I think it is rare to find a meat eater who does not like beef jerky, so for Christmas gifts this year several people on our list received a big ol' bag of homemade jerky.  I made several different marinades, but this one from my aunt was by far the winner.  So for a lack of a better name we shall call it Marian's Marinade.

I used a dehydrator to make my jerky, but I have read about a method using your oven on a low temp for several hours.  Didn't try it, but know that just because you don't have access to a food dehydrator doesn't mean you can't try making your own jerky.  I borrowed a dehydrator for this project, but we are looking to buy one ourselves now, the jerky went over quite well here.  Like any new thing I take on, I started in big.  We bought 15 pounds of top round, and I got to work.

This recipe will marinate roughly 3-4 pounds of beef, I add all the ingredients to a 2 gallon bag mix and then add the meat in.  I put it in a large bowl before placing in the fridge, I had one bag that was a leaker so the bowl was a necessity.  Let the meat marinate for 12 hours for great flavor (I let some of mine go up to 3 days because I was so busy with all the meat, but several sources say don't let it soak more than 3 days.)  Dehydrate according to the instructions with your dehydrator.

Ingredients

• 1 bottle of Worcestershire

• 1 bottle soy sauce

• 1 bottle liquid smoke

• 1 Tbsp black pepper

• 2 tsp ground cayenne pepper

• 2 tsp ginger

• 2 tsp onion salt

• 2 tsp garlic salt

If you try it let me know what you think! I'd love to hear what recipes others use and love.