Biltong!! Part 3 of 3

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SO HOW DO WE MAKE THIS BILTONG?

Every person likes his/her Biltong in a different style. Some people like it wet (not completely bone dry), some people like it Bone dry. Some people like spicy biltong sticks (also known as chili-bites) and other people like me enjoy thick and long pieces with a bit of fat on the side, that you can sit and slice with you own pocket knife.

You are the only person that will know what kind of biltong you like. Think ahead a bit. When you go to buy meat, and when you slice the meat, know exactly what you expect to get out in the end. If you want biltong sticks, then you might as well buy minute steaks (as cheap as possible) and rip a couple of lines through them with a peering knife. If you like dry Biltong, then cut your meat into slices of between 1 and 1.5 cm. Also don’t make the strips too wide as this will drag out the drying process. You could also remove the fat before hand, if that is your preference.

This is the process that I prefer to use.

Meat

I prefer to use Rump Steak or Top Side roast (Also known as Silver-side Beef, please don’t get corned silver-side), depending on the price and the availability. I find that buying a big chunk of meat (3-5kg), usually costs less per kg than buying smaller amounts. Fresh meat works best, what’s not used for Biltong can be frozen and use for steak or other dishes.

Ideally when cutting Meat for Biltong, its best to cut the meat across the grain of the meat so depending on the size of the strips that is required, look for Meat that is longer grain, rather than wider grain.

Cutting

As I mentioned above. It is best to cut across the grainof the meat. The reason for this rule is two-fold.

1. It increases the outward flow or blood and moisture from the meat.
2. It allows the meat to absorb more spices into the grain.

Ideal slices would be between 2cm and 4cm thick and between 5 cm and 10cm wide. Remember that the drying biltong loses roughly 50% of its weight, so theoretically that should be the same for the size. In practice its more like 20-30% loss in size.

Spicing

For spicing the meat, you will need a container that is large enough to hold all of the slices, packed in layers. If the container is air-tight and can flipped over, it s even better.Now, if you have everything ready, follow the process as explained below to make your batch of biltong:

1. Start with a sprinkle of Worcester sauce as a base, then a thin layer of spices on that. Make sure that the Sauce and spice covers the bottom of the container.
2. Lay the first layer of meat on this. Make sure that there are as little open space between the slices as possible.
3. Cover the meat with Worcester sauce and a thin layer of spices.
4. Repeat step 2 and 3 until all the meat is packed in the container.
5. After 5 – 6 hours, turn the meat over. Repeat every 5 – 6 hours.
6. After 12 – 24 hours, depending on how spicy you like your biltong, it is time to hang the biltong and start the drying process.
7. When hanging the meat, make sure that there is sufficient space between the individual slices to allow for proper air flow (5- 10 mm will do).
8. Check on the meat after 3-4 days. When ready, the biltong will be firm to the touch.

Enjoy!

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