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The great taste of Dr. Pepper mixed with Beef married to make a great tasting beef jerky? What's not to love?!
My best friend Kyle and I drank Dr. Pepper like it was water when we were growing up. That was of course before we realized how bad a six pack of Dr. Pepper a day was for our health. I only on a rare occasion drink soft drinks anymore, but this seemed like a great time to pop a top and incorporate this sugary deliciousness into some beef jerky.
Ingredients were kept to a minimum for this recipe. It only has curing salt, sea salt, pepper, & of course Dr. Pepper. That's it! I used my favorite cut of beef when making this recipe, Beef eye of round.
Slicing The Meat
Start with a great cut of beef when making this jerky. I used Beef Eye of Round, but you can find a complete list of the best cuts of meat for beef jerky.
The first step of slicing meat for jerky is to trim the cut of meat of all visible fat. You can see the white fat in the picture below, just trim that off BEFORE you start slicing the meat. Fat spoils faster than meat, so the more you get off now, the longer your jerky will be shelf stable.
Slice even strips so they will dry evenly and be finished at the same time. You can wrap the roast in plastic wrap and partially freeze for 1-2 hours to make slicing easier.
I didn’t use it on this recipe, but a jerky slicer is a FANTASTIC piece of equipment to help get even strips when slicing jerky.
Sliced with the grain, a little tenderizing with a meat mallet helped take some of the chew out of it. Tenderize the meat before adding to the marinade. If my beef jerky is too chewy, my teeth feel like they are going to fall out. Can't have that...
Dr. Pepper Beef Jerky Marinade
Combine all of the ingredients in a ziplock bag or bowl and mix well. Add the jerky strips to the marinade and marinate in the refrigerator. Make sure to marinate for at least 6 hours. I let this marinade for a total of 18 hours to help get as much flavor from the Dr. Pepper as I could. The longer the better!
Drying Beef Jerky
After marinating, strain the jerky in a colander to remove any excess marinade. Then place the strips on paper towels and pat dry. This step helps speed up the drying process and prevents the jerky from having a sticky surface.
Place the jerky on your dehydrator trays and start drying that jerky! I dried this jerky with my Excalibur dehydrator for a total of 5 hours at 160° F. You can also make the jerky in an oven or smoker if you like.
Testing For When Beef Jerky is Finished
While drying the jerky, you want to start testing to see if it has finished at about the 3-4 hour mark. Take a piece of jerky out of the dehydrator, oven, or smoker and allow it to cool for 5 minutes to room temperature.
Bend the jerky in half; it should bend and crack but not break in half. You will also see white fibers in the meat. The fibers are really visible when a piece is ripped in half.
If the jerky is not finished, continue drying for another hour and repeat the same process until the jerky is finished. 90% of the jerky i make is finished within 4-6 hours when using a dehydrator or oven and 6-9 hours when using a smoker. If pre-heating the meat in the oven, drying time can be as little as 2.5 hours.
I was surprised that this jerky did not have as much of a Dr. Pepper taste that I would have liked. Don't get me wrong, it was good and I really enjoyed it! I guess I was expecting more of a Dr. Pepper flavor to shine through. Will I make this jerky again? Hell yeah, it's Dr. Pepper Beef Jerky!
Not a big fan of Dr. Pepper? Just switch this out with your cola of choice... Try making a batch and let me know how you guys like it.
**You better believe I drank that glass as soon as I was done taking this picture. Haha**
Storing Beef Jerky
To make the jerky last as long as possible, curing salt will really help along with keeping in air tight containers. I have put together a page on storing jerky and steps you can take to make your jerky have an extended shelf life. Check it out!
Old Pro Tips:
- Tenderize with a meat mallet and/or cut against the grain for a more tender jerky
- Marinate for at least 6 hours for a great flavor. 24 hours is recommended for the best flavor.
- Allow jerky to cool before testing if it's done by bending a piece. It should bend and crack, but not break in half when finished
- Use any cola in place of Dr. Pepper if you favor a different brand and flavor
Ingredients
Lean Meat
Marinade
- 1 can of Dr. Pepper
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- ¼ teaspoon Prague Powder #1 (curing salt)
Equipment
Instructions
- Trim all visible fat from the beef and place in freezer for an hour or two to partially freeze.
- While the meat is in the freezer, combine the Dr. Pepper, sea salt, pepper, and prague powder #1 in a medium bowl or ziplock bag and mix well.
- Remove the meat from the freezer and slice ¼" strips with the grain. Cut against the grain for an easier chew. Or skip the freezing phase and use a Jerky Slicer for evenly sliced strips.
- Add sliced beef to the mixture and marinate for 8-24 hours in the refrigerator.
- After the meat has finished marinating, remove from refrigerator and strain excess marinade.
- Dry with your favorite jerky making method. I used my dehydrator and dried for 5 hours at 160 degrees.
- The jerky is finished when it bends and cracks, but does not break in half.
Pro Tips
- Tenderize with a meat mallet and/or cut against the grain for a more tender jerky
- Marinate for at least 6 hours for a great flavor. 24 hours is recommended for the best flavor.
- Allow jerky to cool before testing if it's done by bending a piece. It should bend and crack, but not break in half when finished
- Visit my Jerky Making Methods page for more detailed instructions on how to make the perfect jerky
Nutrition
For more in depth directions on how to dry your beef jerky, visit my page Jerky Making Methods
I’ve been making Dr. pepper jerky for a long time but I add the kitchen sink! I have my Dr Pepper, garlic, onions, lots of cayenne pepper, couple pepper flakes and A dash of two of soy sauce and salt… I like the sweet with spicy kick I also tried root beer but you need to consider root beer jerky a sweet jerky more on the brown sugar or teriyaki side
If you take three cans of dr pepper and reduce it on a stove in a saucepan till it thickens. It makes a more concentrated flavor. I add brown sugar and powdered red pepper.
Thanks for the great advice Chris!
Made a batch today on the smoker. Really like the taste. 165 degrees for 4 hours. Even my wife likes even know it is Elk. Thanks for the recipe!!
Awesome! That's when you know it's good...