Beef Jerky

The secret to the perfect beef jerky is found in a bag of Butchers and Packers Beef Jerky Seasoning and Cure. Sadly however, they are far, far away, in Edmonton, Alberta. But if you ever do find yourself in the area, a stop in is definitely a must. I say that, although I've never been. But a very good friend of my husband's, Jon Montague, his dad makes sure that when he goes, he gets enough to share with us, woohoo!!

Here's what my husband does.

Buy flank steak, slice it thinly with the grain – that's how you make it long, stringy and chewy. Then you mix the spice and the sodium nitrate together – the sodium nitrate is what cures the meat, it prevents you from getting food poisoning basically. Add it to the meat and mix it well. Cure it in the fridge, covered for 24 hours or more. When you take it out, it's very hard and “cooked”. Then dry it in the oven.

We have a drying feature on our oven, it gets to 140 degrees with the fan on and you can leave the door ajar just a bit to let the moisture out.

I bring only a small amount to work with me. The pepperiness of the spice, and of course saltiness, put my taste buds into overdrive. I'm not sure if it's the meat itself or my overactive saliva glands that cause the meat to be so juicy. Then I just close my eyes and I feel like I'm sitting in my backyard having a bbq. My husband brought a huge bag of it on a golf trip and it was gone in 30 seconds. Best jerky they've ever had.

I'm not sure if they deliver, but I'm positive it's worth looking into.

www.butchersandpackers.com