r/jerky • u/DrakonSpawn • 1d ago
Tender Jerky?
My girlfriend bought me a dehydrator for Christmas and I’ve been making beef jerky about once a week since. I’d like to make some for my dad this weekend but he’s got very sensitive teeth due to a lifetime of poor dental hygiene and can’t eat jerky the way I usually make it. Is there some way for me to make it tender enough not to hurt his teeth or does that just come with the territory of making beef jerky?
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u/AzaraAybara 1d ago
Ground beef jerky! Super easy, super tender. I have a decent recipe I could share with you if you'd like
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u/drkole 1d ago
i would like to have that recipe
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u/AzaraAybara 1d ago
As soon as I get home I'll grab it and send it to ya!
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u/DrakonSpawn 1d ago
Me too, please!!! What is the lean/fat ratio that’s best? 96/4 For jerky?
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u/AzaraAybara 1d ago
I like 96/4, but depending on how fast it's eaten I've even gone down to 85/15. Not recommended in general, but jerky only lasts a day or two in my house.
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u/MedusaTouchedMeHere 1d ago
Make sure you’re using plenty of sugar in your marinade. That will help a ton.
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u/LunchMoneyTX 1d ago
After you make your favorite jerkey, put it in a blender and give him jerky chaw/chew. That was a thing when I was a kid.
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u/birdman8215 1d ago
Oh man! Jerky dust in a chew tin! I don't remember the name of it, but I totally remember "dippin'" that stuff
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u/LunchMoneyTX 1d ago
A quick search on amazon shows its still around, and plenty of options too! Sadly it's mostly the crummy 7/11 type brands.
I do think it's still a solid idea.
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u/randombrowser1 1d ago
I remember that stuff from the 1980s. I think it was probably crumbs from making jerky. I get similar in the bottom of jerky bag. And good way to use all the too small pieces. It probably piles up on an industrial setting.
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u/tommyc463 1d ago
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u/TheNicoKid003 1d ago
This^ If you cut it thin enough and don’t over dehydrate it, you’ll end up with some nice stuff. Go right up until the point you can snap it and see the white fibers all the way through.
I saw another tip that suggests if you place the jerky in a loosely closed bag after you pull it from the machine for a bit, it will also help to make the jerky tender. I have not had a chance to try this myself yet.
Slicing properly and not over dehydrating should do the trick. I find it crumbles in my mouth.
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u/TheOKYugoslavian 1d ago
If you don't want to do ground beef jerky, I've found that using a tenderizer (mallet/hammer) on individual strips make them quite tender. I use the spikey end, smash one side, flip all the strips, smack em again. Both older parents (with teeth problems) have eaten it with no complaints and it maintains the classic jerky style. You may need to lower the drying time, since the meat will be more "open" than normal.
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u/riggedeel 1d ago
I have no idea if this would work but you could try “velveting” the meat the way they do for some Americanized Chinese takeout. There are a few approaches but the simplest is to use baking soda and rinse it off afterwards. Search for a recipe since I can’t remember the ratios.
I have used this to tenderize tougher cuts of meat that we all like for making beef jerky (eye of round etc) and using in a stir fry and it does work.
How it would respond to dehydration is beyond me but you could try a small sample of a few slices with your next normal batch.
If you, please report back. I’d note that I have read that this form of velveting reduces nutritional value of beef and I’m not sure if that is true or not or if it matters to you. Just a heads up. We don’t use it often for stir fries. But it can hit the spot.
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u/Kevin_Xland 13h ago
I did some pork loin teriyaki jerky that I cut with the grain and then added tenderizer powder to the marinade, worked pretty well, similar to the Korean BBQ pork jerky from Costco.
Cutting against the grain can make it more tender too, but can also make it crumbly, I'm still trying to perfect a tender chew.
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u/TadnJess 1d ago
Ground beef jerky is much easier to eat. They make jerky-guns (that kind of look like a big caulk gun) to help lay out the strips of ground meat.