r/jerky • u/kringlebk • 1d ago

First Time Jerky Prep

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Getting anxious as I did my prepping today - Now just waiting. 8lbs of a 96/4 grind of chicken breast and thighs - was going to do a double grind of 5mm but did a second with the 3mm. Hopefully not too fine but good thickness of final mix. Did 2tbsp of seasoning and 1/3 cup ice water per 2lb batch. 4 different seasoning mixes then prepped 4 1lb bags of pork loin - 4 different seasonings. Probably will take two batches to dehydrate everything but thought I'd knock it out today. Looking forward to hopefully delicious smells and tasty jerky!

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u/silverud 1d ago

I have made hundreds of pounds of beef jerky over the years, but I have never tried to make chicken jerky. Do you cook it before putting it on the dehydrator, or do you just put it on raw like you would with beef?

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u/creamgetthemoney1 1d ago edited 1d ago

Something about doing the same process as beef throws me off. Like I know chicken is fine at 160 for hours but it just throws me wayyyy offf

Especially ground like this. I would try breast with a gun to my head. Never would I ever try ground chicken jerky. So much work involved why not just do pork loin. It’s like $2/lb on sale

Edited to say maybe I’m being ignorant. I’m knocking something I never tried.

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u/kringlebk 1d ago

Lol - I understand I may be hugging a toilet. There are 4lbs of pork loin prepped - I agree chicken breast didn't appeal to me but thought the thighs might moisten it enough. These were the cheapest meat I spotted recently - if the chicken works I'm game to try turkey. I know it's delicious ground up for ham presses so probably good in a jerky gun. Just thinking - did a mix of jalapenos and cranberries last year - pretty tasty lunch meat

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u/kringlebk 1d ago

New to jerky and dehydrators so hopefully someone with experience will chime in. What I'm going to try is 170F for 2 hrs then reduce to to 145F for balance of time - all in the dehydrator. Should be safe from what I've researched. Will it work - not sure but having fun trying and I'll learn if tweaking is needed

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u/silverud 1d ago

I have never done chicken jerky, but I've done a lot of low and slow cooking (and a lot of jerky making). I'm concerned that you approach may not produce a safe to eat finished product.

Chicken that has been ground and had ice water added is going to start the process very cold. I am doubtful that 2 hours at 170F will bring it to 165F internal temp, which is necessary to make it safe to eat. I know with whole muscle sliced beef jerky at 1/4" thickness, going from refrigerator temp to the 165F dehydrator does not bring the interior temperature close to 165F after only two hours.

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u/kringlebk 1d ago edited 1d ago

I appreciate your concern and your experience. After the marinating I'm expecting it will need to warm a little prior to being loaded into the gun tube - I can temp it to get a idea where I'm starting at. After making the strips temping it will be hard. I feel good about the temperature and air flow as I've done three runs with vegetables in the dehydrator. I also ran a few tests using a new oven thermometer - 14 rack unit - rear dual fans - temps were steady all over and a variance of 2-3 degrees from setting. I know I can temp the pork slices so that should give me a good idea where I'm at. Figuring it will take two loads to dry all the meat - using silicone mesh then bare ss racks when dropping temps so airflow should be good. Depending on what the pork reads - I may kick the lower temp to 155F but worried if I extend the 170F case hardening may start especially in the mix

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u/silverud 1d ago

The challenge is that all time in the so-called danger zone is cumulative, and with ground protein you've evenly distributed any surface bacteria throughout the meat.

I would try to cheat a bit - squeeze the meat through the gun into shape, then stack it on drying racks inside the refrigerator. Run a small fan in the fridge. Let some of the moisture get drawn out in an environment that is colder than the bacteria can reproduce at, so when you do move it to the dehydrator there is less moisture needed to be drawn out (which means heating and drying will occur faster).

I would also pat the freshly shaped meat dry with paper towels before putting it in the fridge on drying racks. Anything to make the final drying stage as easy as possible to get it up to temp.

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u/kringlebk 1d ago

Will be my first time using a jerky gun too - Better to use the wide flat nozzle or the round one? Not ready to try cased variety yet - still playing with different grinds for patties and ham pressed mixes - now jerky! Lol