Ping: Ig

Hi. I said to you before that when I had a good method for grinding jerky
to make pemmican that didn't come out gritty, I would let you know. As you
remember, I was having trouble with it coming out with a gritty consistency
because of not knowing the best way to grind it.
Well, what I have found by many small experiments and reading on the net,
was that it is best to use extremely dry jerky. So dry, that it snaps and
breaks when trying to rip them into smaller pieces. Dryness would also be
needed if the pemmican is going to be stored for years.
I dry it around 140 F for 6 hours and then turn it down to 120 F for
another 6 hours. I realize that too cool would tend to encourage bacteria
growth. But, too hot tends to cook the jerky rather than dry it and changes
the flavor. This seems to be more important during the final few hours of
drying since the release of water that keeps it somewhat cooler is no longer
doing so as it dries further.
After it is thoroughly dry, I rip them into small chunks and grind them up
in a hand crank meat grinder. Before, when I tried it, the meat tended to
clog up the grinder as it still contained too much water and would compact
at the holes. When the jerky is ultra dry, it tends to shred through the
small openings rather than squeeze out (and compact too much).
The result is a more smooth texture rather than small sharp pieces as what
I found with using a blender. I then mix it with about an equal amount of
rendered fat by weight. Also by several experiments, I found that just plain
un-spiced jerky had the best flavor. I've tried making some with dried
blueberries, but it seems kind of sweet. I don't want to make a candy bar.
I keep the pemmican in mason jars with about 1/4 inch of extra fat poured
on top after the pemmican has cooled, just to seal it off from any air. I
also scoop some into smaller muffin cups for snacks.
I still have some of my earlier batches. The oldest, although gritty, is
april 2004. It still tastes good other than the sandy texture. The sept 2004
batch is not gritty because I used the grinder. But after it was constantly
clogging, I gave up. It has been kept without refrigeration on top of my
cupboards in a tupperware container. No signs of rot or mould. I ate 2 oz.
of it a week ago.
It's quite labor intensive, but I like the idea of it lasting a long time
in storage. That to me was worth the effort of trying to work out the kinks.

Tom


--



Tom + Pat Gallant

Sounds great, there is a lot of calories per pound that can be stored
indefinitely -- a great emergency food. I went through my pemmican
stock rather quickly.

i

On Thu, 21 Sep 2006 02:11:57 GMT, Tom G wrote:
Hi. I said to you before that when I had a good method for grinding jerky
to make pemmican that didn't come out gritty, I would let you know. As you
remember, I was having trouble with it coming out with a gritty consistency
because of not knowing the best way to grind it.
Well, what I have found by many small experiments and reading on the net,
was that it is best to use extremely dry jerky. So dry, that it snaps and
breaks when trying to rip them into smaller pieces. Dryness would also be
needed if the pemmican is going to be stored for years.
I dry it around 140 F for 6 hours and then turn it down to 120 F for
another 6 hours. I realize that too cool would tend to encourage bacteria
growth. But, too hot tends to cook the jerky rather than dry it and changes
the flavor. This seems to be more important during the final few hours of
drying since the release of water that keeps it somewhat cooler is no longer
doing so as it dries further.
After it is thoroughly dry, I rip them into small chunks and grind them up
in a hand crank meat grinder. Before, when I tried it, the meat tended to
clog up the grinder as it still contained too much water and would compact
at the holes. When the jerky is ultra dry, it tends to shred through the
small openings rather than squeeze out (and compact too much).
The result is a more smooth texture rather than small sharp pieces as what
I found with using a blender. I then mix it with about an equal amount of
rendered fat by weight. Also by several experiments, I found that just plain
un-spiced jerky had the best flavor. I've tried making some with dried
blueberries, but it seems kind of sweet. I don't want to make a candy bar.
I keep the pemmican in mason jars with about 1/4 inch of extra fat poured
on top after the pemmican has cooled, just to seal it off from any air. I
also scoop some into smaller muffin cups for snacks.
I still have some of my earlier batches. The oldest, although gritty, is
april 2004. It still tastes good other than the sandy texture. The sept 2004
batch is not gritty because I used the grinder. But after it was constantly
clogging, I gave up. It has been kept without refrigeration on top of my
cupboards in a tupperware container. No signs of rot or mould. I ate 2 oz.
of it a week ago.
It's quite labor intensive, but I like the idea of it lasting a long time
in storage. That to me was worth the effort of trying to work out the kinks.

Tom





Tom + Pat Gallant

Hehe. It's hard to resist going into the long term storage batches. I
usually make enough to fill a 1 liter mason jar, and a little extra to eat.
Yes, it is a great emergency food store. It can keep for years without
refrigeration, is quite compact, and doesn't need any further cooking if the
need arises.


"Ignoramus11682" wrote in message
...
Sounds great, there is a lot of calories per pound that can be stored
indefinitely -- a great emergency food. I went through my pemmican
stock rather quickly.

i

"Ignoramus11682" wrote in message
...
Sounds great, there is a lot of calories per pound that can be stored
indefinitely -- a great emergency food. I went through my pemmican
stock rather quickly.


Did you have an emergency that required you to eat this stuff? What is the
purpose of Pemmican? Wouldn't some canned stew or chili be better? Just
curious...

On Wed, 20 Sep 2006 20:40:56 -0700, determined wrote:

"Ignoramus11682" wrote in message
...
Sounds great, there is a lot of calories per pound that can be stored
indefinitely -- a great emergency food. I went through my pemmican
stock rather quickly.


Did you have an emergency that required you to eat this stuff? What is the
purpose of Pemmican? Wouldn't some canned stew or chili be better? Just
curious...

I never had that emergency, it just tasted good and I ate it.

I am sure that canned chili is also just as edible (I take exception
to stews, which I think are disgusting), but it packs less calories
per pound, which could be important if it needs to be carried on one's
back.

i