Beef Jerky – Enjoy Your Drinks With an Amazing Snack
Most snacks that you love to nibble on with your beer or while enjoying a nice movie in your free, are usually filled with nothing but calories. Agreed, the fried and crunchy snackfoods have a tasty flavour and are considered the ideal accompaniment with a glass of beer or as a pre-dinner appetizer. However, would it not be nice if you could include some yummy as well as nutrient rich snacks for your leisurely drink time or as a snack between meals? The best snack that is without all fattening agents and is packed with wholesome nutrition is beef jerky. Anyone can fall in love with the flavour of jerky beef and it can be served for appetizers during dinner parties and family get-togethers.
Beef jerky is prepared commercially in a hygienic manner by marinating slices of the highest quality beef, and air drying them in specially devised machines. After drying it to remove the excessive moisture, the beef is cooled and packed in air tight packets. To prevent any oxidation, small pouches of oxygen absorber may sometimes be inserted in the packets. Australia based organizations producing beef jerky take effective steps to ensure total compliance with all HACCP Guidelines.
Like most other snacks, beef jerky too is available in many tempting flavours. You can go for a natural beef flavour, black pepper variant, sweet and spicy jerky, smokey jerky or a spicy hot chili beef jerky. Indeed, once you get addicted to it’s delicious taste, you may like to buy all flavours to create a sweet-salty-spicy assortment.
Beef is a well known rich source of protein. Along with this, it also provides Vitamin B, D and E. There are traces of minerals including calcium and iron in high quality Australian beef. So, when you enjoy beef jerky with your beer, there is no need to suffer from any guilt pangs from nibbling on a snack. It is not bad for you. Indeed, it is the greatest alternative to all the fattening snacks that are used with drinks. If you are on a diet and are striving to keep yourself away from all kinds of snacks, you can grab a pack of beef jerky anytime with no worries about gaining weight. The consumption of jerky beef also gives a feeling of fullness and has loads of satiety value. Therefore, the dieters can fulfill their appetite with a few pieces and also get the right nutrients.
So next time, when you decide to gulp down a can or two of beer, make sure you have the right snack to enjoy the flavour. All your mates will also love it, for sure.
January 01 2011 | Food And Drink | Comments Off
Beef Jerky – A Healthy Snack For an Active Lifestyle
For a healthy, portable snack, one needs to look no further than the nutrient dense, low calorie, and filling treat, beef jerky. Jerky has been an important part of many people’s lives for centuries, but with the advent of modern agriculture and food distribution, it has been relegated to a small niche on a supermarket shelf. While most people associate beef jerky with the old west, this healthy food is readily available, and makes an excellent snack anytime, especially with our busy modern lifestyle. It is a perfect on-the-go food for outdoor activities, and is easily carried in a bag or pocket for an anytime snack.
Beef jerky is an excellent source of lean protein, which promotes a feeling of fullness, and is a perfect choice to help sustain a person through the day. The low fat content helps keep calories down, and means it is healthier than many other snack options. For those on low carbohydrate diets, beef jerky is a perfect treat to help satisfy your craving for food without the accompanying carbohydrates. A celery stick doesn’t seem an exciting option for many of us, and a savory snack such as beef jerky is satisfying without being a dieter’s nightmare. It should come as no surprise to hear that supermodels have been known to nibble jerky throughout the day to help them feel satisfied and avoid the cravings that can come from dieting.
A 1 ounce serving of beef jerky can have as little as one gram of fat and, supplying the body with much needed nutrients without the sugar, fat, and preservatives that seem prevalent in every snack food these days. The ultimate portable food, beef jerky is easy to carry, store, enjoy, and share. While some commercial beef jerky products may be high in sodium, low salt options are readily available. If you can’t find it at the grocery store, beef jerky is amazingly easy to make at home, without the need for special equipment. While dehydrators are not expensive, beef jerky can easily be made in a conventional oven with little effort. And jerky is not limited to beef, just about any meat can be made into jerky, and just about any flavor may be added to a variety of meats, with surprisingly good results.
Real beef jerky comes as strips of dried meat, firm yet pliant and ready for the road. It can be stored for indefinite periods of time, and is both pocket and shelf stable. Certain mass produced jerky sticks are not the beef jerky of yore, and often contain many other things that meat (fillers and preservatives). Many faux-jerky products come in special packaging, and leave behind a oily wrapper that must be disposed of. Real jerky is easy to carry, dry, so there is no transfer of oil or moisture, and a convenient way to take a small meal with you without having to worry about any preparation. There truly is no better food for an easy snack away from home.
January 01 2011 | Food And Drink | Comments Off
Beef Jerky Has Become Popular Again – Beef Jerky Is A Low Carb, Fast and Delicious Snack
Thanks to the low carbohydrate craze which has hit the country in the last several years, beef jerky has started to become quite popular again.
But you will find a lot more to jerky than merely a fast Atkin’s fix.
Of course, if you are looking for a wholesome and fast treat you can bring more or less anywhere, jerky is it. It is especially great for traveling and backpacking. It is compact, provides important nutrients, tastes terrific, and does not quickly go bad. It is also light and convenient to carry. Many individuals that backpack or drive for a living carry jerky just for these reasons.
History of Beef Jerky
Despite the fact that many people today associate it with cowboys of the American Southwest, jerky is thought to have originated in South America during the 1800′s. The Quechua tribe of Indians prepared a product much like beef jerky that they named ch’arki — which is probably where the term “jerky” originated from. They used elk, deer, as well as buffalo meat and added salt to them prior to drying it out or placing the meat over a fire. This preserved the meats for a later day when it was needed or in the event that food was not as readily available for whatever reasons.
The Spaniards started producing this well-liked treat after they inhabited areas of South America and then introduced it all over the world. American cowboys along with the early pioneers also discovered the snack and adapted it to the beef they produced and it grew to be a stable of their meals. Early explorers are known to have constructed smoke huts for the sole purpose of making jerky.
Today’s beef jerky came along when the meat was first flavored. By adding spices the meat started to be far better
tasting.
Make Jerky At Home
With more people becoming conscious of the things they are consuming and as well searching for inexpensive more healthy foods, beef jerky is seeing something of a renewal. It’s a terrific snack for grown ups and children alike and eating a strip of beef jerky is much better for you and better tasting than a high fat food.
Nowadays many people that are mindful of their health and well being opt to marinate and dehydrate their own beef. This enables them to monitor precisely what they are eating as well as modify the jerky to their individual taste.
January 01 2011 | Food And Drink | Comments Off
Gourmet Beef Jerky – The Best Protein Packed Snack With Low Fat Content!
Since primitive age human being as been drying meat for preservation to protect it from insects and other bacteria. Meat has been cut into thin strips to make it easier for chewing and the word “jerky” has been derived from Quenchua language meaning “dried meat”. Gourmet beef jerky is the modernization of the same old tradition adding to the taste and preparation method.
While in olden days meat was dried to preserve it and use it later for regular meals, today jerky has been used as a means of snacks and the luxury of eating chicken, pork, beef etc. gives a different taste. The ingredients that are added to it are salt, spices, sugar, seasonings etc. and most of the fast content is trimmed out of the beef as fat cannot be dried easily. This product has another advantage of not requiring it to be preserved in refrigeration.
While jerky is fat free you should avoid it if you are on a salt-restricted diet. They are high in sodium content but again they have solid protein forming about 23% of daily intake in one ounce.
While these products are available in variations of different types of animal products such as chicken, fish, meat, pork, beef etc. they are favorites of people who like to stick to high protein snacks rather than binging on fast food that adds to the fat content in the body.
There are many brands in the market that has been claimed as a good producer for gourmet beef jerky:
o The Jerky Guy,
o Silver Creek Jerky,
o Double B jerky etc.
The Jerky Guy has got fine products in this area and is made in the U.S. from the best selected beef and there are no artificial preservatives or additives added to the product. Soya sauce is added to preserve them and it is slowly smoked on real wood and good care is taken to enhance its aroma as well as the flavor. Flavors based on black pepper, Helluvapeno, Teriyaki etc. are available that gives a good spicy taste to your tongue.
Double B Jerky used the process of 100% smoking for gourmet beef jerky. They are made with a natural approach and may not melt easier in your mouth but are the best product for the people who love to eat all natural food products.
Gourmet beef jerky is not just a snack that can be carried along to your office place or gym but it is an ingredient. Pepper forms the primary flavor for most of these products and you can also use them with other food items such as pizza, sandwiches, broiled fish, shrimps etc.
January 01 2011 | Food And Drink | Comments Off
Spicy Venison Jerky – Delicious Dried Meat Snack With a Hot Chile Flavor
Jerky is considered one of the first convenience foods in America. These nutritious dried meat strips sustained many a hungry cowboy and traveler on the plains of the western part of United States.
Dried chile flakes are the traditional seasoning for jerky. They not only flavor the meat, but also help preserve it, which the Indians discovered many years ago. Chiles contain an anti-oxident that prevents meat, and meat fat, from turning rancid as it is drying in the sun. The chiles also help in warding off insects and birds through the drying process.
Even today, along the Rio Grande River Valley of New Mexico, Pueblo Indians make venison jerky. The whole process matches the beginning of deer hunting season with the harvesting of red chiles in this region.
Making jerky, and in this case venison jerky, is a very simple process at home, using your oven to dry out the meat. Jerky can be enjoyed “as is” for a snack, or it can be served in a sauce or gravy like any dried beef.
Venison Jerky Recipe
Venison round steak, trimmed of fat, and cut in strips
Pure ground New Mexican hot red chile
Salt
For the most tender jerky, cut the venison strips across the grain of the meat. If you prefer chewy jerky that has to be torn or pulled (that’s where the name “jerky” comes from), then cut the strips along the grain.
Generously sprinkle the meat strips with the ground chile and salt. The more salt used, the quicker the venison jerky will dry. Place the season strips of meat on the rack of a broiling pan, or any type of rack that will allow the circulation of air around the meat and the draining away of fat.
Set the oven at 150 degrees F., and place the pan of meat in. Prop open the oven door about 2 inches to let the juices evaporate. Dry in the oven for about 8 hours, or until the jerky reaches your desired dryness.
Store the jerky in a cool, dry place that allows for circulation. Because it is very difficult to get the meat completely dried, storing in an airtight container often causes it to mold. It can also be stored in the freezer for up to 3 months.
January 01 2011 | Food And Drink | Comments Off
Organic Chocolate
Chocolate has always been associated with a variety of health problems. This is the reason why some people steer clear of this delicious treat. But now, there is good news for chocolate lovers. Chocolate, specifically organic chocolate, has been proved to offer many health benefits.
Organic chocolate is made from high-quality organic ingredients. It meets or exceeds all standards of qualification that classify it as an organic product. When a chocolate is labeled organic, it means that the product’s cacao content was farmed in an environmentally suitable way. This ensures that there are no harmful pesticide residues.
One of the main reasons why you should eat organic chocolate instead of its non-organic counterpart is because you minimize the risk of ingesting pesticide residues. While non-organic chocolate itself is fine to eat, there can be pesticide residue present in the cocoa powder used, which can have harmful effects on the body. Unlike non-organic chocolate, organic chocolate is made from organic cocoa which is cultivated in small plots under a shade canopy, therefore minimizing the use of pesticides.
And since there is less risk for pesticide residue ingestion, organic chocolate has been proven helpful to the body. When eaten in moderation, it can contribute to heart health, suppress chronic cough, add much-needed magnesium to the diet and help control blood sugar. However, too much of something is not good for your health. You should avoid excessive intake of chocolate.
Recent studies have shown that chocolate itself is actually good for you. What makes eating it a health hazard is the kind of ingredients used to make it. This is why it is important that you choose organic over non-organic chocolates. Organic chocolate is a healthier and tastier option for your body. Now you need not worry too much about possible health risks when you indulge your sweet tooth.
November 28 2010 | Food And Drink | Comments Off
Fundamentals for Making Chocolate Covered Pretzels
A pretzel is a type of baked food with the European origin. To prepare this food, one uses water, wheat flour and yeast. One then makes it into artistic varieties of shapes like, loop, stick, and rods. To make something yummy out of these crispy snacks, then one would think of dipping them in molten chocolate. This in turn gives you very crunchy and tasty chocolate covered pretzels, a treat worthy of praise. Do not wait to hear other people talk about it. Try it and be the one to show them. To prepare this kind of treat, one can dip the snacks in any type of chocolate from the dark, white to the milk. It is also possible add to it flavors of ones choice making it such a specialty.
The best type of pretzel for dipping is the rod as it allows one to retain the original tastes as well as blending together nicely with the chocolate. This creates a unique taste that every person would love. It is possible to prepare these mellow foods right in your kitchen. The whole family will enjoy this treat. The process of making them is quite simple and all one needs to do is follow the instructions properly to come up with the crispy delicacy. The preparation is easy, you only need to take the pretzel of your choice then prepare the chocolate by melting it. Take the snacks one at a time dipping them in chocolate half way as you place them on a waxed paper.
Place the pretzels somewhere cool for them to harden. There you have them ready for your desserts. Keep them in tightly closed containers. Here is a recipe that may help anyone who wishes to have chocolate covered pretzels. Try it and you will enjoy. The ingredients involved include pretzel sticks, semisweet dark chocolate, cookie sheet, wax paper and crushed sweetened coconut. Once you are ready with these, melt the chocolate. Take a pretzel and dip it ¾ length in the molten chocolate. Cover the snack in shredded coconut as you place them on the wax paper. Place the wax paper over a cookie sheet. Put the snacks in the oven while still on the paper and let them remain until the coconut browns. Remove and let cool and there you have what you desired
No matter what type of pretzel you wish to use your results will be yummy. You also could make different varieties and are not limited to what is here. You may even choose to stuff peanut butter in these nice snacks later covering them in chocolate. If one were creative enough, they would come up with very beautiful creations. One may use other material for topping these appetizers. These may include peppermint candies, crushed nuts and other crushed chocolate candies. Take cookery to a higher level, use your own created recipes and enjoy. The chocolate covered pretzels are so delicious and crispy that you do not wish to miss them. Have fun with your special people with these specialties
November 28 2010 | Food And Drink | Comments Off
Chocolate Fondue
Chocolate was created to be enjoyed every day of the week, it can be savoured by yourself or shared with friends and loved ones. A great way to share your favourite chocolate, is to arrange a relaxing evenings entertainment with a few close friends, some fresh fruits and a chocolate fondue set.
What Kind of Chocolate?
You can use any kind of chocolate, from the most expensive to everyday cooking chocolate. A smooth textured chocolate is great and dark, milk, white chocolate or your favourite choclate bar can really work well. The plainer chocolate the more creative you can be with adding your favourite ingredients.
What to dip
A variety of foods lend themselves to being dunked in warm melted chocolate and as long as they are cut into bite size bits you can go a bit crazy, a few of my favourite choices are: fresh fruits: strawberries, grapes, apples, bannanas, pineapple, if your lucky enough to have fresh apricots they are fantastic, if not dried fruits are a great alternative.
You can also use almond bread, marshmallows, jube lollies, or small cakes and sweet breads that are firm enough not to dissolve in the chocolate.
Adults Only
For an Adults Only fondue you can add a little luxury with your favourite liquer, think: Kahlua, Tia Maria or Rum you are only limited by your imagination or your liquer cabinet.
Easy Chocolate Fondue Recipe
1/3 Cup of Thickened Cream
350g Chocolate
3 Tablespoons of Liquer (optional)
Selection of Dippers
In a medium sauce pan, slowly bring the cream to simmer, remove pan from heat and add the chocolate a bit at a time. Gently stir until the chocolate has completely melted.
Add the liquer and stir away from heat until combined. Place in your Fondue set with candle light beneath.
Serve immediately with your dippers and enjoy.
November 28 2010 | Food And Drink | Comments Off
Try Pairing Chocolate and Beer
There is a buzz about pairing chocolate with wine. Well, what about pairing chocolate and beer? Beer has flavor complexities that pair well with chocolates without the tannins and acidity that wine often brings into the equation.
One of the things that makes the combination of chocolate and beer great is that it is rather unusual, yet the pairings can work well! From a social perspective, people who don’t like beer often do like chocolate so everyone can participate at some level.
Just as a quick experiment to see how this can work, don’t just drink your next beer. Taste it, and see if you can find toasty, caramel, toffee, roasted, chocolate, coffee, and/or fruity notes in your beer. All these same flavor notes can be found in chocolate.
Through much experimentation, beer drinkers have discovered that a number of different beer styles pair well with the both the unique flavors of, and sweetness of, chocolate.
Dark beers, such as porters and stouts, are made using a good deal of roasted or burnt barley malt. The flavors imparted tend to pair well with chocolate.
Strong stouts, especially Imperial stouts, can match quite well with chocolate desserts. The reason is that, like coffee, it offers your mouth a break from the sweetness of the dessert. With that said, Cream Stouts don’t pair well because the sweetness of lactose tends to conflict with the sweetness of the dessert. Classic dry Irish Stouts such as Guinness do not have the proper intensity so they are also not a good match.
Belgian-style ales, typically amber to brown in color, have higher alcohol content yet are typically flavorful and smooth. The yeast used in these ales has a lot of underlying fruit tones, especially among the Trappist-style dubbels (doubles). As a result you might notice caramel, layers of banana, apple, apricot and peach, with cinnamon, nutmeg, or clove spices.
Fruit-flavored Belgian Lambic beers pair well with dark chocolate, especially with cacao percentages at 60% or higher. The tartness of these fruity beers pairs nicely with the semi-sweet chocolate. For a special treat, try a berry-flavored truffle with dried berries and amber ale.
India Pale Ale has higher alcohol and hops content that regular beers. The extra hops makes this beer more bitter. Such beers tend to pair well with malt-flavor truffles, gourmet malt balls, and even a variety of chocolate and nut combinations. The malty flavors pair well together even though the bitterness of the beer and sweetness of the malt are opposites.
Now you have no more excuses. Grab a beer and some chocolate, and experiment to find a combination that you enjoy. Then share with a friend. Chocolate is meant to be shared.
November 28 2010 | Food And Drink | Comments Off
Chocolate Ganache
If chocolate in and of itself weren’t good enough, someone had to go and add cream to the mix, creating the first chocolate ganache. This wonderful mix is the base for so many treats they’re impossible to list.
Credit perhaps goes to the Swiss, who in perfecting the art of chocolate making, were the first to add powdered milk to the chocolate mix. True ganache, however, involves the use of cream, giving the chocolate made from the process a truly heavenly taste.
Ganache in its best form is used as the base for truffles, cakes, mousse and more. While it might seem making the chocolate formula for ganache would be a well-kept secret that’s hard to replicate, that’s simply not so.
Making ganache at home isn’t terribly tough if patience is applied and the maker is set for a possible failure or two at the start.
Ganache itself is simply a mixture of equal parts of cream and chocolate. It’s heated and mixed together and then used with other ingredients to form the basis for a whole slew of delightful confections.
While some of the best makers of chocolate might use a more complex method, there are two worthy of trying in home kitchens.
The first involves taking the chocolate for the mixture and melting it. Then bring it to room temperature and beat cream into it until the mix is creamy and smooth.
The second and perhaps the most foolproof method for making ganache at home is to bring the cream to a boil first, remove it from heat and then beat the chocolate into the cream. This avoids burning the chocolate in the mix, which is a very easy thing to do, unfortunately. While cream will burn, too, it’s easier to watch and, thus, this method is a preferred one for home chefs who want to create their own ganache.
Using this base, chocolate chefs at home can create their own mousse by adding more cream or they can create a sifter product for candies by adding a bit more chocolate. Experimentation is key, try adding some of your favorite fruits, jams or nuts to the ganache for truffles or layer it in between cake sections for a desserts that’s to die for.
Remember, though, the expert ganache makers from world famous chocolate houses have spent years perfecting their craft. What’s made at home is not likely to taste the same as a ganache imported from a famous maker in France, Switzerland or elsewhere.
Want to learn more about the fascinating history of chocolate? See additional articles by this author.
November 28 2010 | Food And Drink | Comments Off