I made Spicy Biltong for the family again so let's let Mr Ladybug take you through the steps:
First the beef.
You're not making steak. I don't think you need to be fussy about the cut of beef except to avoid the fatty bits (and only because the fats will drip oil). You just need to be thrifty and see what available beef doesn't break your piggy bank. Cut into thin strips or bits. It's entirely up to you but you need to try it a few times to know if you like the Biltong hard and chewy or in easy bite-sized pieces.
Raw Beef
Copyright Fiona C Yeo (2015) of Cartoon Lagoon
Then you want to mix in your spices, keeping it as dry as possible. I'm not a cook who follows recipes to the core so I just wing it. It's not helpful to those who like to measure right down to the last granule but this is roughly what my own marinade consists of (after many tries!):
- Vinegar
- Salt
- Chilli flakes
- Coriander powder (because my kids hated the crushed ones)
- Any other spicy spice mix!
You can't be adding the spices and tasting it as you go along because the beef is raw and it's just NOT something you should be doing (tasting the marinade from the raw beef!). So just be conservative the first time you make it and then tweak the ingredients' portions as you go along. In fact, I am still experimenting.
Marinated Beef
Copyright Fiona C Yeo (2015) of Cartoon Lagoon
If I have time, I will let the marinated beef sit out longer but if I am in a hurry, I'll just put it into the dehydrator as soon as I am done marinating it.
My Dehydrator
Copyright Fiona C Yeo (2015) of Cartoon Lagoon
I try to keep the pieces of beef as dry as possible and not let it be dripping liquids when on the dehydrator. I do not need to strain but just sort of flick the liquid off the pieces before I lay them on the trays. I have about 5 trays worth of beef here. It's doesn't amount to much because the beef will shrink by the time it's done. You will see in the following pics that there's only enough for one plastic container.
Laying out the beef on my dehydrator trays
Copyright Fiona C Yeo (2015) of Cartoon Lagoon
Tadah! After about 5 hours, this was still a little moist but I removed it because we were going out. I actually put them back into the dehydrator for another hour when we got back and that was just about right. So I would say, about 6 hours for 5 trays worth of beef. This is my family's preference.
Home Made Spicy Biltong using Dehydrator
Copyright Fiona C Yeo (2015) of Cartoon Lagoon
After I've removed the dehydrated beef from the dehydrator, I will get my critics to taste and they will tell me if I should add more salt, chilli flakes or spices! This bunch of critics are very hard to please but I am getting there!
Home Made Spicy Biltong using Dehydrator
Copyright Fiona C Yeo (2015) of Cartoon Lagoon
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