Spicy Turkey Jerky Recipe
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Difficulty: Easy |
Total Time:
4 hrs, plus freezing and marinating time
|
Active Time:
|
Makes:
1 pound
An overnight bath in a sweet, salty, spicy marinade helps transform one-dimensional turkey into tasty jerky.
What to buy: Look for chile-garlic paste in the Asian section of your supermarket. We prefer the one made by Huy Fong Foods (with the rooster on the jar).
Game plan: If you have a conventional oven, you can proceed with the recipe as laid out below. If you have a relatively new, digital oven, look to see if you have a “dehydrate” option under the convection setting—it will ensure even air circulation as the turkey dries.
The jerky will last up to 1 month when stored at room temperature in an airtight container.
This recipe was featured as part of our Make Your Own Jerky project.
INGREDIENTS
- 2 pounds boneless skinless turkey breast
- 3/4 cup soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 2 tablespoons chile-garlic paste
- 2 teaspoons dried red chile flakes
INSTRUCTIONS
- Arrange turkey breast flat on a plate or baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap, and freeze until firm, about 2 hours.
- When turkey is ready, place on a cutting board, trim any visible fat and membranes, and slice along the grain into 1/4-inch-thick strips. (You want the strips to be as uniform as possible to ensure even drying.)
- Place all remaining ingredients in a large baking dish or resealable plastic bag, and mix until evenly combined. Place turkey strips in marinade and toss thoroughly to coat. Cover and place in the refrigerator for 12 hours, turning occasionally.
- Remove turkey from the refrigerator, place in a colander to drain off excess marinade, and let come to room temperature, about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, remove the racks from the oven, completely line the bottom of the oven with foil, and heat to 165°F.
- Spray the oven racks with nonstick cooking spray, blot any excess marinade from the turkey with paper towels, and arrange strips horizontally across the racks, leaving at least 1/2 inch of space between strips.
- Place the racks back in the oven and dehydrate jerky until dry, darker in color, and, when bent, it gives way before breaking but doesn’t snap, about 2 hours. For chewier jerky, dry an additional 1/2 hour.
- Blot any oil or moisture from the jerky with paper towels and cool completely on the racks before storing.
I made this and added a tbsp of thai fish sauce to the marinade and it came out amazing, great recipe! I ended up following the time to cook from another site, it was more like 6-7 hrs than 4 and i recommend making it so the oven is just slightly cracked open (i closed the door on a spatula) to let the steam escape so it drys more.
Sorry, I saw the answer.
Do you buy chile-garlic paste? If so, can you tell me which one you use?
Thanks.
I can't wait to try this. I've always only made beef jerky because I was so reluctant to make the turkey...just the fear of "raw poultry". But I've seen so many reciples for turkey jerky so I guess it's safe? I have a dehydrator. Can I use that?
tess_the _tyrant, the one ingredient that sends red flags immediately is butter. The idea of jerky is to dry out the meat, making it shelf stable. Butter contains fat and when it comes to jerky, fat is your enemy as it will turn rancid (this is why we chose lean cuts of meat). Frank's, honey, and red wine are fine to marinate with, but you may want to lessen the marinating time as the hot sauce contains a lot of vinegar and the wine has alcohol, which may penetrate the meat faster than the above recipe's marinate. Let us know how it works out!
Are there certain ingredient restrictions that would slow down the drying process which shouldn't be used for jerky-making? This recipe sounds great, but I want to try some jerky with one of my favourite hot sauces: Frank's, butter, honey and a splash of red wine. If one of these is a jerky-making bad call, please let me know!
Very thorough instructions...thanks Amy! We make the Tropical Turkey Jerky from a recipe that we got here: http://beefjerkyrecipes.com/meat-type... . The instructions are NOWHERE as thorough as yours...but the recipe is good. I would suggest that if you are going to make jerky on more than one occasion, try cutting the meat both with and against the grain. It changes the consistency of the meat and depending on the meat type, it could make a jerky that would otherwise be very tough to chew, much easier to chew. Good luck!