Ground venison or ground elk can be seasoned and dried for delicious homemade venison jerky. This homemade ground venison jerky is perfect for snacking and packing for whenever you're on the go!
Tasty ground venison jerky
Jerky is the perfect snack food for hiking, skiing, school, road trips, and just everyday nibbling. We often use venison or elk to make our jerky We live in an area where hunting is prevalent we always have plenty of wild game.
My husband and all three kids are hunters. We usually end up with several freezers full of game meat. Not only do they hunt, but Rod and the kids butcher and process the meat as well. We grind a lot of the meat into burger.
Since we have so many hunters, we end up with a lot of ground venison and elk burger in our freezer. I mean A LOT! Rod often makes jerky from elk or venison roasts sliced thin.
One day we discovered a jerky gun at a store and we decided to give it a try. In the end the only real difference between sliced jerky and burger jerky is the burger jerky tends to be easier to take a bite and chew.
It's a great way for us to use up some of that burger in our freezer!
A jerky gun resembles a caulking gun. And the process is pretty similar to caulking, except you're shooting out meat.
Rod makes jerky quite regularly. The only problem is to try to nail down an actual recipe from him! Over the years I have finally convinced him to keep a notebook with his recipes. He has a three-ring binder and jots down what he does each time.
He's perfected a lot of recipes from homemade bacon and hams, venison pastrami, smoked fish and of course jerky.
I understand why it was hard for him to write things down. This is how Rod works - a little red wine, some brown sugar, garlic powder, red pepper flakes, black pepper, more red wine. Give a little taste - add more salt, onion powder - give a little taste. That's hard to capture in a recipe, but he's finally captured a master recipe.
Use this recipe as a master and then you can decide to cook like Rod does and try a little of this and a little of that.
Jerky marinade
Jerky marinade is flavored with liquid and spices. With ground meat, marinate for at least 4 hours. For sliced meat, marinate for at least 8 hours.
- Red Wine - Add a ton of flavor. Use whatever you have on hand
- Brown Sugar - A little sweetener goes a long way
- Teriyaki - Helps balance the flavors
- Whisky - Well, why not? It was in the recipe my husband made!
- Spices - Onion powder, garlic powder, black pepper and you could also add red pepper flakes for a little kick!
The marinade is heated so the sugar and salt are dissolved in the liquid. Once cooled, the marinade is poured over the meat and then combined.
This is a job best done with your hands. Just dive right in and really mix everything together until all the liquid is fully incorporated into the meat.
Using the jerky gun
To use the jerky gun, fill ground seasoned burger into the tube. Add a single or double spout to the end. Slowly depress the handle until the meat comes out the end. Pipe onto a dehydrating tray in long strips.
Dry in dehydrator. Drying takes 4-8 hours. The time varies depending on your dehydrator, how thick your strips of meat are, and how many trays you've used.
We often need to rotate our trays so we get an even dry with all trays. Even with rotating, we still have some trays that dry quicker than the rest.
Store in a paper bag at room temperature for up to a week (if it lasts that long!) Or place in a freezer-safe bag and freeze until ready to use.
Tips
- Spray your trays lightly with a nonstick spray before adding meat. This helps prevent sticking.
- Rotate your trays after a few hours
- Test your jerky to determine when it's done. Remove a strip from the dehydrator and let it cool. The exterior should be dry and when you bend the jerky, it should be flexible, not crumbly. It's okay to dry longer than this point if that's your preference.
Variations
- Use ground venison or ground elk
- Can use ground beef, but make certain you select the leanest ground beef you can find
- To make with a roast, slice into thin strips. Marinade for at least 8 hours. Remove strips from marinade and place on dehydrator. Discard remaining marinade.
- For spicier jerky, add an additional ½ teaspoon black pepper and 2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
More wild game recipes
- Mongolian Beef
- Italian Meatballs
- Cocktail Meatballs
- Enchilada Soup
- Instant Pot Bone Broth
- Venison Stew
- Elk Steak au Poivre
If you make this recipe, I’d love to hear about it! Leave a comment below and snap a picture and tag me on Instagram @beyondthechickencoop
Be certain to check out all my Wild Game Recipes!
Listen to the podcast episode all about this recipe!
Venison Jerky
Equipment
- Jerky Gun
Ingredients
- 5 pounds ground venison (or elk)
- ½ cup red wine
- ¼ cup teriyaki
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon whisky
- 1 tablespoon salt
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients, except for meat in a saucepan. Heat over medium heat until brown sugar has dissolved. Allow mixture to cool to room temperature. Pour marinade mixture over ground venison.½ cup red wine, ¼ cup teriyaki, ¼ cup brown sugar, 1 tablespoon whisky, 1 tablespoon salt, ½ teaspoon onion powder, ½ teaspoon garlic powder, ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- Combine until marinade is fully mixed into ground meat.Cover and refrigerate for 4-24 hours.5 pounds ground venison
- Use a jerky gun to make long strips on dehydrator trays.
- Dry at 145-155°F for 6-8 hours.
Notes
- Spray your trays lightly with a nonstick spray before adding meat. This helps prevent sticking.
- Rotate your trays after a few hours
- Test your jerky to determine when it's done. Remove a strip from the dehydrator and let it cool. The exterior should be dry and when you bend the jerky, it should be flexible, not crumbly. It's okay to dry longer than this point if that's your preference.
- Use ground venison or ground elk
- Can use ground beef, but make certain you select the leanest ground beef you can find
- To make with a roast, slice into thin strips. Marinade for at least 4 hours. Remove strips from marinade and place on dehydrator. Discard remaining marinade.
- For spicier jerky, add an additional ½ teaspoon black pepper and 2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
Nutritional Disclaimer:
Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and should only be construed as an estimate rather than a guarantee. To obtain the most precise nutritional information in a provided recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the exact ingredients you are using when preparing the recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Nutrition
This recipe was originally posted in February 2015. The recipe and images have been updated.
Amanda says
How long is the jerky good for after dehydrating?
Kathy says
Hi Amamda,
The USDA recommends home-dried jerky can be stored 1 to 2 months. You can extend this time by storing in the freezer.
Kathy
Ian says
I found it to be too subtle a flavour for my taste. Would probably at least triple the dry spices...especially salt and pepper
Kathy says
Thank you
Angela says
Could you smoke these on a pellet smoker at 150-160? If so how long would you suggest
Kathy says
Hi Angela,
Yes, you could dry these on a smoker. Make certain the surface of the grill can hold the meat so the it won't fall through. This is one of those cooks that you'll need to monitor to determine when it's done. Since this takes 4-6 hours in the dehydrator at about the same temp, I'd anticipate it taking about as long on the smoker. Check the jerky every hour to see how it's progressing.
Kathy
Steve G says
Hi Kathy,
I'm intrigued by your recipe for ground venison jerky - just purchased a jerky gun and there is plenty of venison in the freezer. For the first attempt at it, can you elaborate on the type of teriyaki sauce that has worked well? I did a quick internet check and learned there's an American version (thicker) and the more traditional Japanese teriyaki (thinner, perhaps better for marinades).
Thank you.
Kathy says
Hi Steve,
Glad you're going to give this a try! We use any that we find at the grocery store, like Kikoman. You can also make your own teriyaki sauce.
Kathy
Melanie says
Do you need to add any curing salt for this recipe? I’ve always used it when making jerky. This sounds delicious! Can’t wait to try!
Kathy says
Hi Melanie,
We don't use any curing salt in this recipe.
Enjoy! 🙂
Trent Bolton says
How much Worcestershire sauce should I add as well?
Kathy says
If adding Worcestershire sauce, add 1-2 tablespoons. Start with 1 and then taste. If you think it needs a bit more then add the second tablespoon.
Enjoy! 🙂
Trent Bolton says
Do I need to add the whisky!
Kathy says
Hi Trent,
You can leave the whisky out if you'd prefer.
Kathy 🙂
Aasimar says
How do you make this without a dehydrator?
Kathy says
Hi Aasimar,
You could make this in your oven at the lowest temperature your oven will go. Place meat on parchment paper and then place parchment paper on a baking rack on top of a cookie sheet. Place in oven for several hours until completely dried. If you don't have a rack, you can place parchment paper directly on the cookie sheet.
Enjoy!
Kathy 🙂
Jesse says
First time trying a jerky recipe with wine! I made some strips up to use this marinade with. Added a couple extra ingredients like soy and Worcestershire sauce. Smells absolutely wonderful.
Kathy says
Great idea! There's nothing better than homemade jerky! 🙂
Enjoy!!!
Casiday Crossen says
Regular red wine ot red cooking wine?
Kathy says
We use regular wine that we drink. 🙂
Cyndi says
I don't have a jurky maker so I place the meat between wax paper and roll it to the thickness needed and cut strips then peal off one side of the paper and place it on the dryer then pealoff the other side and dry. It works great!
Kathy says
What a great idea! I appreciate you leaving your tip - I'm sure others will try the same! 🙂
David @ Spiced says
Ah, I do enjoy making jerky, and we've made venison jerky a couple of times! However, I've only made it in whole cut form before. I'm intrigued by the burger jerky gun! What a fun tool...I'm thinking that might need to end up in my list of kitchen cools pretty soon. 🙂
Kimberly @ KimRidge Farm says
This is such a great idea! The ground deer is easier to chew. Some fats in the ground meet adds that sweet, rich, nutty flavor. I usually don't follow recipes precisely. I wonder is the marinade should be mild because it concentrates during dehydration?
I am going to pull out some ground deer from the freezer and try this. I know, it won't last no matter what. We love deer jerky.
Haven't had beef in years. Deer is our kind of red meet.
Thank you for sharing this great recipe.
Kathy says
We always taste the marinade as we mix it up. You don't want it to be diluted. The flavors should be strong, but not overly powerful. Jerky doesn't stick around long in our house either!
Amy (Savory Moments) says
This looks great! I haven't had jerky in a long time. My husband didn't get a deer this last season, but hopefully next one and we can give this a try. Thanks for stopping by my blog! 🙂
Kathy says
Thanks Amy! You can easily make the jerky with beef....until next year when he gets a deer.
Lori from LL Farm says
It has been a while since I have had deer jerky...my dad used to make it a lot. My family also does our own butchering. It's always just been a way of life, but as I get older and have fed my family throughout the years, I see the many benefits of it. Thanks for sharing this.
Lori from LL Farm
Kathy says
I never had game meat until I met my husband. It took me awhile to get used to the taste and how to cook with it. It's on our menu regularly now.
Vanessa @ Vanessa Baked says
I love this! My husband is a hunter and we always have venison in the freezer. Such a great idea using ground venison. Pinning this for later!
Kathy says
Thanks Vanessa. I hope you get a chance to make some!