NDKoze
Moderator
Well, the Fall 2016 Snack-Stick-A-Palooza is underway.
We stuffed 3 - 28-pound batches of sticks last night, hung them, and then started the first batch this morning at 7:30. They are pretty close to coming off but have probably about 30-60 minutes to go.
We stuffed two batches of Original Pepper Stick and one batch of Buffalo Bleu Cheese. We haven't tried the Buffalo Bleu Cheese before, so this is an experiment. For anyone who orders this one or the Teriyaki, the seasoning is VERY fine and can really get in your nose and/or lungs. So, if you have breathing problems, please beware. If we make this again, we are going to pour the seasonings and water in a bowl and mix outside instead of in the house and then mix in with the meat. The seasoning dust got in the air and had everyone in the house sneezing and coughing. It sure smelled good after getting the meat mixed and stuffed. We also made a test fry patty and it tasted pretty darn good too. It is hard to tell the final flavor when the meat is warm/hot, though. The real test will be after the sticks have been smoked and cooled.
I also took a video of the Smokin-It James Jerky Dryer doing its thing:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BBvKNFo25c&list=PLAE-0jlCKPWfsc0eAkFBvLDoXrZRcroEj&index=1
More pics as they get done.
*** 10/22/16 Update ***
We packaged up the first two batches (56lbs worth) in about 20-30 minutes. The VacMaster VP215 worked flawlessly. It was fast and the seals were awesome. It seems like we almost always have at least 1-3 failed bag seals per batch, and we didn't have a single failure from packaging the first 2 batches.
I have added some new pics of our processing line. I cut the sticks into the right sizes, either my son or one of my nephews puts the date/style on the bag (along with their name because they think it is funny), my brother packs in the bags, and then my Dad seals the bags. My Dad was pretty impressed with the new sealer and he is usually the one that would be giving me crap for spending so much money on things. I am very happy with this purchase.
The batch of Buffalo Bleu Cheese is in the smoker and should be ready late this afternoon. I am interested to see how this batch tastes since we have not made this one before.
We stuffed 3 - 28-pound batches of sticks last night, hung them, and then started the first batch this morning at 7:30. They are pretty close to coming off but have probably about 30-60 minutes to go.
We stuffed two batches of Original Pepper Stick and one batch of Buffalo Bleu Cheese. We haven't tried the Buffalo Bleu Cheese before, so this is an experiment. For anyone who orders this one or the Teriyaki, the seasoning is VERY fine and can really get in your nose and/or lungs. So, if you have breathing problems, please beware. If we make this again, we are going to pour the seasonings and water in a bowl and mix outside instead of in the house and then mix in with the meat. The seasoning dust got in the air and had everyone in the house sneezing and coughing. It sure smelled good after getting the meat mixed and stuffed. We also made a test fry patty and it tasted pretty darn good too. It is hard to tell the final flavor when the meat is warm/hot, though. The real test will be after the sticks have been smoked and cooled.
I also took a video of the Smokin-It James Jerky Dryer doing its thing:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9BBvKNFo25c&list=PLAE-0jlCKPWfsc0eAkFBvLDoXrZRcroEj&index=1
More pics as they get done.
*** 10/22/16 Update ***
We packaged up the first two batches (56lbs worth) in about 20-30 minutes. The VacMaster VP215 worked flawlessly. It was fast and the seals were awesome. It seems like we almost always have at least 1-3 failed bag seals per batch, and we didn't have a single failure from packaging the first 2 batches.
I have added some new pics of our processing line. I cut the sticks into the right sizes, either my son or one of my nephews puts the date/style on the bag (along with their name because they think it is funny), my brother packs in the bags, and then my Dad seals the bags. My Dad was pretty impressed with the new sealer and he is usually the one that would be giving me crap for spending so much money on things. I am very happy with this purchase.
The batch of Buffalo Bleu Cheese is in the smoker and should be ready late this afternoon. I am interested to see how this batch tastes since we have not made this one before.
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