The Best Beef Jerky In The World

Jerky is definitely my favorite snack, hands down (followed closely by popcorn). However, I find that good jerky is EXTREMELY hard to come by. Growing up, I lived near a butcher who made his own. It was meaty, mouth-watering, spicy, tender and delicious. It was nothing short of life-changing. …But the shop was hardly ever open, and even when it was, the jerky was more per pound than I made per hour at my first job.

When I moved to the city I had a hard time finding tolerable jerky. I tried almost every single brand I could find and was thoroughly disappointed with all of them. There’s something off about the mass produced, overpriced jerky you find in the store. The taste is alright, but the consistency is something other than meat-like. If I’m going to pay $8 for four pieces of jerky in an overinflated bag, I at least want to feel like its actually made out of meat.

Conversely, the “local” stuff they sell by the check-out in gas stations can be even worse! It’s often paper thin, hard, and brittle. Why would I want to swallow something that shatters when I chew it?

When I bought The 4-Hour Chef and saw “The Best Beef Jerky In The World” among the recipes, I was ecstatic. ALSO, it turns out that the recipe came from one of my favorite dudes, six-time New York Times best-selling author Neil Strauss. Apparently, he became obsessed with finding the best jerky recipe, experimenting and split-testing countless batches of marinades, until finally one winner emerged.

The recipe for that winner follows:

Ingredients (to make 2.3 kg/5 lb):

• 2 kg (5 lb) Lean Brisket
• 470 ml (2 c) Soy sauce (I used Kikkoman)
• 470 ml (2 c) Worchestershire sauce (I used Lea & Perrins)
• 470 ml (2 c) Teriyaki (Something thick & flavorful. I used Soy Vay Hoisin Garlic Asian Glaze)
• 240 ml (1 c) Liquid smoke (Found mine at Pick N Save – I got one Hickory & one Mesquite)
• 120 ml (1/2 c) Dark corn syrup (I used Karo)
• 3 T Garlic powder
• 3 T Onion powder
• 3 T Sesame seeds
• 3 T Brown sugar
• 1 T Cayenne pepper

Gear:

• Large mixing bowl
• Aluminum foil
• Oven

Total Time: 15 minutes + 24 hrs for marinating + 24 hrs for drying and cooling

Now this is actually quite simple to make – it took me longer to find all the ingredients at the grocery store than it took of actual work.

Step 1: Acquire ingredients.

For the brisket, I would call ahead of time to a local butcher and ask them to slice 5 pounds of lean beef brisket at no more than a 1/4” thick. The leaner the cut, the better the jerky will turn out. The fat doesn’t dry out as well and it won’t keep as well as the meat. You might want to ask them to cut it less than 1/4”. I told my butcher, “No more than a  1/4 inch”, but some of the slices turned out to be thicker anyway. If the slices are thicker, the jerky won’t dry all the way through and it will be raw in the center.

Alternatively, you can cut it yourself, but this is rather time consuming and frustrating if you don’t have a good knife (or good knife skills). If you choose to do it this way, definitely freeze it first. When you take it out to slice it will be much easier.

Out of the rest of the ingredients Liquid Smoke is probably the hardest to find, but you should be able to find it at Pick N Save or any big grocery chain along with everything else. I got one Mesquite and one Hickory and split tested my batch. The difference was hardly noticeable, but I liked the smokiness of the Mesquite a little more.

Step 2: Mix the ingredients for the marinade together in the large mixing bowl.

Step 3: Add slices of meat one-by-one to the bowl. Make sure they are completely covered with marinade.

Step 4: Cover bowl and put in the fridge for 24 hours.

Step 5: Line oven with aluminum foil (otherwise this will be a hell of a mess to clean up after)

Step 6: Place jerky on oven racks (you might want to line the racks with foil as well). For best results, place the racks as high as possible

Step 7: Set oven to 160 °F and prop door slightly open. A crushed beer can works perfectly.

Step 8: Wait 3 hours, flip the jerky, wait another 3 hours, and repeat this until it’s done (mine took about 7 hours total). When it’s done it should be dry almost all the way through, but not to the point where it will crack (you don’t want to make gas station jerky). You can definitely (and should definitely) taste it at this point.

Step 9: Once it’s all done, just shut the oven off and let it cool for up to 24 hours. Any more and it may get too dried out.

Step 10: Store/eat! In zip lock bags, the jerky will last up to 6 months without refrigeration. I used smaller bags and gave them away to my friends as gifts. I can’t tell you how many texts I got the next morning saying, “Dude. This is the best jerky I’ve ever had.”

ENJOY!!!!!