Do you love beef jerky? These days, we do not need to have an expensive dehydrator to prepare this delicious food item. A small and basic air fryer is quite capable of preparing this popular food. In this article, I will guide you on how you can prepare beef jerky with your air fryer. It is easy and simple. If you have a basic air fryer in the kitchen then you will be able to cook it by yourself. Just follow me.
Nutrition facts of beef jerky
Below is the table of nutrition facts for 100 gm of beef jerky.
| Nutrition facts | Qty |
| Calories | 410 |
| sodium | 2065 mg |
| Carbohydrate | 11 g |
| Sugar | 8 g |
| Protein | 35 g |
| Fat | 24 g |
| Fiber | 2.5 g |
From the table above, we can see that beef jerky is a good source of calories. It is also a good source of sodium. Other than this, it also contains a good amount of potassium and zinc. Other micronutrients include iron, vitamin B12, and magnesium.
Types of meat
Meat that you will use for jerky should be free from excess of fat. You should choose lean beef. I would recommend meat from the eye of round and top round. You can also grab the meat from sirloin tip, bottom round, and flank steak.
Slicing the meat
The meat should be sliced uniformly. That means each of the pieces should be of the same sizes with uniform thickness. If you ask me about the standard, I would recommend ¼’’. However, you can cut the pieces as per your wish but try to maintain uniformity. It is better for uniform cooking as well.
Marinating
You must marinate the meat before you cook the meat. How long do you marinate? The rule of thumb is – more is better. I recommend you to marinate for 24 hours. But if you do not have patience, then you can do it for 4 hours at least. You can marinate for 30 minutes if you are in a rush, but the flavor will not be that delicious.
Ingredients
There are mainly two types of ingredients to make air-fried beef jerky – beef and marinating items.
- Beef – properly cut into uniform pieces
- Soy sauce
- Onion powder
- Garlic powder
- Red pepper
- Brown sugar
- Teriyaki sauce
Process to prepare beef jerky in air fryer
- At first, slice the steak into uniform pieces. As suggested above, the thickness of the pieces can be ¼’’. If you like more thin pieces, you can cut into slices with a thickness of 1/8’’.
- Take the sliced pieces to a bowl. Add the marinating ingredients such as soy sauce, garlic powder, onion powder, red pepper, and so on.
- Marinate the beef for 24 hours. If you do not have that much time, try to marinate for 4 hours at least.
- After the marinating, remove the pieces from the bowl and dry these with a paper towel.
- If you have a skewer, make a thread with the sliced marinated prices. It is the best way to cook meat uniformly. If you do not have a skewer, try to place the meat on the tray in a single layer.
- Before you start cooking, preheat the air fryer at about 180°F. It is important for uniform cooking.
- Air fry as per the below parameter.
Air fryer Parameter
Set the temperature at 170°F. For faster cooking, the recommended cooking time is 75 minutes if you are using skewers. Because of the use of skewers, heat can be distributed uniformly and evenly throughout the surface of the meat. Therefore, it takes less time to complete the drying process. If you do not have skewers, then set the timer at 2 hours to 2.5 hours. You should also flip the pieces every 30 minutes for uniform heating. A suitable air fryer for this kind of recipe will have racks and skewers. Read our article to find the best air fryer ovens with racks.
Bottom line
I think now you know how to prepare beef jerky with your air fryer. The required temperature is 170°F to 180°F. I think even with a basic air fryer you can reach this temperature. Try it today and let us know how did it taste. If you find my article helpful, you can share it with others. You can also suggest anything that you think I have missed. Have a good day!