kitchen counter overnight to dry the surface completely.
If you used cure it doesn't have to be
refrigerated although it doesn't hurt to put it someplace cool to keep it fresh.
I could do a bit over a pound of meat per load using 4 mesh screens on my three racks.
I wish I had taken some picture but I will the next time.
The lessons I learned;
1. As Kevi says, the salt is very important. That is the flavor we all love in jerky, (but �good� jerky is definitely not for salt-reduced diets !!)
2. Add lots of Cayenne - people love the spicy kick
3. Smoking only for the first two hours imparts a very nice, mild smoked flavor enjoyed by all.
4. Rotating the racks and flipping the meat is very important if you want consistent results.
5. DO NOT RUSH THE PROCESS....If you run out of time doing the final drying, (as I did with one load), just put it in the fridge and continue the next day.
Hope this helps !
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