Smoked Jerky 2nd try

[paidin]

I have 12 pounds of deer sliced up and marinating.  The marinade recipe is posted in my first jerky post.  This time, I will try smoking at 100 degrees... or maybe 120 degrees... I dont know, still deciding on what to do.  I will definitely not smoke at 160 degrees.  I also plan on using the AMNPS and pellets to get consistent smoke.  Do not know if I want to go for smoke the first two hours only or for the entire smoke.  Also planning on running the fan the entire time.  This time I will be using the auber.  The first time was with the analog controls.  Right now the meat is marinating in the fridge.  Probably will wait one more day before smoking.

The picture of the marinade is when the blended fresh ghost peppers mixed in with a can of chipoltes in adobo.  This is going to have a little kick to it

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[DivotMaker]

Holy smokes!  Ghost pepper jerky?  Yikes!!    Better have a fire extinguisher handy!

[paidin]

we usually put ghost peppers in every batch.  Usually just one or two so you get the aroma without the pain.  This time, the client likes it hot.  we placed 4 peppers in 12 pounds of meat.  that should be about medium to medium hot.  I like to put fresh peppers in, whether it is jalapenos or ghost peppers because you get that "floral" bouquet that you cannot get with canned or cooked peppers.

Yes I said client   people give me their deer meat and I make them jerky and sausage for at no cost to them.  I do get to keep half of what I make though

[paidin]

added the jerky after taking out the snack sticks.  This is what 12 pounds of meat cut down to 1/8" strips looks like in the Smokin-It #4.

I put in about 3 inches of pellets to get 2-3 hours of smoke.  I do not know if I want an entire session of smoke.  I would rather be conservative this time and go longer the next time if need be.  I left the fan off for the first 2 hours to get some smoke penetration and turned it on for the rest of the time.  The auber program was:
130 degrees for 12 hours

I am not sure how long this will take so I just randomly chose 12 hours.  I want to go 100 degrees but I do not have the time to wait that long.  I do not want to go 160 degrees because of the advice from this forum.  I chose a happy medium of 130 degrees for now to see how it turns out.  How can I tell when the jerky is done again?  Time to look through the forums again...

[paidin]

Disaster again!!

At first glance, the jerky looked awesome and tasted great!  But then, upon closer inspection, there was mold!  I started at 130 degrees for about 3 hours then turned it down to 100 degrees for the duration of the night and the next morning while I was at work.  When I checked in the morning, it was still very wet so I turned it up to 130 degrees and kept it going till lunch time.  When lunch time came, I realized that the back right corner of the smoker was drier than the rest so I took some of the dried jerky off.  That was when I noticed white rings on the jerky.  Upon closer inspection, it looks like mold to me.  To rotated the racks and turned it up to 145 degrees.  When I got home, most of them were dried and i have just one rack left to dry in the smoker.  Sigh, jerky was always so easy in the dehydrator.  Maybe next time, I will get it just right in the smoker.  I think I will smoke a for 4-5 hours instead of 2 hours.  I will also run it at 140 degrees instead of 100 degrees.

[Mike]

Wasn't sure if that was mold or fat?..when I started making jerky at the low temp 100* I was told to make sure I used curing salt.

Mike

[paidin]

its not fat.  I use mortons tender quick for the cure.  2 Tablespoons for 10 pounds of meat.  Well, isn't penicillin made from mold?  Maybe I will get healthier eating this moldy jerky lol.

[DivotMaker]

That's why I oppose the really low-temp approach.  I use 140, but would probably use 145-150 with that much meat in a #4 (to compensate for the volume).  That definitely looks like mold!

I would also recommend using Instacure #1 in your brine instead of tender quick.  Pure #1 curing salt will inhibit anything growing on the meat better.

[Pork Belly]

Low temp did not cause the issue by its self. Jerky is not a set it and forget it smoking operation. You have to end it. Trays need to be rotated, jerky needs to be flipped. I would never run a batch of jerky when I was not present to keep track of it. I mention that in previous post. I open the smoker every 1.5 hours or so to check things out. One other point is, that meat was sloppy wet, if your going to use a wet cure dry the meat with paper towels prior to loading.

That mold will not hurt you. Properly done charcuterie is often solid covered in mold. Finish drying the jerky if it is not already dry, bag it all up and throw it in the freezer. Take out small amounts that you will eat that day, if you leave it sitting around longer than that it could spread. You could dunk the entire batch in 50/50 vinegar/water or vinegar/wine to kill the mold but you will have to re-dry it. If you do kill the mold and attempt to re-dry it, you will need to wipe down the interior of the smoker and all the racks to insure you kill it or you will just be placing new mold on the "cleaned " jerky. Running the smoker at 250 may kill the mold spore in it but I dont know.

[paidin]

this mold was nobodys fault but my own.  I should have but I did not
I love the wet brining method and the flavor it imparts.  I want every last drop of marinade to dehydrate onto the meat.  It has worked very well in the past with my LEM dehydrator at max temps (~160 degrees)

Next time, I think I will use 140ish the whole time and see what results I get.  Using so many trays loaded with meat at once gave me a good 3 dimensional model of the heat signature inside my smoker.  Now I can envision the hot and cool spots in my smoker and place meat accordingly.  For instance, after the jerky was removed, I put 3 pork butts inside the smoker.  I placed one on the lower tray and two on the upper tray.  I placed them where the heat should be for an even cook on all 3 pieces of meat.

[DivotMaker]

Fine looking butts - and no mold!

[paidin]

Fine looking butts - and no mold!

LOL we will see.  I did not bothering cleaning the smoker up first.  I even used the same grates uncleaned.  I am counting on the 225 degrees to clean things up for me.  yes I am lazy, thats why I spent $1400 to smoke food instead of a $100 stick burner from walmart

[DivotMaker]

...thats why I spent $1400 to smoke food instead of a $100 stick burner from walmart

Yep!    You go, man!  I bet the butts will be great!