Biltong for Vacation

    We are going on vacation!  I made biltong; a beef jerky from South Africa.  We did not want to buy jerky with all the yucky stuff in and because biltong tastes so much better than jerky.

   We are going to Mark Twain National Forest to go canoing! I love canoing, so I think this will be FUN! But I have never canoed for a week, so it will probably be hard too.

   Here is the Biltong recipe I used. Momma found the recipe years ago and does not remember where.

• 3 pounds Beef (Boneless Round Roast and Sirloin are good. Silverside and London Broil are recommended)
  
• Coarse Kosher Salt
  
• Coarse Ground Black Pepper.   We used about 1 tsp
  
• Coarse Ground Coriander.  We used about 1.5 tsp
  
• Apple Cider Vinegar (Red Wine vinegar would be good too)
  

1. Cut half-inch thick strips of beef with the grain. The pieces should be about 6 inches long.
2. Liberally sprinkle salt on each side of meat strips and let them stand for an hour or more depending on how salty you want it.  We cover with plastic wrap and place in fridge.
   
3. After the hour, scrape off all the excess salt with a knife.
   
4. Put some vinegar in a bowl and dip the strips of meat in it. Let excess vinegar drip off.
5. Sprinkle ground pepper and ground coriander over the meat on all sides.
6. Dry meat.  We use a home dehydrator set at 145 degrees for about 18 hours. You’ll know when the biltong is ready when it is quite hard, but still a bit moist inside.
7. If it is green, looks or smells wrong, or you are unsure about it, DON’T eat it.
   
8. We freeze it until we are ready to eat it and then we eat it within a week.  I don’t know how long it lasts, we eat it pretty fast.
9. OPTIONAL:  Use garlic, soy sauce, Worcestershire or other favorites after applying vinegar.