Hi, I’ve been making jerky in a dehydrator and I have to pull the jerky sticks and put them on paper towels to get the grease/fat off the jerky when they are done. And infact that doesn’t seem to be enough to get all the fat off… is there another way? Any ideas for getting the fat off?
Why are you mixing pork in it? I do mine 100% pure very lean vennie and I don’t have to ever remove fat. My muscle jerky gets all membranes and fat removed before the seasoning goes on and the meat goes in the smoker so I don’t see any fat there either. The only pork I use in making anything with venison is in sausage like ring bologna and summer sausage. That pressed jerky sure doesn’t need any pork. Do a batch without the grease meat.
Beat me to it Tom. I’ve never heard of adding pork to a jerky mix. ‘course I don’t get out much anymore. 
Try mixing venison with beef next time..
Typically anything in done in a dehydrator is LEAN meat. If you were going to use heat and smoke then you could mix in lean pork. But most will typically only use pork mixed in when a seasoning is added and you are going to smoke or cook the dogs, brats or sausage.
Most will use 1/3 lean to semi lean pork when mixing for ssg.
Pork or fatty beef does not dehydrate, you need very lean cuts to dehydrate as the water comes off the meat but the oil/fat will remain.
Have a batch in marinating as I type this. Soy, worchester, catsup, brown sugar, salt, black pepper, liquid smoke, onion powder. Leave it overnight, dry it tomorrow.
I was in Gander reading the labels on some of their game seasonings not long ago and one brand in particular had pork listed in every single seasoning mix they offered, including the ground-meat jerky. I think the brand was Backwoods. That is awfully generic and I’d avoid using that seasoning in jerky.
Hi Mountain jerky seasoning mixes work great and can be found in grocery stores. A better option and one I use most of the time is to go to a butcher or meat market where they make the processed jerky and ask them to put up a carton of their house deasoning with appropriate cure for the weight of the meat you want to work with. If you want a good smoke flavor pick up a bottle of Wrights Liquid Smoke at the grocery store and a small paintbrush at Menards. When the jerky starts to set up good, brush one side with the smoke and continue drying by whatever means you use. Most meat markets making the process jerky use liquid smoke injectors to give the smoke flavor and most use this method on the small sticks.
Above all keep the meat you use lean….as in fat free.
My cut jerky goes into the smoker for 4 hours to get some deep flavor and allow the drips to cease, then it goes into a pan and is placed in an oven at the lowest temp setting with the door cracked open. I stir the pieces around every couple hours and when the jerky is as dry as I want it I shut the heat off, leave the pan of meat in the oven until it is cool and then it stays on the table until its COLD….then I bag it for the freezer or the refer. The stuff that hits the freezer is vacuum sealed.
I started making sausage and jerky maybe 40 years ago and have several books on the process. The first thing you’ll learn is that no cure will work on your behalf until the meat has been heated to at least 152 degrees for a half an hour and the second thing is cleanliness is a must. Go to Barnes and Noble and pick up a copy of Home Sausage Making authored by Charles G. Reavis. Great recipes for sausage that will let you expand your talents with your venison. Jerky is only a part of it all.
I just had the venison burger mixed with pork from gregs when I brought the deer there. Typical for hamburger when getting a deer processed. I’ve made jerky before this same way. Only thing I can figure is that there is alot of pork in the hamburger. I have been using the hi mountain brand from menards for the seasoning. I’m trying to deal with the fat/grease problem now, not what I don’t have control of, which at this point is the pork content.
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I just had the venison burger mixed with pork from gregs when I brought the deer there. Typical for hamburger when getting a deer processed. I’ve made jerky before this same way. Only thing I can figure is that there is alot of pork in the hamburger. I have been using the hi mountain brand from menards for the seasoning. I’m trying to deal with the fat/grease problem now, not what I don’t have control of, which at this point is the pork content.
Use the high percentage pork/venison to make lasagna. Go get a couple pounds of EXTRA LEAN BEEF and make the jerky 
(next year, have your butcher leave X amount of venison for jerky, without fat added)
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I just had the venison burger mixed with pork from gregs when I brought the deer there. Typical for hamburger when getting a deer processed. I’ve made jerky before this same way. Only thing I can figure is that there is alot of pork in the hamburger. I have been using the hi mountain brand from menards for the seasoning. I’m trying to deal with the fat/grease problem now, not what I don’t have control of, which at this point is the pork content.
Man, never ever ever ever have the processor make burger for you. They will always cut it with a ton of cheap fat to make $$$$$$. Ask for all of your trimmings bagged and grind your own with YOUR favorite ratio of meat/fat. I’ve seen way too many people have processors do their burger and end up with 60% fat and 40% deer…. then they wonder why they got 60lbs of burger from their deer.. because your processor just sold you the cheapest fat he could buy at deer burger price.
Not to mention most just throw all the deer scraps into a big bin and run everyone’s burger at the same time. When getting burger you rarely get your own deer back. You might take in a nice young tender doe and end up with someones old gray buck burger.
How do you have a mixed meat jerky? Isn’t jerky a solid piece of lean meat? Thank you for clarifying.
There are two kinds of jerky. One is whole muscle or cut muscle to which you suggest and what I prefer. Then there is the jerky made from pressed or injected ground meat. Do a search on “jerky canon” and you see where the injection comes from. The pressed jerky is done as a rule using a rolling pin to flatten the ground, seasoned meat to a thickness one wants then dehydrated or dried in the oven.
Most dehydrators do not get hot enough to cook the pork. I either have beef or just grind up pure venison and never have too much fat oils that need to be wiped off. just talking about this I have to get my butt going to get a bunch made up for this winter ice fishing
I think the brand was Backwoods.
I acquired a multipack of this somewhere (gift?) and most flavors were not great. However I do like the Backwoods “breakfast” sausage. 50/50 deer and pork, mix it up and just form patties – has been a hit wherever I have served it.
The problem is 99% of the time there is not a single breakfast pouch among the hundreds of other backwoods flavors at fleet farm…
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