Discussion
ChrisnChris said:
£2 for 35g......or by my maths £57/kg! Local chaps sells his for £35/kg. Bloody good stuff made from Namibian Beef.
Also this talk of Kudu has got me very hungry.
Sainsbury's were selling large topside / toprump roasts 1/2 price recently.
Cost per Kg for these was £5.50ish.
Safari Biltong spice 1kg is £10 off ebay. You probably use 40g per Kg of meat - 25p / Kg.
Vinegar - cheap as *ahem* chips.
Cost of electricity for fan / light for 3 days - ?
Probably £6 to £6.50 per kilo making it oneself and stocking up on meat when convenient. A lot cheaper than £35/£57 !
Cost per Kg for these was £5.50ish.
Safari Biltong spice 1kg is £10 off ebay. You probably use 40g per Kg of meat - 25p / Kg.
Vinegar - cheap as *ahem* chips.
Cost of electricity for fan / light for 3 days - ?
Probably £6 to £6.50 per kilo making it oneself and stocking up on meat when convenient. A lot cheaper than £35/£57 !
Edited by Chris Type R on Wednesday 14th August 14:22
Chris Type R said:
Sainsbury's were selling large topside / toprump roasts 1/2 price recently.
Cost per Kg for these was £5.50ish.
Safari Biltong spice 1kg is £10 off ebay. You probably use 40g per Kg of meat - 25p / Kg.
Vinegar - cheap as *ahem* chips.
Cost of electricity for fan / light for 3 days - ?
Probably £6 to £6.50 per kilo making it oneself and stocking up on meat when convenient. A lot cheaper than £35/£57 !
I assume you loose 55-50% of the weight during drying, is it that easy? you can get great deals at Smithfield market on a Friday morning! Cost per Kg for these was £5.50ish.
Safari Biltong spice 1kg is £10 off ebay. You probably use 40g per Kg of meat - 25p / Kg.
Vinegar - cheap as *ahem* chips.
Cost of electricity for fan / light for 3 days - ?
Probably £6 to £6.50 per kilo making it oneself and stocking up on meat when convenient. A lot cheaper than £35/£57 !
Edited by Chris Type R on Wednesday 14th August 14:22
ALawson said:
I assume you loose 55-50% of the weight during drying, is it that easy? you can get great deals at Smithfield market on a Friday morning!
Doh - what a mup, I didn't factor that in. the internet said:
Raw biltong will become "wet biltong" and ready to eat after 24-36 hours and will have lost 40% - 50% of its raw weight. "Not too wet not too dry biltong" will be ready in 36-48 hours and will have lost 50% - 60% of its raw weight. "Dry biltong" will be ready in 48-56 hours and will have lost 60% - 70% of its raw weight.
So probably best to double my original cost calculation.Edited by Chris Type R on Wednesday 14th August 14:55
I have just made a fresh batch and also ordered in supplies from Susman's to see what the professional stuff was like.
Basically I started off with a 1kg marbled topside cut of meat. Removed the excess fat before putting it into my meet slicer, once perfectly sliced at 1cm thick I think cut the meat into strips cutting with the grain of course. At the end I also cut one or two 0.5cm slices just to test the slicers raw meat cutting ability and accuracy, I'm pleased to say it was excellent. The meat slicer made the whole meat preparation much quicker, safer and efficient, there was very little waste and my fingers remained relaxed throughout the operation - unlike when I use a sharp knife
Next I put all the meat into a mixing bowl and added 1 cup of Apple Cider Vinegar, added in a liberal sprinkling of premixed Biltong mix, some Worcester sauce, some garlic & chili granules and mixed it all together. I then drained the excess vinegar off and put the meat neatly in a tupperware container in the fridge. Every hour or so I was emptying the excess vinegar/juice and replacing it back in the fridge.
I initially meant this period to last 6 hours but I forgot about it and it remained in the fridge over night. Next morning I get up and hang the meat in the dryer. I have a bulb built in but left the bulb off and just put the fan on, 2-3 days later (some dried quicker than others) it was ready and I dug in. The stuff was perfect, reasonably moist and full of flavor when you started chewing.
This was my 4th or 5th time at doing this and I am pretty happy that I am now on the right path for perfect Biltong. The key aspects that I changed was slicing the meat neatly and accuratley in the slicer, using plenty of vinegar and leaving to marinade for around 12-14 hours before hanging. I appreciate that these steps go against most of the online recipe suggestions but who cares? I have great Biltong!
On a side note, my missus doesn't like the Biltong from Susman's and prefers my own
What I don't understand is the Biltong from Susman's comes in a "torn up" form i.e. its in small (soft & moist) bits rather than large strips? How do they achieve this? I also ordered the chili bites, how do they hang such small strips? Surely they dont hook them all up individually? I can't see any "hook holes" either? Would be nice to know for future reference.
Finally, next time I will be setting the slicer to cut 0.5cm slices and I will also be adding brown sugar to the premix as well as a LOT more chili
Basically I started off with a 1kg marbled topside cut of meat. Removed the excess fat before putting it into my meet slicer, once perfectly sliced at 1cm thick I think cut the meat into strips cutting with the grain of course. At the end I also cut one or two 0.5cm slices just to test the slicers raw meat cutting ability and accuracy, I'm pleased to say it was excellent. The meat slicer made the whole meat preparation much quicker, safer and efficient, there was very little waste and my fingers remained relaxed throughout the operation - unlike when I use a sharp knife
Next I put all the meat into a mixing bowl and added 1 cup of Apple Cider Vinegar, added in a liberal sprinkling of premixed Biltong mix, some Worcester sauce, some garlic & chili granules and mixed it all together. I then drained the excess vinegar off and put the meat neatly in a tupperware container in the fridge. Every hour or so I was emptying the excess vinegar/juice and replacing it back in the fridge.
I initially meant this period to last 6 hours but I forgot about it and it remained in the fridge over night. Next morning I get up and hang the meat in the dryer. I have a bulb built in but left the bulb off and just put the fan on, 2-3 days later (some dried quicker than others) it was ready and I dug in. The stuff was perfect, reasonably moist and full of flavor when you started chewing.
This was my 4th or 5th time at doing this and I am pretty happy that I am now on the right path for perfect Biltong. The key aspects that I changed was slicing the meat neatly and accuratley in the slicer, using plenty of vinegar and leaving to marinade for around 12-14 hours before hanging. I appreciate that these steps go against most of the online recipe suggestions but who cares? I have great Biltong!
On a side note, my missus doesn't like the Biltong from Susman's and prefers my own
What I don't understand is the Biltong from Susman's comes in a "torn up" form i.e. its in small (soft & moist) bits rather than large strips? How do they achieve this? I also ordered the chili bites, how do they hang such small strips? Surely they dont hook them all up individually? I can't see any "hook holes" either? Would be nice to know for future reference.
Finally, next time I will be setting the slicer to cut 0.5cm slices and I will also be adding brown sugar to the premix as well as a LOT more chili
calibrax said:
Tuvra said:
What I don't understand is the Biltong from Susman's comes in a "torn up" form i.e. its in small (soft & moist) bits rather than large strips? How do they achieve this?
Biltong slicer... (although Susmans probably have an electric/industrial version)
Funnily enough I was searching for a biltong cutter yesterday - preferably a commercial electric one. They are bloody expensive!
Re - Vinegar. Try experimenting with different types. I prefer cider vinegar and drown my meat for 20 mins or so. A lot of videos will show just 'splashing' the meat. The vinegar can add so much flavour.
Re - Vinegar. Try experimenting with different types. I prefer cider vinegar and drown my meat for 20 mins or so. A lot of videos will show just 'splashing' the meat. The vinegar can add so much flavour.
Having tried some Biltong years ago and not been impressed, the Mrs bought me thai flavoured kangaroo from Martins Jerked Meats, and some "My Brittle Pony" horse jerky the other day. Only tried the kangaroo so far and it's bloody nice, so I reckon I need to try biltong again, what's would people recommend for easily available UK shop bought stuff?
Tuvra said:
I didn't need that £40 I just spent on this anyway
Should have done a DIY - http://www.thehomechannel.co.za/biltong-cutter/MonkeyBusiness said:
Funnily enough I was searching for a biltong cutter yesterday - preferably a commercial electric one. They are bloody expensive!
This place has a manual one advertised, but has been out of stock for a while: http://www.biltongbox.com/shop/index.php?act=viewP...
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