My weekend - pickling and jerky | Page 2 | Food Production and Preservation | Forums

I got an American Harvest in my mid teens (late 80s/early 90s) and that finally kicked the bucket about 5 years ago. The Nesco/American Harvest model I bought at Walmart right after still used a similar tray system, so my old trays and fruit leather adapters still worked.

Never used those models, but I have heard good things about the Cabelas one. I like the round/cylinder style - it makes more sense to me not to have corners when dealing with blowing air.

You're probably right.

Jerky is done:

Right out of the dehydrator. Next step is to pat dry, let them cool for a bit, and then into food saver bags. If you are eating them within a day or two, you can completely do away with using a cure and air tight bags. This batch I put two bags in the fridge that should last a month or two at least. The other two I put in the freezer that will be used for camping trips this summer. And one small ziplock for snacking today and tomorrow.

I forgot to mention, I put a little garlic powder, black pepper, and sea salt on them before they went into the dehydrator. Careful with the salt, I already used it in the cure/brine process so it can be overbearing if you use too much.