I forgot to mention my father-in-law’s deer heart jerkey. Now a tradition on all ski trips. There’s so much salt in it that I meet the USDA daily values for sodium in the first bite 
Erik
Recently opened a stick of Alligator Jerky, in a 1999 package. It was OK, they probably feed the gators with antibiotics, too.
I didn’t a have the recipe for Alligator Wine, so I just listened to Screamin’ Jay Hawkins (talking of vintage), and sauced the jerky with Texas Champagne.
What a jerky topic! 
I used to have a food dehydrator ( ex wife got custody of it after a bitter courtroom battle) and used to make my own turkey jerky. It’s actually quite simple, and overnight you end up with a nice batch of the stuff, in whatever flavor you want. I usta wait for turkey breast to go on sale, then buy a lot and make a big batch or two.
Hey, that jerky in the mouthpiece gives me an idea-- you could intentionally obstruct part of the windway with a thin strip of jerky: an edible whistle mute!! You could simply eat it in an instant should you have the sudden urge to play at normal volume…
Hey Erik,
Now that you’re back in Alaska, how about making us some Moose Jerky? I had some homemade Moose Chili while I was in Girdwood(Alyeska) a few years back, and it was pretty darn tasty. I must say it was a little weird eating the moose Chili while sitting just a few feet away from the poor donor’s mounted head though…
So when does Moose season start up there anyway?
Loren
To me in the UK, this whole jerky thread is a bit obscure. Is it the dried meat product intended for hunters & campers to chaw on?
I once bought some to see what it was like. It tasted like…dried meat, tough, & stringy.
I don’t think we get the best stuff here, or the variety. Or maybe mine was made from horsemeat.
Loren, that hadda be spooky - eating the moose while it “watched”… sheesh!
Hey, anybody in Colorado around, who participates in hunting of ze elk? Many years ago, my ex-father-in-law (I just love hyphens, don’t you? ) fed me some elk roast. It was pure heaven! Wonder how that’d work in jerky!?
Also, not too far from where I live, the Federal Penitentiary at Leavenworth, KS, raises American Bison. Hmmmmm… 
Chewy Cheers,
Bill Whedon
(Still like the “Serpent Gristle” idea! )
. . . drool . . . jerky . . . drool . . .
[homer simpson-like glutonous moan]
Martin,
jerky may very well be one of those strange American things; I don’t know. I guess dried-out strips of meat does sound like a strange delicacy. But when it’s been marinated and spiced and peppered in so many wonderful substances, while being so portable and unmessy, so hearty, so delicious, so–
I’ll be right back!
[chomp chomp]
Sorry Loren,
Moose season is over (it was about a month ago). But folks store them in their freezers for years. I had my first moose a while ago, but it was mooseburgers rather than chili or jerky. Paul, I bet that a whole moose could do a REALLY big batch of jerky
Martin said, “I once bought some to see what it was like. It tasted like…dried meat, tough, & stringy.” That’s the stuff,
Martin. Hard to imagine that we like it, isn’t it?
I think every culture has something that makes people from other cultures stare and say “you eat THAT???” Just consider blood pudding, for example. Or steak and kidney pie. Or laver bread. Or (God help us!) haggis. For us Americans, it’s things like deep-dish Chicago pizza, red-hot Texas chili and, of course, jerky
Redwolf
On 2002-11-12 13:21, ErikT wrote:
Sorry Loren,Moose season is over (it was about a month ago). But folks store them in their freezers for years. I had my first moose a while ago, but it was mooseburgers rather than chili or jerky. Paul, I bet that a whole moose could do a REALLY big batch of jerky >
I bagged a moose in Alaska last year. Of course, I got him with my digital camera rather than a gun, so you’d have a hard time making jerky out of him (to the best of my knowledge, he’s still wandering around in Denali National Park), but he’s still my pride and joy.
I get a kick out of asking visitors to my home if they’d like to see the moose I shot in Alaska. Generally they know I’m a vegetarian, so their first thought is “you’re kidding, right?” I take them into the living room, where they expect to see a moose head hanging on the wall…then point out the photograph hanging over the mantle
Man, they’re big critters! I think I always knew that intellectually, but nothing compares to seeing the real thing. I’d always thought “bigger than a deer, maybe a little bigger than an elk” when I should have been thinking more in terms of draft horses! I swear, my moose was 20 hands tall, and had a rack seven feet across. Sure wouldn’t want to meet him on a trail on a dark night…he’d make moose burgers out of me for sure!
Redwolf
I’m suprised nobody has chimed in with their favorite jerky recipe. The stuff is only slighty more difficult to make than oatmeal. My Mom used to roll up a flank steak and stick it in the freezer for an hour or so, until it got stiff, but not frozen. Then she’d slice it about 1/8" thick and marinate it in water, salt, lottsa pepper, soy sauce, brown sugar, a little liquid smoke flavoring. The next day, she’d lay it out directly on the top oven rack (with a pan to catch dripping on the lower oven rack). She set the oven at 200F and let it go for a couple of hours until it had the right texture.
Yummy!!! I’ll see if I can get her recipe.
I’ve made it several times myself with fantastic results (I’ve lost the recipe), but then after a couple of days, I get all paranoid about the fact that my homemade stuff isn’t full of chemicals and preservatives and quit eating it. My step-son once devoured about 1/4lb of my homemade jerky weeks after I made it. He didn’t die and said that it tasted great, so I assume that it was okay.
As for store jerky - Pemmican Peppered is about my favorite.
On 2002-11-12 13:42, Redwolf wrote:
I think every culture has something that makes people from other cultures stare and say “you eat THAT???” Just consider blood pudding, for example. Or steak and kidney pie. Or laver bread. Or (God help us!) haggis. For us Americans, it’s things like deep-dish Chicago pizza, red-hot Texas chili and, of course, jerky >Redwolf
Here it’s a big different. Like the local specialty hereround is buckwheat pancakes stuffed with chitterlings. The real farm thing, 100% natural, 0% kosher. So, what’s so different, you ask ? Well, I wonder “what, WE eat THAT ?”. Look at it, think it’s made of it ; cut it open, and wish it were… So, when visiting, nevermind frog legs, snails and the kin, these are OK, just another pretext to eat butter n’ garlic
Now I never believed (or verified) “you Americans” being so univocal about food. It’s reputed bland and W. Allen’s deflavorizing machine comes in mind. However, I’ve had some pretty hot fish (kinda hairy, too ! maybe tis cat after all) in South, and the stinkiest cheese I ever met was Northern Californian. Don’t remember the name, sorry, but it did outdo us Froggies, it could race the 1/4 mile–still stand from the fridge–way faster
On 2002-11-11 12:35, Redwolf wrote:
Well, being a vegetarian, my tastes are probably somewhat different that those of most (What? You didn’t know there was vegetarian jerky?). I think my favorite is Cajun Jerky’s “Hot Pastrami” style. My least favorite is anything made by the Tofurky people…yuck!Redwolf
Vegetarian jerky is the way to go, definitely.
I don’t get vegetarian meatlike products. What’s the point? Everytime someone says, “Hey, you need to try THIS veggie burger–it’s different–it’s good–it’s almost like meat!” first I wonder why they don’t just have a hamburger and second I get ready for disappointment. I always am. I have yet to see one that, if not totally nasty, comes anywhere close to actual meatlikeness. Same goes for veggie sausage, jerky, etc.
I don’t mind vegetables (much). [Okay I admit that’s not always been true. I used to tell people that I had an allergic reaction to anything containing chlorophyll.] But if I don’t want or can’t have meat I like fruit or peanut butter or a salad or something. Fake meat is like those glass fruits my great-grandmother used to put out on her table.
I just don’t get it.
On 2002-11-11 15:39, Cyfiawnder wrote:
If you want REALY good Jerky then you have to make friends with a Bow Hunter, and then you may be able to get your hands on some Venison Jerky… MMM MMM now we’re talking. Take the best beef Jerky you’ve ever had multiply that Taste times 10, and subtract 75% of the fat.
I’d have to chime in with a whole-hearted agreement with Cyfiawnder. Deer or elk are definitly the way to go. Back when I used to bowhunt for deer a good portion of the meat always went to jerky for co-workers and freinds.
Loren, You do have a dry sense of humor!
I don’t buy jerkey of any kind.
A little too pricey is what I find.
Home made jerky from any meat,
Dried in the oven on low heat,
Soak in salt, black pepper, and wine.
Okay, terryaki is also fine.
I like Spam sliced thin and fried in a skillet. I’m not too fond of tofu hotdogs, though.
Mack
(chorus)
Spam, Spam, Spam, Spam,
Spam, Spam, Spam, Spam,
…
Sorry, Monty Python strikes again! 
Bill
On 2002-11-13 10:04, Michael Sullivan wrote:
I don’t get vegetarian meatlike products. What’s the point? Everytime someone says, “Hey, you need to try THIS veggie burger–it’s different–it’s good–it’s almost like meat!” first I wonder why they don’t just have a hamburger and second I get ready for disappointment. I always am. I have yet to see one that, if not totally nasty, comes anywhere close to actual meatlikeness. Same goes for veggie sausage, jerky, etc.I don’t mind vegetables (much). [Okay I admit that’s not always been true. I used to tell people that I had an allergic reaction to anything containing chlorophyll.] But if I don’t want or can’t have meat I like fruit or peanut butter or a salad or something. Fake meat is like those glass fruits my great-grandmother used to put out on her table.
I just don’t get it.
It has to do with WHY people give up meat. Relatively few people give up meat because they don’t like it (it does happen, but it’s far from a primary cause). Most vegetarians give up eating meat either for ethical reasons, out of concern for the environment, or out of concern for their health.
Most vegetarians, at least in the West, were not raised so. There are still animal-based foods that they miss. Meat analogs can make the transition easier for them…whatever their reason for embracing a plant-based diet. And a lot of analogs are d*mned close…I’ve had omnivores at my table who, after tucking into my veggie tacos, have stopped and asked “but what are YOU going to eat?”
Now, I have to say that, when I first became a vegetarian, meat analogs weren’t readily available. I learned to cook as though meat had never been invented, and I think I became a better cook for it. And, frankly, most of the time that’s the way I prefer to eat. The reason I quipped about vegetarian jerky being “as close as I can tell” is, after 15 years eating that way, I have no idea how meat tastes (all I know is I can’t stand the smell or the look of it). When I eat something like vegetarian jerky, or a veggie burger, I eat it because I like the way IT tastes…not because it resembles “the real thing” (in fact, in most cases, the analogs I like best are the least like “real” meat…for example, my favorite veggie burgers are grain based, and don’t resemble hamburger in any way, shape or form, other than they work well on a bun with mustard).
A bit of trivia…the first meat analogs were made more than 500 years ago, by Shaolin monks in China. If you want to taste some REALLY authentic-tasting fake meats, find a Chinese vegetarian restaurant…some of that stuff is so scary real, I can’t eat it!!
Redwolf
I understand the easy-transition business. What doesn’t make sense (to me) is to keep at the fake stuff permanently. If you want to get away from the real stuff wouldn’t you want to dispense with the forgeries?
I say this mostly in the context of having in high school spent a great deal of time around Seventh-Day Adventists, most of whom had been vegetarians all their lives, but who seemed fanatical about fake meats. The idea of eating real meat horrified many of them but they traded fake sausage brands eagerly. It always seemed so abnormal.
With the exception of the appendix, humans (in fact, most large primates) have the most generalized digestive systems in the mammalian world. We can eat almost anything and survive on it. The idea that, because one is a vegetarian (even vegan), one consumes no animal matter, is a fantasy. I don’t think I need to go into detail.
That said, Redwolf, I understand your aversion to meat, because as a child, I had a (completely non-medical) aversion to eggs. I didn’t like them in any form. The thought of eating them made me physically ill. Then one day, at about age ten, I awoke and went downstairs to the kitchen, where my Mom was fixing breakfast for my Dad – fried eggs. Something “clicked”, and I asked for one. It was wonderful! Been eatin’ 'em ever since! But I still have no satisfactory explanation for my early dislike of them.
I guess the bottom line is “different strokes for different folks”. Which brings me all round the houses back to jerky – Has anyone tried it with salmon, I wonder? I love lox, and the idea of a similar taste in a jerky is a real turn-on!
Cheers,
Bill Whedon