Chipotle Beef Jerky
I adapted this recipe from an online source years ago, and it's been a favorite ever since. The chipotle peppers give it a hot, smoky flavor, while the brown sugar keeps it sweet. We take this on all our outdoor trips.
I adapted this recipe from an online source years ago, and it's been a favorite ever since. The chipotle peppers give it a hot, smoky flavor, while the brown sugar keeps it sweet. We take this on all our outdoor trips.
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 3 cups water
- 5 lb. top round of beef
- 2 cups soy sauce
- 2 cups worcestershire sauce
- 1 can chipotle in adobo sauce pureed in blender
- 2 tbsp. granulated garlic
- 2 tbsp. granulated onion
- 1/2 tbsp. jalapeã±o powder
- 1/2 tbsp. ground cumin
- 1/2 tbsp. coriander
- 1 tbsp. ancho chile pepper
- 1 tbsp. cracked black pepper
- 1 tbsp. crushed red pepper
- 1 tbsp. salt
- 2 oz. barbecue sauce
- Carbohydrate 7.34428801479367 g
- Cholesterol 0 mg
- Fat 0.16128000046355 g
- Fiber 1.20960000347662 g
- Protein 2.01868800579437 g
- Saturated Fat 0.0209664000602615 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (115g)
- Sodium 58.8842501671355 mg
- Sugar 6.13468801131705 g
- Trans Fat 0.0749952002155506 g
- Calories 34 calories
Step-by-step
- Trim and clean beef.
- Place in freezer until barely frozen to facilitate slicing.
- Slice 1/8-inch thick with a knife or slicer.
- Combine all in the ingredients in a large bowl.
- Add the thinly sliced meat and marinate for 2-3 hours minutes.
- Remove the meat and place in a dehydrator.
- Cook at 180 to 200 degrees until done (crispy).
- Place the dried jerky into zippered plastic bags
Soy sauce performs the heaviest labor in this marinade, acting as a curing agent through its high sodium content while simultaneously introducing glutamates that break down muscle fibers. Without this enzymatic degradation, the five pounds of top round would dehydrate into something resembling shoe leather rather than pliable, savory strips. Achieving consistent thickness requires placing the beef into the freezer until it is partially firm, yielding uniform one-eighth-inch slices that dry evenly across the dehydrator trays.
Sugars and capsaicin balance one another through opposing chemical reactions on the palate, where brown sugar coats the tongue to blunt the aggressive heat from pureed chipotle peppers, ancho chile, and jalapeño powder. When combining these elements with Worcestershire sauce and barbecue sauce, the moisture content must be carefully managed during dehydration, running the unit between 180 and 200 degrees Fahrenheit until the strips reach a completely crispy state. If excess marinade remains on the surface, pat the strips dry with paper towels prior to loading them onto the racks to prevent sticky spots that fail to dehydrate properly.
Properly dried beef jerky stored in airtight zippered plastic bags will maintain quality for several weeks at room temperature, though batches rarely last that long. Should you find extra jerky lingering in the pantry past its prime, chop it finely and fold it into morning egg scrambles or simmer it in broths to rehydrate the protein and release residual smoky compounds back into a sauce.
