Jerky

Jerky is lean trimmed meat that has been cut into strips
and dried (dehydrated) to prevent spoilage. Normally,
this drying includes the addition of salt to prevent
bacteria growth before the meat has finished the
dehydrating process. The word "jerky" derives from the
Quechua word ch'arki which means "dried, salted
meat".[1][2][3] All that is needed to produce basic "jerky"
is a low-temperature drying method, and salt to inhibit
bacterial growth.

Modern manufactured jerky is often marinated, prepared Jerky

with a seasoned spice rub or liquid, or smoked with low
heat (usually under 70 °C/160 °F). Store-bought jerky
commonly includes sweeteners such as brown sugar.

Jerky is ready-to-eat, needs no additional preparation and

can be stored for months without refrigeration. To ensure
maximum shelf-life a proper protein-to-moisture content
is required in the final cured product.[4]

Many products which are sold as jerky consist of highly

processed, chopped and formed meat rather than
traditional sliced whole-muscle meat. These products
may contain more fat, but moisture content, as in the
whole-muscle product, must meet a 0.75 to 1 moisture-to
protein ratio in the US.[5] Chemical preservatives can Orange-marinated beef jerky
prevent oxidative spoilage, but the moisture-to-protein
ratio prevents microbial spoilage by low water activity.
Some jerky products are very high in sugar and therefore taste very sweet – unlike biltong, which rarely
contains added sugars.

Contents
Preparation
Packaging
Regulation
Availability
Nutrition
Ch'arki
See also
References
External links
Preparation
Jerky is made from domesticated animals as well as game animals.
Jerky from domesticated animals includes beef, pork, goat and mutton
or lamb and game animals such as deer, kudu, springbok, kangaroo,
and bison are also used.[6] Recently, other animals such as turkey,
ostrich, salmon, alligator, crocodile, tuna, emu, horse, camel, and
earthworm have entered the market.[7]

Most fat must be trimmed from the meat prior to drying, as fat
increases the chances of spoilage (modern vacuum packing and Beef jerky being dried
chemical preservatives have served to help prevent these risks). The
meat must be dried quickly to limit bacterial growth during the critical
period where the meat is not yet dry. To accomplish drying quickly
without the use of high temperature, which would cook the meat, the
meat must be sliced or pressed thin.

In industrial settings, large low-temperature drying ovens with many

heater elements and fans make use of exhaust ports to remove the
moisture-laden air. The combination of fast-moving air and low heat
dries the meat to the desired moisture content within a few hours. The
raw, marinated jerky strips are placed on racks of nylon-coated metal
screens which have been sprayed with a light vegetable oil to allow Chinese bakkwa jerky
the meat to be removed easily. The screen trays are placed closely in
layers on rolling carts which are then put in the drying oven.

Chemical preservatives, such as sodium nitrite, are often used in conjunction with the historical salted drying
procedure to prepare jerky. Smoking is the most traditional method, as it preserves, flavors, and dries the meat
simultaneously. Salting is the most common method used today, as it both provides seasoning to improve the
flavor as well as preserve the meat. While some methods involve applying the seasonings with a marinade, this
can increase the drying time by adding moisture to the meat.

Packaging
After the jerky is dried to the proper moisture content to prevent
spoilage, it is cooled, then packaged in (often resealable) plastic bags,
either nitrogen gas flushed or vacuumed packed. To prevent the
oxidation of the fat, the sealed packages often contain small pouches
of oxygen absorber. These small packets are filled with iron particles
which react with oxygen, removing the oxygen from the sealed jerky
package, and from an opened and resealed unfinished packet.

Because of the necessary low fat and moisture content, jerky is high
Raw meat before dehydration into in protein. A 30 g (about 1 oz) portion of lean meat, for example,
jerky contains about 7 g of protein. By removing 15 g of water from the
meat, the protein ratio is doubled to nearly 15 g of protein per 30 g
portion. In some low moisture varieties, a 30 g serving will contain
21 g of protein, and only one g of fat. The price per unit weight of this type of jerky is higher than less-dried
forms, as it takes 90 g of 99% lean meat to generate 30 g of jerky.
Unpackaged fresh jerky made from sliced, whole muscle meat has been available in specialty stores in Hong
Kong at least since the 1970s. The products are purchased by kilograms, and customers choose from 10 to 20
types of meat used to make the product. Some are sold in strands instead of slices. Macau has opened
numerous specialty shops also, many of which are franchise extensions of stores from Hong Kong. Compared
to the sealed packaged versions, unpackaged jerky has a relatively short shelf life.

This type of jerky has also become very popular in convenience stores in the USA under the name "slab"
jerky; it is usually sold in plexiglass containers.

Regulation
Most nations have regulations pertaining to the production of dried meat products. There are strict
requirements to ensure safe and wholesome production of jerky products. Factories are required to have
inspectors and sanitation plans. In the United States, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is
responsible for that oversight. To comply with USDA regulations, poultry jerky must be heated to an internal
temperature of 160 °F for uncured poultry or 155 °F for cured poultry to be considered safe [8] Many
European Union countries presently prohibit the importation of meat products, including jerky, without
additional and extensive customs documentation, and further inspections.[9]

Availability
Traditional jerky, made from sliced, whole muscle meat, is readily
available in the United States, Mexico and Canada in varying meats,
brands and qualities, both as packaged and unpackaged. These
products are available in nearly every convenience store, gas station,
supermarket, and variety shop in those countries, where there is a long
history of jerky as a food of the pioneers. A similar, less expensive
product is made with finely ground meat, mixed with flavors, then the
mush is processed into thin dried strips. The finished item may be
labeled as jerky, but with the qualifier "ground and formed". This
product is widely available in general interest stores, such as Venison jerky strips prior to drying
supermarkets and convenience stores. Also popular is shredded dry
jerky (meat floss) sold in containers resembling snuff or dip. Jerky
made in the traditional style is also a ubiquitous staple of farmers' markets in rural areas all over North
America.

In addition to being common in the United States, Mexico and Canada, jerky is also gaining popularity in
supermarkets, convenience stores and online retailers in Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and
Germany. They are carried by some major supermarkets, and now also smaller stores. In China, in addition to
the more traditional forms of jerky, there is also a similar product which is usually made from pork called pork
chip. A similar product is quite popular in Rome, Italy, and its hinterland: it is called coppiette and was
originally made with horse or donkey[10] meat, but it is now generally made with pork. Coppiette are seasoned
with red pepper and fennel seeds. Coppiette were usually eaten while drinking wine (mostly white) in Roman
osterie.

In Tamil Nadu, India, the dish is known as uppu kandam which forms part of authentic non vegetarian cuisine.
In Ethiopia, jerky is called qwant'a. In addition to salt, it is seasoned with black pepper and either berbere or
awaze.[11] A similar product, biltong, is common in South African cuisine; however, it differs very much in
production process and taste. In Hausa cuisine, kilishi is a form of dried meat, similar to jerky, that is heavily
spiced with peppers.
Jerky (or products closely related to it) is commonly included in
military field rations. It is particularly attractive to militaries because of
its light weight, high level of nutrition, long shelf life and edibility
without further preparation. Since 1996, jerky has been selected by
astronauts as space food several times for space flight due to its light
weight and high level of nutrition.[12][13]

Nutrition
A typical 30 g portion of fresh jerky contains 10–15 g of protein, 1 g Jerky carried to ISS aboard STS-
of fat, and 0–3 g of carbohydrates, although some beef jerky can have 118, Endeavour Space Shuttle flight
a protein content above 65%.[14] Since traditional jerky recipes use a with Earth visible out the big window
basic salt cure, sodium can be a concern for some people. A 30 g
serving of jerky could contain more than 600 mg of sodium, which
would be about 30% of the recommended USRDA. Listed in the ingredients, sugar can be the second
ingredient listed after beef.

Ch'arki
Ch'arki (Quechua for dried, salted meat,[1] Hispanicized
spellings charque, charqui, charquí) is a dried, salted meat
product. Andean charqui, made in Peru, Bolivia and Chile, is
from alpaca, llama or alpaca-llama cross-breeds. Peru is the
world's largest producer with approximately 450 tons produced
per year. Brazilian charque is made from beef.[15]

The manufacture of charqui principally consists of salting and

sun-drying. In some regions, such as in Puno, the meat is sliced Ch'arki
before drying; in others, like Cusco, the meat is dried from
whole bone-in carcass pieces, known as 'charqui completo'.[15]

It was industrialized in charqueadas (in Brazil) or saladeros (in

Argentina and Uruguay). In the United States ch'arki was
Anglicised as jerky.[16][17]

When encountered by the Spanish, the Inca Empire supplied

tampu (inns) along the Inca road system with llama ch'arki for
travelers. The Inca used a freeze drying process that took
advantage of their cold dry mountain air and strong sun.

See also
Bakkwa
Kilishi
Biltong – A form of dried, cured meat that originated
in South Africa
Borts – Mongolian air-dried meat
Carne seca
Cecina Peruvian olluquito with charqui
Dendeng
 Pemmican – Food mix with long shelf life, sometimes
used as survival food
Salt pork – Salt-cured pork, usually prepared from
pork belly, or, more rarely, fatback.
Sukuti

References
1. Teofilo Laime Ajacopa, Diccionario Bilingüe Iskay simipi yuyayk'ancha, La Paz, 2007
(Quechua-Spanish dictionary)
2. "Globe trotting: Ecuador" (http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang/archives/2006/07/15/2003318
976). Taipei Times. 15 July 2006. Retrieved 6 February 2015.
3. "Feet in the Trough: Cured Meat" (http://www.economist.com/world/displaystory.cfm?story_id=8
345876). The Economist. 2006-12-19. Retrieved 2007-12-19.
4. Richard J. Epley and Paul B. Addis. "Processing Meat in the Home" (https://conservancy.umn.e
du/bitstream/handle/11299/53348/0972.pdf?sequence=1) (PDF). Minnesota Extension
Service.
5. USDA Food Standards and Labeling Policy Book, p. 83.
6. Delong, Deanna (1992). How to Dry Foods (https://books.google.com/books?id=z4hJjFFSKx4
C&q=jerky+intitle:How+intitle:to+intitle:Dry+intitle:Foods&pg=RA1-PA79). Penguin Group.
p. 79. ISBN 1-55788-050-6.
7. Waters, Theopolis. "Slumping U.S. meat prices help feed appetite for jerky" (https://www.reuter
s.com/article/us-usa-meat-jerky-idUSKCN11F2I3). U.S. Retrieved 2018-09-18.
8. [1] (https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/wcm/connect/67432999-95e4-4360-a9c9-ddd63276631a/Se
minar_Jerky_Guidelines.pdf?MOD=AJPERES).
9. For example The UK department for food and agriculture and food ban all meat imports for
personal consumption from the USA. Their data can be searched:Defra search (http://importdet
ails.defra.gov.uk/Default.aspx?Location=None&Module=IDDSearch)
10. "Archived copy" (https://web.archive.org/web/20110722031203/http://www.cucinaecantina.it/gu
sto.php?type=terra&attr=0&view=1&id=80). Archived from the original (http://www.cucinaecanti
na.it/gusto.php?type%3Dterra%26attr%3D0%26view%3D1%26id%3D80) on 2011-07-22.
Retrieved 2010-10-20.
11. D.J. Mesfin. Exotic Ethiopian Cooking. Ethiopian Cookbook Enterprises, Falls Church, MD,
2006. p. 31
12. "I'd Like to See a Menu, Please" (http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/shuttle/support/processing/spacefo
od/menus.html). NASA. 2004-05-13. Retrieved 2007-01-08.
13. "Space Food" (https://web.archive.org/web/20041103210910/http://www.nasa.gov/audience/for
kids/home/F_Space_Food.html). NASA. 2004-05-27. Archived from the original (http://www.nas
a.gov/audience/forkids/home/F_Space_Food.html) on 2004-11-03. Retrieved 2007-01-03.
14. "Billy Franks Beef Jerky - Roast Beef and Mustard (40g)" (http://www.meatsnacker.co.uk/collect
ions/high-protein-meat-snacks/products/billy-franks-beef-jerky-roast-beef-mustard-40g).
MeatSnacker. Retrieved 30 March 2015.
15. Salvá, Bettit K.; Fernández-Diez, Ana; Ramos, Daphne D.; Caro, Irma; Mateo, Javier (January
2012). "Chemical composition of alpaca (Vicugna pacos) charqui". Food Chemistry. 130 (2):
329–334. doi:10.1016/j.foodchem.2011.07.046 (https://doi.org/10.1016%2Fj.foodchem.2011.0
7.046).
16. "CHARQUI" (http://etimologias.dechile.net/?charqui). Etimologías de Chile - Diccionario que
explica el origen de las palabras. Retrieved Aug 27, 2020.
17. "Archived copy" (https://web.archive.org/web/20100701034008/http://academic.uprm.edu/dpes
ante/5355/charqui.pdf) (PDF). Archived from the original (http://academic.uprm.edu/dpesante/5
355/charqui.pdf) (PDF) on 2010-07-01. Retrieved 2012-03-29.

External links
Commercial Item Description (CID): Cured Meat Snacks (http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/ge
tfile?dDocName=STELDEV3007460) U.S. Dept. of Agriculture specification
U.S. Dept. of Agriculture: Jerky and food safety fact sheet (https://web.archive.org/web/2011072
1070152/http://www.fsis.usda.gov/factsheets/jerky_and_food_safety/index.asp)

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