Biltong style dried meat

[greybrick]

I was recently given several pounds of dried buffalo meat strips prepared in a way that I hadn't had before, South African biltong style. Haha, I finished it all as snack food before I had a chance to try it in recipes but I have an idea that this meat washed off and chopped up would have made some pretty awesome chile con carne among other dishes, then I got thinking about the camping and long distance traveling possibilities. Cool thing about dried meats is that 50 pounds of fresh meat dries down to about 10 pounds or so.

http://www.markblumberg.com/biltong.html

Any African travelers here who could put us straight on the various uses and recipes for biltong?

.

 

[Connie]

I have a couple of recipes for biltong, but as you say have never tried them, because on the so very rare occasion that I can get my hands on it there isn't enough to end up in anything except my mouth.

For those of you who don't know (have never had the chance to try it) the difference between biltong and your average beef jerky is like the difference between fillet mignon and McDonald's hamburgers.

I have a book on making biltong and droewors, but haven't actually tried it.

here is the recipe I can find straight away:

Biltong Tart
Pastry
125g Flour (260 ml)
125g cream cheese or cottage cheese
125g Butter (135 ml)
1ml salt

Sift the flour and salt together. Rub the butter into the flour mixture, using your fingertips. Mix the cream cheese in with a knife. Place the dough in the refrigerator to cool. Roll the dough out to about 3mm thickness. Place pastry in an ungreased pie tin about 200mm in diameter. Bake pastry shell for 15 minutes at 220 degrees C (450 degrees F.)

Filling
20g Flour (37,5 ml)
50g Mushrooms chopped (150 ml)
20g Butter (25 ml)
3 ml lemon juice
250ml milk
10g onion, chopped (10 ml)
50g finely grated biltong (200ml)
5 ml parsley, chopped
10g Butter (12,5ml)
2 eggs

Add the milk gradually and keep stirring until the sauce boils. Boil it for 3 minutes. Chop the mushrooms and sprinkle with lemon juice. Sauté the mushrooms and chopped onion in the 10g butter until brown. Add to the white sauce. Separate the eggs, beat the egg yolks and add to the white sauce. Beat the egg whites until stiff and fold into mixture. Spoon into partially baked pastry shell and bake for 10 minutes at 200 degrees C (400 degrees F.) (8-10 servings)

 

[gjackson]

Biltong is an afternoon delicacy best enjoyed with a cold beer while watching animals at a watering hole. The morning corollary is rusks which should be enjoyed with a mug of hot coffee while watching animals at a watering hole.

Few better things in the world!!

cheers

 

[mountainpete]

Apparently there is a place in Cranbrook BC that makes incredible biltong. I've been wanting to stop by, but keep forgetting about it. In Calgary, there is a butcher on Kensington that makes it.

Pete

 

[IggyB]

We should make an expedition to Kensington a priority.

Failing to find a path, we may have to take the southern trail to Longview Jerky store :victory:

 

[mountainpete]

Failing to find a path, we may have to take the southern trail to Longview Jerky store :victory:

Mmmmm... Have you ever tried the elkoroni there? It's pretty good. :elkgrin:

 

[greybrick]

In Calgary, there is a butcher on Kensington that makes it.

Thanks Pete, good info, will have to check this out.

.

 

[Spikepretorius]

should be enjoyed with a mug of hot coffee

Got to be Rooibos Tea if you want to be authentic.

I'm no expert on biltong and droewors by any means but to make real biltong it's all in the herbs, and to make good droewors it's all in the various fats that are added to the mix.

I've watched real experts making droewors and it's quite scary the amount of fats added to the mix. Apparently the flavour is in the fat.

 

[Spikepretorius]

Try grated or very finely cut biltong in an omelette.

 

[mountainpete]

Got to be Rooibos Tea if you want to be authentic.

Or maybe a Tusker beer?

 

[rmccoy]

There was an article today in the LA Times regarding a Beverly Hills Butcher Shop that allegedly has excellent Biltong along with other South African Specialties.

http://www.latimes.com/features/food/la-fo-jerky7-2009jan07,0,909462.story

European Deluxe Sausage Kitchen
9109 Olympic Boulevard
Beverly Hills, CA 90212-3507
T: 310-276-1331

Open Hours
7a-6p M-F, 8a-6p Sa


Having never had Biltong, but having my interest piqued, I'm going to have to go try some.

 

[mrchips]

Grew up in Africa, and Biltong, made from Venison is the best. Will have to go and try it. Thanks for posting the link.

 

[telwyn]

My wife lived in S. Africa for a year and we love biltong, rusk, bobotie and boerewoers (spelling?). There's an Italian restaurant here in St. Pete owned by a South African couple and they periodically sell biltong and boerewoers. Great stuff!

 

[off.track]

anybody know of a store that'd carry SA meats and other products in the Great Lakes region, USA side?

 

[SunTzuNephew]

Apparently there is a place in Cranbrook BC that makes incredible biltong. I've been wanting to stop by, but keep forgetting about it. In Calgary, there is a butcher on Kensington that makes it.

Pete

The Buffalo people on Wolfe Island (near Kingston, ON) make it also. So does someone else in ON (I found some in a butcher shop in Ottawa, at the Byward Market) but OMG is it expensive!

I make my own variant using meat from our more or less annual feeder cow. The difference between biltong and jerkey is that biltong is soaked in vinegar and then more air than heat dried - although in S. Africa it's a lot hotter than Montana - so I use the food dehydrator. Nice thick slabs, and a cold Moose Drool....watching the goats at the watering trough.

I use salt, fresh ground black pepper (lots, I got a battery powered grinder just for this), a bit of chili powder, a bit of red pepper powder, onion and garlic powder, freshly smashed (in a pestle) corriander seed, a little brown sugar.

Dip the meat (with as much fat removed as possible) in vinegar (I use apple cider, we buy 5 gallon buckets of it at Costco), set on a rack to drip a bit, then dredge the meat in the dry ingredients and set on another rack to drain, in the refrigerator. Leave for a couple of days, lightly covered.

Remove from refrigerator, discard any juice thats already drained, dip meat in more vinegar to rinse off salt, and put in dehydrator...leave on low for about a week.

When the pieces can be whittled to a sharp point, it's done. It's tough to let them last that long - last year we made about 35 pounds and between friends and football games it was gone in 3 months.