Do you Drink when you Smoke??

[B-man715]

Got the smoker rolling right away again this morning finishing up a HUGE batch of jerky. Started out with 40lbs of delicious vension (all sliced whole muscle). About half done so far Should yeild somewheres around 15 pounds.

I'm thinking a Grain Belt would go down pretty good right now

[nofishfisherman]

Do I drink when I smoke? What kind of question is that?

The answer is of course YES. Beer is an important, dare I say critical part of the smoking process and if you dried separating the two you might cause some sort of chain reaction resulting in the earth imploding. I am certainly not going to take that risk. If you haven't opened a Grain Belt please do so immediately, look at it like you're saving the world.

[water rat]

Dang!! That looks delicious! Good thing you live close to me,I'll be right over.....

[fowldreams]

Thats like how long can a fish go with out water. Open the premium up. That looks fantastic. Care to pass along your process.

[B-man715]

Thats like how long can a fish go with out water. Open the premium up. That looks fantastic. Care to pass along your process.

'Bout eight deep into the box now By the time I'm done smoking I will look a little like......

Nothing too crazy of a process. This will sound harder than it is.

It all starts with the whole deer or two in tubs.

We prefer the sliced meat vs. hamburger jerky. Little more "jerk" to it

I'll take all of the big chunks of whole muscle (top/eye/bottom round), sirloin tips, and sometimes backstraps (if I already have a bunch in the freezer for steaks). There are also a few other chunks from the shoulder and even the neck that are big enough to use.

These get divided up in sections small enough to go through the jerky slicer (about an inch thick and five inches wide, length doesn't matter). Don't get picky with the silver skin unless the slice is more silver than red. But do your best with the fat.

Jerky can be sliced by hand, but if you really get into doing a lot, a jerky slicer is a must. It cuts something like 13 perfect strips in 2-3 seconds.

Then I freeze it into 12.5 pound tubes with a foodsaver.

When the time comes........... chuck a couple 2-3 tubes in a cooler with water over night. Next day season with what you please and put in the fridge over night. I have my own dry mix I make, but we also use store bought stuff too.

After a minimum of 12 hours (a day or two is preferred) chuck that stuff in a smoker. Laying on the racks works, but I can only get 4-5 pounds or so in. By hanging mulitple pieces on one tooth pick between the grates, the amount can be tripled (but it takes a good half hour to do).

Then light smoke (I like hickory) for three hours at 150-160. The temp isn't too critical, because all I am doing is smoking it. The pieces closest to the element may need to be pulled sooner, or just rotate racks or spin them as needed.

You can finish the jerky in the smoker (without smoke), just keep rotating the moister tray closest to the heat.

Since I do such large batches, I use the smoker for smoking, and then chuck it into the oven to finish (at the same time the smoker is getting reloaded with another round)...... sorta like a one man redneck assembly line

Don't over-do the smoke........Don't over-do the smoke.......

I set the oven a 170 to finish dehydrating until the desired texture occurs (I leave the oven door closed, seems to be more even heat). An electric dehydrator works too, just slower.

Once the majority is done, I put it all into a plastic grocery bag. This gets left on the countertop for a few hours. Since the meat is still hot, it is still releasing moisture. By letting it sit, this moisture re-hydrates the drier outsides of the slice. Allowing for a more uniform finished product.

If you plan on Foodsaver-ing, don't skip this step. The crunchier outsides of the jerky can put pin holes in the bag while vacuuming.

This system has worked for me for years! Tweak it any way you want

But for God's sake, don't just use a dehydrator/oven. Gotta have smoke to do the animal justice

[eyeguy 54]

If I was there right now I would buy you a Grain Belt...

[otterman91105]

Nothing goes better with a day of smokeing then an ice cold beer.

[ThunderLund78]

I drink even when I don't smoke

Looks fantastic, thanks for posting.

[Gordie]

I use to drink when I smoked but the more I drank the more I realized I couldn't multi task

So no I don't drink when I smoke ,oh and the world hasn't shifted off it's axis yet

That really looks good Bman and you deserve a drink.

[nofishfisherman]

So no I don't drink when I smoke ,oh and the world hasn't shifted off it's axis yet

YET!

[Gordie]

YET!

[pushbutton]

Should yeild somewheres around 15 pounds.

Yield maybe, but I would probably reduce that by 1/3 just testing it.....man that looks good! Like Gordie, I also lose focus when drinking

[SkunkedAgain]

The last section of my smoking log has columns for:

Beers Consumed

% Completed

You're not smoking well if you're off doing other things

[BobT]

Quote:

Do you Drink when you Smoke??

Yes, I do enjoy a beer or two when I smoke my cigars.

[blue_healer_guy]

Yes, and i do when im on this forum too!

[atvlaska]

grain belt.....i'll buy the 1st 10 rounds......

[BobT]

grain belt.....i'll buy the 1st 10 rounds......

Yes, just remember not to have more than 10 in possession.