How To Cook A Smoked Jerky On A Pit Boss Pellet Grill
If you love eating beef jerky, but don’t like all that salt that comes with it. You’ll want to learn how to cook peppered smoked jerky on a Pit boss or any other pellet grill. The great thing about homemade jerky, is you can season it any way you want.
Tips For Smoking Cooking Smoked Jerky On A Pellet Grill
Use the leanest meat possible and marinate the jerky for 4-24 hours. The longer you marinate it, the tastier it will become as the seasoning will have a chance to soak into the meat and give it a great flavor.
That being said, marinating it for more than 24 hours can make it too salty!
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What Type of Meat Should I Use for Beef Jerky?
You want to choose a lean beef that won’t make your jerky too tough. According to Mountain America Jerky, the leaner the meat the better.
Some of the most popular cuts for homemade jerky are:
- Top Round
- Flank Steak
- Top Round (London Broil)
- Eye of Round
If you’re not sure, don’t be embarrassed to ask the meat cutter at your local supermarket. They will be able to recommend which type of meat to use and you can even ask them to slice it for you.
Choosing A Marinade
You’re cooking homemade beef jerky, which means that you can use any type of marinade you want.
There are several different types of beef jerky marinades to use on the Internet.
Some of the most popular seasonings used for homemade beef jerky are:
- Brown Sugar
- Soy Sauce
- Garlic Powder or Garlic Salt
- Worcestershire Sauce
- Black Pepper
The possibilities are endless. One of the great things is you can control the amount of sodium and everything that gets added to your home cooked batch of jerky.
Marinating The Chicken
Grab the ingredients from your counter and add them to a mixing bowl. Now place the chicken in a ziplock bag and pour the marinade directly over the chicken.
Massage the bag lightly to ensure all the meat is coated thoroughly. Place the ziplock bag in your refrigerator and let it marinate until you’re ready to cook.
Best Pellets To Use For Beef Jerky
You can use any type of pellets you want when cooking beef jerky. We used the
We always buy a 40 pound bag and use these pellets whenever we use the grill. You can always change out your pellets if you decide to use a different flavor.
What Temperature Do You Smoke Jerky At?
When cooking jerky, you’ll want to use the smoke setting and cook it between 160° – 200° Fahrenheit. Our Pit boss fluctuated between 170° – 185°.
We did have to move the grill to the shade, because at one point the temperature rose to above 220°. I’m not sure how that would affect the jerky.
How Long To Cook Beef Jerky On A Pellet Grill?
It depends on the amount of meat you’re cooking, thickness, and the texture you’re looking for.
You can expect it to take around 2-3 hours. However, you’ll want to make sure you check it every 30 minutes to an hour to make sure you don’t over cook it.
Do You Flip Jerky In A Smoker?
No, you don’t have to flip it. Once you put it on the grill, close the lid and let it cook.
How Do You Know When Beef Jerky Is Done?
Speaking of overcooking the beef jerky, how do you know when it’s ready?
You’ll know the jerky is done when you can bend it at a 90 degree angle without it breaking or tearing apart.
If it breaks, then you have cooked it too long. If it breaks or tears, the jerky may not be fully cooked.
According to the USDA Meat and Poultry, beef jerky should have an internal temperature of 160°.
Resting Period
Remove from the grill and place on a cooling rack to let the jerky cool completely before you tear into it and start eating it.
Natural Burn Off Process
Whenever you’re done grilling on the pellet smoker, you want to ensure you run the natural burn off process to get the grill ready for the next use.
This also helps your grill stay clean in between your deep cleaning sessions.
Storing The Beef Jerky
Once the beef jerky has cooled, you’ll want to store it correctly to keep it as fresh as possible.
Here Are Some Other Great Beef Meals You Can Prepare On Your Pellet Grill
- How To Cook A Ribeye On The Pit Boss Pellet Grill
how to cook peppered smoked jerky on a pit boss pellet grill
This peppered smoked jerky is amazing and you'll want to make this homemade jerky every week. It's a great snack that is packed with a spicy flavor, protein, that has a great chewable jerky texture!
Ingredients
Instructions
- Trim all the fat and slice the meat 1/8 to 1/4 inches thick. Cut with the grain if you want a chewier jerky and against the grain if you prefer your jerky more tender.
- In a mixing bowl mix the coke, soy sauce, Worchester sauce, garlic powder, kosher salt, brown sugar, and black pepper.
- Put the meat into a Ziplock bag and pour the mixture directly into the bag over the meat. Massage the meat to lightly to ensure that all the pieces get coated completely.
- Place the bag in the refrigerator and marinate the beef for at least 4 hours, but no more than 24 hours. If you marinate it too long, it can become too salty.
- When ready to bake, preheat the pellet grill to 160° to 200° use the smoke setting.
- Remove the jerky from the marinade and line a baking sheet with them. Don't dry the pieces off as the wetness gives it great glazing.
- Sprinkle the top and bottom with black pepper. (you can add as much as you want depending on how spicy you like it.)
- Place the jerky directly on the grill grates.
- Bake the jerky for 1:45 or longer until it reaches your desired texture.
- When done, remove from grill and let it cool.
- Store any uneaten beef jerky in an airtight container.
Notes
You can store the jerky in a sealable bag for several weeks!
If stored at room temperature, it will keep for up to 2 weeks in an airtight container.
*If you didn't trip the fatty bits off, make sure you refrigerate it.
Conclusion
Preparing homemade beef jerky is not a one day process. It takes time and knowing how long to marinate it is one of the most important steps.
I’ve already mentioned the longer you marinate it the better. You’ll get the best flavor when you let the jerky marinate for 12 hours to one day.
Proper marination not only improves the flavor, but it also improves its firmness and overall chewiness of it. Once you learn how to cook beef jerky on a pellet grill, you’ll never buy the store bought version again!
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