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Can you make jerky out of Pork? YES!!! It tastes great too! This sweet recipe worked very well with pork, you will definitely love it...
As you can see from the picture above, there aren't many ingredients when making this recipe. First off, you have to start with a piece of pork.
Making the Jerky
I used a pork tenderloin from my local grocery store. Tenderloin is a pretty inexpensive cut but does have a decent amount of fat on it. Make sure to trim as much fat as possible before slicing into strips and marinating.
After mixing the ingredients and marinating for 20 hours, the pork was strained in a colander and patted dry with paper towels. The maple syrup in the marinade made the strips very slick and hard to pick up. When it was done dehydrating though, it had that sticky shiny appearance a lot of sweet pork jerky recipes have. Delicious!!!
I used my Excalibur Dehydrator when making this recipe. I love this dehydrator, it really turned out some great pork jerky with this recipe. It took a little more than 4 hours at 165°F to finish this jerky to perfection.
Testing For When The 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 made three different pork recipes with this one tenderloin and this Sweet Maple Pork Jerky was my wife's favorite. There is good reason for that, it tastes great! There isn't any spice at all, just sweetness from the sugar and maple syrup. For such a simple recipe, the jerky really turns out fantastic!
Storing 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:
- Trim as much fat as possible before slicing and marinating to extend the life of the jerky after it has finished drying.
- Pork tenderloin is a great cut to make pork jerky
- Marinate for 24 hours for full flavor
This recipe doesn’t have to be used on Pork only. Make this with beef or venison and it will also turn out really good! Enjoy!!!
For more in depth directions on how to dry your jerky, visit my page Jerky Making Methods or click on the pictures below.
Ingredients
Lean Meat
- 1 lb Pork Tenderloin (can also use beef or venison)
Marinade
- 2 tablespoon brown sugar
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- 1 ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ cup cold water
- ¼ teaspoon curing salt (optional)
Instructions
- Trim all visible fat from the meat and place in freezer for an hour or two to partially freeze.
- While the meat is in the freezer, combine marinade ingredients in a bowl or ziplock bag.
- 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. I cut some with and some against since I like both! You can also skip the freezing and use a Jerky Slicer.
- Add sliced meat to the mixture in the ziplock bag or bowl and marinate for 8-24 hours in the refrigerator.
- After the meat has finished marinating, remove from refrigerator and strain excess marinade in a colander and pat dry with paper towels.
- Dry with your favorite jerky making method. I used my Excalibur Dehydrator and dried for 4 hours at 165F.
- The jerky is finished when it bends and cracks, but does not break in half.
Pro Tips
- Trim as much fat as possible before slicing and marinating to extend the life of the jerky after it has finished drying.
- Pork tenderloin is a great cut to make pork jerky
- Marinate for 24 hours for full flavor
Nutrition
You Might Also Like:
Best Cuts of Beef for Jerky
How to Make Beef Jerky with a Dehydrator
The Best Dehydrator for Making Beef Jerky
Slicing Meat for Beef Jerky
Kathleen says
Just made the pork jerky, it is amazing! I do have a question about storing it. I put in a zip lock bag and moisture started to form. Is that from the maple and sugar marinade? Will it last for a few days in the zip lock bag. I am wanting to take it backpacking, however I do not want any intestinal issues while out there.
Will says
Did you allow the jerky to cool completely before placing in the ziplock bag? Also, make sure to keep the bag out of the sun and in a dark place like a pantry. If it still has moisture, it's possible that the jerky wasn't dehydrated long enough. This should make a great camping treat full of protein!
God says
In your picture you are using pork loin not tenderloin. Tenderloin is about 4x the cost of loin. Loin is a better choice though if you are looking to do it on the cheap.
Will says
That is a pork tenderloin. Loin is much bigger than a tenderloin. You are correct, loin is also great to use when making pork jerky and is less expensive.
Kay says
I am being told pork jerky is bot safe and presently have some dehydrating. Has me somewhat concerned . Dehydrating at 167 and about 5 hours now. Have you had any issues? Thanks
Will says
As long as you heat pork jerky to an internal temperature of 165°F it will be safe. I have never had any issues when making pork jerky.