Have you ever found a really OLD item in your freezer. Like a hunk of meat?
Somehow, some way you have misplaced a piece of meat in your freezer. After a few times of shuffling things around to fit something in that beautiful hunk of protein found it’s way into the abyss. Two years later while cleaning out your freezer you find it.
Happened to me recently with a package of venison backstraps I was gifted by my brother from a doe he shot back in 2018. I remember him giving me the package of meat and I thought, “I’m going to smoke this sometime later this summer.” Summer came and went. As did another… Now here we stand in 2021 and I’ve found what is thought to be the prime cut of venison.
I do not want to waste it. No one wants to, or ever should waste wild game. (there is a whole respecting your game thing I could get into here but that’s for another time.)What do you do with it? How bad is it freezer burned? Can I cover up any “old” or “freezer” taste? The answer: YES!
Jerky! If you use a strong marinade it will cover up any off flavors. Plus, who doesn’t like jerky?
Now it was dead of winter when I made my discovery and didn’t want to go outside and fire up my offset smoker to dehydrate a mere three pounds of venison. I also don’t own a dehydrator. But what I do have is one of those trendy air-fryer, instant pot things! So I bought some basket rack system for dehydrating in it online and got to work and here's how I did it.
Give it a try yourself or feel free to share your favorite way to make jerky!