Jerky---smoker or dehydrator?

[jackelope]

So I have a pile of venison sliced into strips for jerky.

I have a smoker.
I have a dehydrator.
I have an oven.

Wondering which way I should go. I've got about 5# of meat to do as a trial run. I've got more I can cut up if it works out well.

Anyone care to share a great recipe? I don't want to necessarily use the store bought cures because I don't want all of the ingredients I can't pronounce.

Thanks in advance!!
 

[Netminder01]

Smoker!!

[PolarBear]

All I do anymore is cut it a little thicker run the meat through a cuber once, soak in Yoshida's throw it in the dehydrator, sprinkle a little cracked pepper on top and let it go overnight.  I use to run it in the smoker but it usually wound up too smoky or like shoe leather.

[Jason]

Dehydrator 

[NRA4LIFE]

Dehydrator here.  It's more controllable and consistent.  I also had the same problem that Polarbear mentioned where it got too smoky in the smoker.

[Angry Perch]

I throw it on the Big Chief for a pan of smoke, then move it to the oven (has dehydrator setting). The house smells fantastic!

[Russ McDonald]

Dehydrator for sure.

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[MtnMuley]

Once I went with dehydrator, I never thought about the smoker again.

[jackelope]

Thanks guys. Sounds like a dehydrator is the way to go.

[h20hunter]

How about both.....throw it in the smoker to get a little flavor on it, then move over to the dehydrator.

[Timberstalker]

I've done it both ways. The way I found to be the best, is to use the smoker and smoke it the first half, then pull the smoke off and just cook it the last half. This will prevent the bitter over smoked taste.

[jackelope]

I've done it both ways. The way I found to be the best, is to use the smoker and smoke it the first half, then pull the smoke off and just cook it the last half. This will prevent the bitter over smoked taste.

In the smoker, right? I was thinking about just a pan worth of chips, let them burn off and just leave it in there the rest of the time. I can swap out to the dehydrator or just use the dehydrator for the whole thing.

[grundy53]

Another vote for the dehydrator.

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[Timberstalker]

I've done it both ways. The way I found to be the best, is to use the smoker and smoke it the first half, then pull the smoke off and just cook it the last half. This will prevent the bitter over smoked taste.

In the smoker, right? I was thinking about just a pan worth of chips, let them burn off and just leave it in there the rest of the time. I can swap out to the dehydrator or just use the dehydrator for the whole thing.

Correct. That's all in the smoker.

[grundy53]

This is the recipe I use. Except I do 1 hour at 160ish then reduce to 105 for about 8 hours or until done.

I just made a batch of jerky in my dehydrator. Turned out pretty good. Anybody have have exp with this? Not sure how long to dehydrate? I was able to bend the jerky but it did not break or crack.  Has a good flavor and spice to it.

my recipe:

2 lbs of meat

2/3 cups of soy
2/3 cups of worshchire sauce
1 cup of brown sugar
course black pepper
red chili flakes
marinated for 24 hours
and placed in the dehydrator for about 5 hours at 155 degrees

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[grundy53]

http://hunting-washington.com/smf/index.php?topic=41106.0

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[KFhunter]

I've done it both ways. The way I found to be the best, is to use the smoker and smoke it the first half, then pull the smoke off and just cook it the last half. This will prevent the bitter over smoked taste.

In the smoker, right? I was thinking about just a pan worth of chips, let them burn off and just leave it in there the rest of the time. I can swap out to the dehydrator or just use the dehydrator for the whole thing.

That will work fine,  I did three pans last time and it was gross.   1 pan and once it's done pouring out smoke remove the pan and just leave (the meat) in there.   


With the pan removed it's just a dehydrator at that point.



Are you talking about the little or big chief smoker?

[jackelope]

I've done it both ways. The way I found to be the best, is to use the smoker and smoke it the first half, then pull the smoke off and just cook it the last half. This will prevent the bitter over smoked taste.

In the smoker, right? I was thinking about just a pan worth of chips, let them burn off and just leave it in there the rest of the time. I can swap out to the dehydrator or just use the dehydrator for the whole thing.

That will work fine,  I did three pans last time and it was gross.   1 pan and once it's done pouring out smoke remove the pan and just leave (the meat) in there.   


With the pan removed it's just a dehydrator at that point.



Are you talking about the little or big chief smoker?

I have a Masterbuilt similar to this one:
https://www.masterbuilt.com/cookmaster-propane-smoker.html

[HUNTaHOLIC5]

Done both and prefer dehydrator and liquid smoke.

[CP]

How about both.....throw it in the smoker to get a little flavor on it, then move over to the dehydrator.

  - Better flavor from the smoker

http://hunting-washington.com/smf/index.php/topic,182081.0.html

[runamuk]

I made a bunch of jerky my first time making jerky and using a smoker, its a little electric masterbuilt and my jerky turned out amazing.

[jrebel]

Smoker all the way!!!   

Curious if the people saying dehydrater have ever done it in a smoker....once you do you will never use your dehydrator again.   

[Jason]

Smoker all the way!!!   

Curious if the people saying dehydrater have ever done it in a smoker....once you do you will never use your dehydrator again.   

Been there and done that, I will never go back to a jerky in the smoker.

[packmule]

Smoke for an hour then dehydrator to finish or just the dehydrator if that's too many steps 

[grundy53]

Smoker all the way!!!   

Curious if the people saying dehydrater have ever done it in a smoker....once you do you will never use your dehydrator again.   

Done both. I prefer the dehydrator.

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[GameHunter1959]

I have done a tremendous amount of smoked meats, cheeses, etc. My issue; no matter how much you rotate the items, they never seem to all cook evenly in a smoker. Some say; "set it and forget it". Not in my experience with all the moisture and temp changes in Washington. I am going to start doing all jerky in a dehydrator. You can do way more in a batch, cheaper, consistent, etc. If anything; start in in a smoker for 2 hours and finish it off in a dehydrator. Good luck..

[biggfish]

Liquid smoke to any recipe will give it that smoked taste. I've only ever used a dehydrator, just don't forget it's in there I've made jerky dust in the past.

[trophyelk6x6]

I built this smoker but also use it as a dehydrator.  I have a 1500 watt system and run a fan along with just the heat from the burner to "dry" my jerky.  I got so tired of having small dehydrators and smokers to do the work. 

[trophyelk6x6]

I didn't mention I am not big on smoking or applying smoke to Jerky. I think your brine is your flavor and drying is the process to utilize. Using smoke for fish and certain sausage is another story.  I would love to try jerky that has had smoked applied?  Liquid smoke on anything   Doesn't sound right to me but have heard some people put some when canning certain meats. 

[bigjohn98591]

I run one sometimes two pans of chips in the smoker. then let it sit in the smoker (I have a Big Chief) with the heat on. I check the doneness every couple of hours and pull as the get to my desired level of done, and consolidate the racks as nessassary. I take the thicker pieces that are left at the end and will use the dehydrator on them.
I like this recipe:

1TBS onion powder
1TBS garlic powder
2TSP black pepper(or to taste)
1Lb Meat of your choice cut into 1/8 inch strips
1/2C brown sugar
2/3C Soy Sauce
1/4C Teriyaki Sauce
1/4C Worcestershire Sauce
1/3C Balsamic Vinegar
5TBS Liquid Smoke (omit if using a smoker)
1/2C Pineapple Juice
1TSP Red Pepper Flake (or to taste) Optional

1) In small bowl mix dry ingredients. Lightly (or tot taste) season meat. reserve remaining mixture.

2) Heat over medium heat, mix remaining ingredients and heat until the brown sugar is dissolved. refrigerate until cool.

3)Pour cooled marinade over the seasoned meat, mix to coat well. refrigerate for at least 3 hours.

4) Arrange strips on racks ( smoker or dehydrator) and sprinkle with a bit more of the spice mixture and red pepper flake (if using). Dehydrate for approx. 5 hours, or smoke until desired donness.

This will make a sweet n Spicy jerky I usually add about a 1/4 of the red peppr flake to the liquid mixture. and use my smoke as I described.   

[andersonjk4]

Definitely the smoker.

I had the same dilemma last year with a bunch of deer jerky.  I ended up doing 1/3 in the smoker, 1/3 in the dehydrator, and 1/3 in the oven (mainly because I couldn't get it all in the smoker in a single batch and because I wanted to see what turned out better).  The smoked jerky turned out way better than the others.  I used store bought cure as my base and then added different flavors (teriyaki, mesquite, etc.) to them, so I can't help with a recipe. 

[mossy8352]

All of the above will work but I now use our Traeger for all of my jerky and smoking Canadian bacon and the dehydrator is left with vegetables and fruit. one thing few talk about is slicing the meat, and for me it is 1/4 inch thick CROSS GRAIN which make for easy eating and not the hard as shoe leather you end up with if you slice your meat with the grain. The basic method I use now after years of making jerky is below. The one change is I only run on smoke for one hour then up the temperature to 180 until done to my liking!

[GameHunter1959]

I didn't mention I am not big on smoking or applying smoke to Jerky. I think your brine is your flavor and drying is the process to utilize. Using smoke for fish and certain sausage is another story.  I would love to try jerky that has had smoked applied?  Liquid smoke on anything   Doesn't sound right to me but have heard some people put some when canning certain meats.

I'm not a fan of liquid smoke either. Liquid smoke is an easy way to make a small batch of jerky in your oven. If you are serious about smoked meat products; most won't use liquid smoke. It has it's place, but I won't use it.

Mesquite and Hickory woods work well on jerky. Most make the mistake of over smoking their meat and it becomes too rich. In some cases not good at all. I use a Bradley Smoker. The nice thing about a Bradley is the digital box has 2 separate settings. One is for the smoker time and the other is for the oven time and temperature. Typically I will warm my oven up to 120 degrees for 1 hour before I put any meat in. Once I put the meat in, I will run the smoker for the first 2 hours. The remaining 3-5 hours I leave the oven on at 120 degrees. Some will restart the smoker for the last hour to put a final smoke on it.

Use the seasonings to create the flavor and add a little smoke with it. I also recommend letting the seasonings work into the meat for at least 3-10 days. The longer you let the seasonings work; the deeper penetration you will get. That is why I recommend a short smoke time. Too much smoke and you will never taste the flavor to begin with. 2 cents

[GameHunter1959]

All of the above will work but I now use our Traeger for all of my jerky and smoking Canadian bacon and the dehydrator is left with vegetables and fruit. one thing few talk about is slicing the meat, and for me it is 1/4 inch thick CROSS GRAIN which make for easy eating and not the hard as shoe leather you end up with if you slice your meat with the grain. The basic method I use now after years of making jerky is below. The one change is I only run on smoke for one hour then up the temperature to 180 until done to my liking!

I hear nothing but great things about Traeger. I have cooked steak on a Traeger a few times. The Traeger unit seems to be the most versatile and consistent unit in the market place. I also recommend the Master Built unit. Master Built is very under-rated. I have a few friends that have them and speak highly of their units. For the price and the size of the unit; its worth the money. Definitely Traeger is the way to go. My next purchase...