Chicken Jerky

[Jeff423]

I can't afford beef and Costco always has sales on chicken so I'm trying to make chicken jerky without as much success as I would like.

I have several questions:

• I would be interested in a good cure/brine recipe. I have been using a soy, Worcestershire and garlic recipe that is too salty. I tried to dilute the soy sauce portion with 50% water but that wasn't great either.
• Next question: How long do you marinate? I've been going about 12 hrs. Too much, too little?
• Finally temperature: I've been at 140f for 4 hrs. To short, too cool, too warm?

TIA
Jeff

 

[Eagle 477]

Costco also has chicken Jerky !!

Bob

 

[THE PILGRIM]

Had eaten Jerked Chicken.
Never had Chicken Jerky.
Will try it if I see it!

 

[ExRanger714]

Remember chicken jerky is dried raw chicken--no way for me!

And no pork jerky either.

Maybe if they gamma ray sterilized.

 

[kwselke]

I've had turkey jerky that I bought at a combo meat market/gas station, it was good. Bought some salmon jerky at Trader Joe's, it was a bit fishy. I'm not a jerky chef, but when dealing with poultry I'd think temperatures over 170 degrees and plenty of salts/cures would be needed to battle bacterial issues.

 

[STCM(SW)]

Chicken jerky I buy for my dog.....

 

[kthom]

Only way you can make chicken jerky is to grind it up and squeeze it out of one of those contraptions that some sell to make jerky with. YUCK!! both to that kind of jerky made from anything. My personal preference, of course!

Real jerky is made from beef or venison or similar. It is sliced very thinly, seasoned to your taste or not at all, and then put out in the sunshine for about two weeks to dry and cure. It requires some teeth and strength to bite off a piece and chew it up and it will keep for a long time if stored properly. It also makes good gravy or SOS if cut up into small pieces and added to good flour gravy!

I'll eat chicken ... sometimes, depending on how it's well cooked and mostly fried. Turkey, maybe at Thanksgiving and then only the first time around. Neither ever for jerky! Not disrespecting the OP's efforts here, just stating my personal preference.

 

[Rustyt1953]

If I want dehydrated chicken I'll go to Applebee's.

 

[CAJUNLAWYER]

If you want chicken jerky just let my wife "gently" saute some chicken breast tenderloins

 

[JayFramer]

Try "jerked wombat over mash", an Ausi favorite!!

 

[ExcitableBoy]

No thanks. Stewed, fried, BBQ'd... you bet! It sounds as appealing as Spam jerky!

 

[soFlaNative]

Thinking no matter how you cook the chicken, a jerky equivalent will turn to dust.
I brine boneless breasts for the grill using a gallon Zip-Loc bag with a cup 1/2, two cups of water with a heaping Tb. of kosher salt, 2 Tb. of brown sugar. 1/2 tsp. garlic and 1 tsp. onion powders.
A shot of Wooster is good, anything from mustard powder to allspice to whatever else you want will work but you can't miss with just those first four.
I don't flatten the chicken and don't soak more than an hour.
Curious about the 4 hr. at 140. Try it, maybe you'll be a hit at your next gun show.

 

[Mule Packer]

Chicken jerky?? Chicken jerky?? I'm gonna have to agree with ExRanger714 and kwselke. Can everybody say "salmonella?"

I mean...have you ever wondered why you never see "pork tartare" on a restaurant menu? Eating chicken jerky, in my mind, is the gastronomical equivalent of Russian Roulette. Kinda like eating gas station sushi or drinking a bottle of your next-door neighbor's homemade anchovie wine.

 

[Jeff423]

You need to keep in mind that TIME and temperature are both parts of the bacteria kill equation. The 167f temp for chicken is the instantaneous temp. necessary for a kill. You can cook at a much lower temperature if you hold the meat at that temperature for a few hours.
Salmonella is killed by holding it at 131f for 60 min., or 140 f for 30 min. or 167f for 10 min.
Trichinosis is killed at 135 F, so it's safe to eat pork if it's cooked to at least 140 or 145 F.
I learned about lower temperature cooking when I got involved in Sous Vide cooking. It involves sealing whatever you are cooking in a plastic bag and heating it in a circulating water bath at a precise temperature for a specified time. I recently cooked a chuck roast at 133f for 24 hours and it tasted and had a texture more like prime rib than pot roast.

 

[Grip_Maker's_Wife]

I don't know anything about making jerky but do know a little about marinades. Worcestershire is pretty salty on its own. Are you using low-sodium Soy sauce? A good mix is a balsamic vinegar to low sodium soy sauce 2-1 ratio. A good Balsamic is important. I like the Trader Joes Gold. They have a red one too but the Gold is a million times better and tastes just like the $10 ones.

Why don't you try some citrus marinades?

Lime juice, garlic, fresh minced cilantro, ground cumin, coriander, salt and pepper to taste. You can add some crushed red pepper too.

Orange juice, fresh ginger and a little low sodium soy sauce are good too on chicken.

 

[JayFramer]

I hate over seasoned jerky. Such a salty, sodium-laden mess!!

Keep my meet MOOING and with little salt, just as the native Americans made it!

 

[nuguy]

Never had chicken jerky. I do have a friend that drops of a bag of his goose jerky every once in awhile. I have no idea what kind of recipe he uses, I just hope he keeps dropping off a sample occasionally.

 

[joeldd]

I make jerky for years now. Have tried chicken and turkey breast, both too much work due to meat texture. The real jerky is whole pork loin. Eats like beef when done. Costco or BJs it's $1.79 a pound for about 10 pounds. I make jerky with around 6 pounds and cook the rest for dinner.