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Did you know that raw meat can contain up to 80% water? Out of 100 g of raw meat, only 20 g will bring tangible benefits. Dehydrated meat contains no more than 10% moisture. And 90% is protein, vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients. Just imagine, to get the same concentration of nutrients as in 100 g of dehydrated meat, it will take about 400 g of fresh meat.
What is dehydrated meat?
Drying (or dehydrating) is a method of processing meat that has been known for a long time. Our ancestors used it to preserve the product – to postpone its surplus for a rainy day. The inhabitants of Siberia, the Far North, and the Far East harvested dried meat for the future. A valuable property of this method for residents of cold regions was the uniform distribution of fat on the surface of the product.
The classical method: under the influence of temperature and the movement of air masses, the product becomes dehydrated, becomes harder, and more elastic.
It is significant that the pieces of meat hang vertically and do not touch each other – then the wind will blow them evenly from all sides. Fat is distributed through the muscles, so the product does not become rancid in the future.
Dehydration of meat is the process of dehydration, removal of moisture from the meat. As a result, dried meat is obtained, in which all the same nutrients remain as in raw. The only thing that goes away is water.
Dried meat is tasty, flavorful, contains a lot of protein, has proven itself well as a snack or supplement to various dishes. Another advantage: we can prepare this delicacy ourselves, without relying on a store-bought product with not always perfect composition.
What is dehydration of food?
Dehydration is a technology of drying products. During processing, moisture leaves them evenly, and all the beneficial substances remain.
The shelf life of dehydrated products increases tenfold. The dehydrator allows you to process vegetables, fruits, mushrooms, nuts, herbs, bread, meat, fish, and other products. Also, specialists use it in the production of cookies, pizza crust, pastilles, and sweets.
Put the drying product on the dehydrator grate, set the desired settings, and start the process. The dehydrator distributes the warm air evenly throughout the chamber, ensuring the same temperature throughout the entire volume.
Moist air escapes from the chamber through the holes in the door. The output is a completely dehydrated food product — both outside and inside.
The dehydrator will find application in any food company for the preparation of a variety of natural ingredients: vegetable and fruit chips, dried fruits, dried herbs, and roots, as well as delicious and healthy dishes — from pizza to desserts — without the use of preservatives.
Advantages of dehydrated meat
- The only preservative that cooks use in the process of cooking dried meat is salt. They do not add preservatives and flavorings to the product.
- Due to the high concentration of iron, dried beef will be an excellent help in the treatment of iron deficiency anemia.
- Athletes use the product when they are tired and to build muscle.
- Many people love this product for its versatility: dried meat can be a snack, a main dish, or an accompaniment to alcoholic beverages.
- You can store such meat for a very long time.
What eats can be dehydrated?
Lean meat of almost any variety is suitable for drying. You can use chicken, duck, turkey, beef, horse meat, lamb, and goat meat. Difficulties will be only with pork – the density of muscle tissue is less, the fermentation will occur more slowly.
To prevent the meat from rotting, you must treat it with a high temperature and salt it well. Parasites infect such products more often.
Is it safe to eat dehydrated meat?
Despite all the advantages of dried meat, some people can not afford it because of health problems:
- To break down beef fat, the pancreas must work in an emergency mode and produce an increased content of digestive enzymes, lipase. Such a test is not possible for those who suffer from gastritis, pancreatitis, or stomach ulcers.
- Excessive consumption of raw beef is the cause of osteochondrosis and gout.
- The product contains a large amount of salt, it is not suitable for people with heart diseases.
- Dried meat is not subjected to heat treatment, so parasites that may be in the raw material remain in the finished product.
If you want to use a higher-quality product, it is better to prepare it yourself.
Should I cook meat before dehydrating it?
The technology of meat processing, in this case, pursues several goals:
- kill pathogenic bacteria that can cause serious harm to health
- create in the future, when storing the finished product, an environment unsuitable for the reproduction of pathogenic bacteria and fungi.
You can achieve the first goal by various methods of pre-processing or post-processing of meat. The second goal can solve the dehydration process itself.
Use plastic disposable gloves to cut raw meat. The cutting board and knife should be washed with detergent and disinfected in a chlorine solution before working.
Preheating – the method of cooking raw meat before drying. There are several ways to preheat meat:
- In hot brine. You should bring the salt solution (18-20%) to a boil, then lower the chopped pieces of meat into it. You should leave these pieces in dry spices for a day. Keep the meat in the hot brine for a few minutes, until the temperature inside rises to 71 °C. From the brine, move the pieces to the dryer. Thus, the meat enters the dryer disinfected, and immediately heated to a safe temperature.
- In a hot marinade. During the soaking process, the marinade turns into a vacuum with bacteria. Instead, it is better to take freshly cut raw pieces of meat and place them in a marinade brought to a boil. Then wait until the temperature inside the meat pieces rises to 71 °C (74 °C in the case of poultry meat), and immediately move it to the dryer.
How to use a dehydrator
The dehydrator significantly simplifies the process of drying meat. The principle of operation of dehydrators is based on the gradual evaporation of moisture from products. The drying time and temperature play a significant role in maintaining the quality of products.
Therefore, the devices for dehydration have passed at least three evolutionary stages, each of which improved the process. First, there were drying cabinets, then conventional devices. Specialists invented a modern dehydrator not so long ago.
According to the heating method, there are two types of dehydrators.
- Convection – the air in the working chamber is heated using a traditional spiral.
- Infrared – a lamp with infrared radiation we use as a heater, which provides better drying.
According to the method of directing the airflow, we can divide dehydrators into two types: horizontal and vertical.
Before you start using the dehydrator, you should carefully read the manufacturer’s instructions. Professional suppliers of kitchen appliances provide different modes depending on the type of products and also embed timers. Expensive professional models have not only high power but also a range of capabilities.
For example, they can supply not only nets but also special containers for making homemade yogurts. It is worth paying attention to the technical characteristics of the noise level because the evaporation of moisture can take more than one day.
- Preparation for drying. After buying a new kitchen assistant, you need to unpack all the parts and check the complete set by the manufacturer’s instructions. If the device is working well, you can start dehydrating the products.
- Drying. It is better to select homogeneous blanks – separately dry vegetables, fruits, meat, or fish. Follow the manufacturer’s comments and the thickness of the slicing.
- Cleaning and storage. It is worth paying attention to the material of containers and grids. Metal structures are better. They absorb odors less and are easier to clean. After use, it is necessary to wipe the internal container of the device and rinse the grids or grids (some manufacturers allow cleaning removable parts in the dishwasher).
How to store dehydrated food
It is possible to achieve a longer shelf life in the most ordinary conditions, at room temperature. And in this case, it is best to pack the dried meat in a vacuum bag.
An alternative option is to place the product in a well-ventilated room, which will avoid the appearance of an unpleasant smell. It is important to remember that even a slight decrease in temperature can significantly increase the shelf life.
A more reliable option is to store dehydrated meat in the freezer.
In a cool room and a tight package, you can store the product for 3-4 weeks. In a conventional refrigerator, you can store dried meat for up to 3-4 months, and in a vacuum package – for up to six months. If you place the product in the freezer, its shelf life increases to a year.
How to dehydrate meat in an oven
We will need:
- 1 kg of pork tenderloin (preferably carbonate or neck)
-
seasoning for meat
-
sweet red paprika
-
pepper (preferably from the mill)
Cooking technology:
- Сlean the meat from the tendons.
- Put it in the freezer for 2-3 hours, so that it is easier to cut it into small pieces.
- Take the meat out of the freezer and cut it into strips about 1.5×1.5×10 cm.
- Put the meat in a bowl and add seasonings.
- Add hot pepper, black pepper to taste.
- Cut two onions into small pieces and put them in a bowl with meat and seasonings. Mix well and put in the refrigerator for 5-10 hours.
- Turn on the oven at 70-80 degrees. We put the foil on the pallet. We put the tray at the very bottom.
- We string the pieces of meat on skewers or toothpicks. Carefully hang all our meat pieces on the grill and send them to the oven.
The cooking time depends on the oven itself and the thickness of the meat (2 hours is enough).
How to dehydrate raw meat: recipe
It is a simple process. For this, lamb and beef are well suited. It’s better not to take pork, it does not make a tasty product. Of course, the meat should be fresh, this is the main condition.
For two kilograms of beef, prepare:
-2 teaspoons of table salt
- 2 teaspoons of the pepper mixture
-
50 ml of soy sauce
-
a teaspoon of granulated sugar
-
a few crushed bay leaves
- Cut beef into pieces. It is better if their thickness is not more than one centimeter. Cut the meat across the fibers, so that they do not interfere so much in the process of eating. Put the prepared pieces in a bowl, and prepare the brine, which we will need further.
- We need a mixture of peppers to prepare the marinade. You can buy a set of a combination of several types: red, black, white, green. We will also need salt, bay leaf, soy sauce, sugar, and boiling water.
- Mix all the ingredients in one bowl and pour a cup of boiling water. Mix the resulting solution so that the salt dissolves
- Fill the meat with brine, mix everything. Cover the pan with a lid. We send it to the refrigerator for three days. During this time, the meat will soften, become saturated with salt and spices.
- After the beef has lain in the brine, place it in the dryer. And you can cook dried meat with the help of an oven. If you decide to cook meat in the oven, then preheat it to 70 degrees.
Any method is good. Сhoose the one that is more convenient for you.
Final thoughts
Dried meat is a very nutritious product that can be stored for a long time. One piece of such a product is enough for a person for half a day. The meat gradually swells in the stomach and is digested.
The feeling of hunger does not appear for a long time. Such meat is a beneficial product for lovers of hiking and extreme conditions, and athletes. It is easy and fast to have a snack on the go, and at the same time, it will provide you with a quick surge of strength and energy.
In addition, you can turn dried meat into ordinary meat. It is enough to fill it with hot water and leave it for an hour until it returns to its previous state. Or you can just add a piece of such a product when cooking soup.