Hot Stuff: Kung Pao Beef Jerky
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Food writer and blogger Pamela Braun's new jerky-centric book is anything but dry. Get it? Cause it's jerky? Anyway, pick up a copy of this step-by-step, totally comprehensive snack bible and get dehydrated! Well, not you yourself, but lots of various foodstuffs. Kung pao beef, for example.
While you might think this would be a hot and spicy jerky, it isn't. The Sichuan peppers have a very fruity/citrusy flavor that tastes delicious with the salt, ginger, and sherry in this recipe. Using whole red chiles, instead of red pepper flakes, keeps this from going from flavorful to blow-your-face-off hot. Of course, if you're a chile head, you can add more red peppers and make it as hot as you want.
- 1/2 cup soy sauce
- 1/2 cup sherry
- 10 dried red chiles
- 2 tablespoons Szechuan peppercorns
- 1 tablespoon granulated garlic
- 1 tablespoon ground ginger
- 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 to 1 1/2 pounds London broil strips
- In a 1-gallon resealable plastic freezer bag, thoroughly mix together all the ingredients, except the meat, and allow the mixture to rest for 10 minutes.
- Add the meat strips to the marinade and mix them around so they get completely coated with the marinade. Remove as much air as possible from the bag, seal, and place it in the refrigerator for 8 to 24 hours. During the marinating time, remove the bag from the refrigerator a few times and work the meat around so the marinade is fully incorporated into it.
- Remove the strips from the marinade and arrange in a single layer in your choice of dryer. Dry as directed.