Biltong is a South African snack made from meat that is cured and dried. Biltong is usually made with beef or wild game. It is similar to beef jerky which is marinated and cooked but has a softer texture. Growing up in South Africa I have memories of my Dad making biltong and having it hang in a store room to dry with a heater and fan. Living in Australia with a lot of South African families there are many shops making and selling their own biltong. My kids love it and while we regularly buy it from the shops I also make my own biltong.
If you don’t have a room that you can control the temperature and keep out any insects I recommend purchasing a biltong machine which is essentially a box big enough to hang the meat. It is enclosed to keep any bugs out, with a built in fan to speed up the drying process and heat lamp to reduce moisture. The amount of money you will save in making your own biltong means the machine will pay for itself after a few batches. To make biltong snap sticks with thin slices of meat it only needs 2-3 days of drying. If using a larger piece of meat that you intend to slice it can take 4-5 days.
I normally use a topside roast that can be cut into thick strips (5cm wide and 2cm thick), making sure to cut the meat along the grain. If I find a cut of meat already sliced into steaks and on special I will use that to make snap sticks. Leaving fat on or off is a personal choice and something that you can experiment with based on your preference. If you don’t have enough hooks to hang your biltong I use paperclips that I unfold. The hardest part about making biltong is waiting for it to be ready!
ingredients
1kg meat of your choice
1 Tablespoon rock salt
2 teaspoon raw sugar
2 teaspoon pepper corns
2 teaspoon coriander seeds
500ml apple cider vinegar
500ml warm water
directions
1. Cut the meat into either large or small strips depending if you want to make biltong to slice or snap sticks.
2. Mix 250ml of vinegar and 250ml warm water and soak meat in mixture while you prepare the seasoning (approximately 10 minutes).
3. Place salt, sugar, pepper and coriander seeds into mortal and pestle and crush the mixture has a coarse texture.
4. Remove meat from water and place in a large container sprinkling the seasoning on both sides of the meat. It is okay to layer the meat on top of each other.
5. Please container in the fridge for 24 hours to allow to cure. Once you are ready prepare enough hooks/paperclips to hang the meat.
6. Mix 250ml and 250ml warm water together. Place a hook into each piece of meat and individually dip them into the vinegar/water solution. This will remove some of the seasoning but not all of it, remember it’s a dip not a wash.
7. Hang your biltong to dry, ensuring that no pieces are touching each other.
8. Test your biltong after 3 days (snap sticks), 5 days larger pieces. It should be hard on the outside and soft on the inside. It should be red on the inside (not pink). You can remove from the biltong machine and store in the fridge as a whole piece or slice and store in an air tight container.
