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Jamaican Jerk Beef Jerky

Everyone loves Jerk Chicken, and everyone is going to love this Jamaican Jerk Beef Jerky!

Jamaican Jerk Beef Jerky - A little taste of the Islands | Jerkyholic.com

The other day I went with my wife in search for a little food truck she has been wanting to try near downtown Austin. It’s a Venezuelan food truck called Four Brother ATX, it’s know for their Arepas. Okay, I’m game – Let’s roll…

Well, when we got to the food truck, there was another food truck right next to it pumping out an amazing smell. This food truck was painted the colors of the Jamaican flag and was called ATX Jamaican Grill. Uh, sorry Arepa lady, I’m sure you are good, but this jerk chicken is calling my name!

Inspired by this truck and the AMAZING jerk chicken I had that day, I decided to make a Jamaican Jerk Beef Jerky.

I started with my favorite cut, Beef Eye of Round, and grabbed some island flavored spices in an attempt to replicate the oh so delicious jerk chicken I had from that food truck. (It came with rice and fried plantains too!)

Jamaican Jerk Beef Jerky Spices

After giving it my best shot, I would have loved to have some fresh Scotch Bonnet Peppers to add, in the marinade the strips went and they sat in the fridge soaking up all that Jamaican flavor for 18 hours. 

It took 5 hours to dry the jerky with my Nesco Dehydrator, and it turned out Fantastic!

Jamaican jerk Beef Jerky

The Cayenne and Thyme add great flavor to this jerky. The flavor of the thyme comes across your taste buds first followed by the kick of the cayenne pepper a couple seconds later. 

You can also tell that the jerky is finished here because when it was ripped in half, you can see the white fibers of the meat. This is a great way of telling when your jerky is finished.

Jamaican Jerky Beef Jerky Finished Drying

I was extremely happy with how this jerky turned out. I can’t say that it was a more authentic flavor than the food truck I ate at, but it is Damn Good!

For more in depth directions on how to dry your beef jerky, visit my page Jerky Making Methods or click on the pictures below.

How to make Beef Jerky in the OvenLearn how to make Beef Jerky in a dehydrator. It's easy, fast, and delicious! | Jerkyholic.comLearn how to make beef jerky in a smoker. Great tasting and better than store bought jerky! | Jerkyholic.com

4.91 from 11 votes
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Jamaican Jerk Beef Jerky

Everyone loves Jerk Chicken, and everyone is going to love this Jamaican Jerk Beef Jerky!
Course Snack
Cuisine Beef Jerky
Keyword jamaican Jerky Beef Jerky
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 5 hours
Total Time 5 hours 30 minutes
Servings 5
Calories 177 kcal
Author Will

Ingredients

Lean Meat

Marinade

  • 1/4 cup cold water
  • 1 tsp onion powder
  • 1 tsp dried thyme
  • 1 1/2 tsp granulated sugar
  • 1 tsp ground black pepper
  • 1 tsp sea salt
  • 1/2 tsp allspice
  • 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
  • 1/4 tsp smoked paprika

Optional

Instructions

  1. Trim all visible fat from the beef and place in freezer for an hour or two to partially freeze.
  2. While the meat is in the freezer, combine all the ingredients in a bowl or ziplock bag and mix well.
  3. Remove the meat from the freezer and slice ¼" strips against the grain for an easy chew. Cut with the grain for a more chewy jerky. Or skip the freezing phase and use a Jerky Slicer.
  4. Add sliced beef to the mixture in a ziplock bag or bowl and marinate for 8-24 hours in the refrigerator.
  5. After the meat has finished marinating, remove from refrigerator and strain excess marinade and pat dry the beef strips with paper towels
  6. Dry with your favorite jerky making method. I used my Nesco Dehydrator and dried for 2 1/2 hours at 160F & 2 1/2 hours at 140F.
  7. The jerky is finished when it bends and cracks, but does not break in half.
Nutrition Facts
Jamaican Jerk Beef Jerky
Amount Per Serving (70 g)
Calories 177 Calories from Fat 63
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 7g 11%
Saturated Fat 2g 10%
Cholesterol 70mg 23%
Sodium 499mg 21%
Potassium 201mg 6%
Total Carbohydrates 2g 1%
Sugars 1g
Protein 24g 48%
Vitamin A 2.5%
Calcium 0.9%
Iron 13.7%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

 

Will
by Will

Hey! My name is Will and I want to thank you for visiting my site. I am a jerky making machine that lives in Colorado with my beautiful wife Linda. I love to fish, hunt, hike, explore and anything else that involves the outdoors. Give me a couple pieces of beef jerky & a bottle of water; I'll be out and about all day.

28 comments

  1. Jodi says:

    It’s next to impossible to find fresh scotch bonnet peppers (long story why…) but we sell Spur Tree scotch bonnet sauce. It’s a perfect substitute. Jo to pimentowood.com or call us at 612-868-JERK

    We’d love to try your jerky!!!!

  2. Larry says:

    I’m doing this now and I used 2 pounds of romp roast. The marinate is dry (after adding half cup of water) is this how yours sat in the fridge as well? Want to make any adjustments to it ASAP if needed.

    Thanks!

    • Will
      Will says:

      Hey Larry! So the water is there to just make the marinade stick to the beef better. It shouldn’t be completely dry, but should be moist and have some liquid in the bag. Add a little more water if needed and don’t forget to mix it around every couple hours so all the meat gets marinated evenly. Let me know how it turns out!

  3. David says:

    I just made this and put a thin coat of BBQ sauce on it before putting in the dehydrator, VERY tasty… Thanks for the recipes, I made 4 different types tonight

    • James Whittaker says:

      Just tried this I had a lot of meat on my london broil cut so I did the marinade twice just so it would actually be in a puddle to sit. Looks and smells already! I’ll let you know how it is 2 days from now haha!

  4. Richard Orwig says:

    Thanks for the recipe Will, just got back from Jamaica last week. Their jerk chicken was excellent. I did bring home some Jamaican scotch bonnet pepper sauce and Brown raw cane sugar. Looking forward to making my jerky today! I’ll keep you posted on the results when it’s done, sometime tomorrow. And a yell out for sandals resort!!
    Thank you.Ya Mon. No problem

    • Will
      Will says:

      I sit on a well site in the middle of nowhere Oklahoma drilling for oil as I type this; I wish I was in Jamaica!!! I bet you had a blast. Watch out for those scotch bonnet peppers, those are ridiculously hot! Can’t wait to hear your results. Thanks for stopping by…

  5. Richard Orwig says:

    Hey Will, Richard from Maryland here. The jerky turned out great. I made 4 pounds worth using London broil, on sale for $2.99 lb. for that price I had to do 4 pounds. Besides family and friends,everybody wants some can’t never make enough!! I Used the oven method at 160° and a door cracked open about an inch it took about five hours to make turning in between. In the future I’ll try some of your other flavors of jerky. Stay safe on those oil wells.

    SEE YAA!!!

    • Will
      Will says:

      Always check the cure that you are using. I use Prague Powder #1 and it calls for 1tsp per 5lbs of meat. So if making 1lb of jerky, use a scant 1/4 tsp of curing salt. It does NOT take much! Just make sure to double check the instructions on the cure you buy as it could be different. You can use regular salt as well for taste, but this is enough to cure the meat.

  7. Richard Orwig says:

    Hey will,Richard from Maryland; I made another 4 pounds of Jamaican jerk beef jerky.
    To complement the scotch bonnet pepper sauce I used coconut water with the pulp instead water. With a few pinches of dry cilantro. I now have people asking to buy it from me; crazy isn’t it, maybe I’ll change my line of work. Stay safe and thanks again.

  8. Jim says:

    Great recipe, I did your original and my modification…by adding a btsp of crushed fresh ginger, 2 tbsp. lime jucice
    and doubled the garlic ( I’m Polish, what can I say). Also, used dark brown sugar rather than granulated….
    Give it a try!

  9. Jen says:

    I used this recipe making my very first jerky yesterday and, boy, was it delicious! I used brown sugar and finely chopped onions. I will definitely be making this again, both with deer and chicken. My husband was thrilled. Thanks for a very informative site for beginners like me. Looking forward to making more of your recipes!

  10. Joey says:

    I am jerky freak like you and make it all if the time. Some from my own head,some from modified recipes I find, but I made some with your jamacian jerk recipe and boy was it good. Have looked over several of your other recipes and will be trying them the weekend.

  11. Jayson C says:

    Hi Will,

    Thanks for putting together such an awesome resource for Jerky! I just got a dehydrater for my birthday and coming back from Jamaica of course I am interested in making some delicious Jerk flavored Jerky. My question is this, I would like to start with some traditional jerk seasoning and pineapple juice. Should I just mix that in with the ingredients already in this recipe or do you think it might go better with some different components?

    Thanks Jayson

    • Will
      Will says:

      Congrats on the new dehydrator! I would just add it to this recipe. Try leaving out the water and substituting with about 1/2 cup of pineapple juice. Let me know how it turns out!

  12. Adam S says:

    I made a version of this with beef stock instead of water. Wow! I smoked it on my Yoder pellet smoker and it turned out awesome! I shared it at my office this morning and they all loved it and said they would pay good money for it.

  13. Vince says:

    Good afternoon Will,
    Ive been making some of your receipes now for over 6 months, Ive tryed Dragon Fire, Vinegar Horseradish, Jimmys Teriyaky but ive came back to this one now for the 3rd time as its a crowd pleaser. everytime I modify it a litle by sprinkling a diferent spice on it just before puting it in the Dehidrator. Canot thank you enought for sharing all these receipies you realy got me hooked on making jerky. I Have a cousin that loves Fireball cinnamon whisky so i told him id do something up for him. Any ideas of what would compliment that well? Thanks for your time and keep up the good receipes

    Vince

    • Will
      Will says:

      Fireball Whisky is one of my favorite as well! I’m at work and don’t have my spice bible book. I like to read through it and get great ideas for jerky recipes. I’ll make sure to check it out when I get home and try to come up with something. I would also love to make a recipe with some Fireball!

  14. Deyka says:

    I followed your recipe , firts time I made Beef jerky ever- jerky came awesome! Now I have the confidence to experiment my own. Thank you so much

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