From: Aubrey Moore <amoore@mail-jhb.sprintlink.co.za>
Newsgroups: misc.survivalism
Subject: BILTONG - A SOUTH AFRICAN RECIPE
Date: 5 Jul 1996 07:11:02 GMT

Hi

Due to a virus I have lost my mail so all those asking for a Biltong 
recipe, here it is.

Overview : Biltong is salt dried meat. It is not cooked, smoked or 
prepared except like this description indicates. Fresh beef or game is 
best. Pig, mutton, horse ect. is out. It takes between 2-6 weeks to be 
ready for consumption and after this period, keep it in a dry, cool area 
in a  cotton bag. Freezing it removes the benefit of making biltong and 
after frozen, you have to either eat it when defrost or keep it frozen. In 
South Africa, biltong is made during winter but can be made in summer with 
fans used in coolers. 

How do I prepare the meat ?

The meat must be fresh. You cannot use meat that has been frozen before. 
If you are using game/venison meat, the following should be done during 
hunting.

1 - Bleed the buck as soon as possible after the kill.
2 - Remove the internal organs as soon as possible. (lungs, hart, liver 
etc)
3 - Hang the buck by the rear legs in shade and remove the skin. Leave to 
hang for 24 hours to cool down completely. Cover with a cotton cloth if 
insects are a problem.

I won't go through the process of getting the meat of the bones, as I 
assume you can do that.

Using a sharp knife, cutting along with the grain of the meat, slice your 
meat into strips about 2 inches wide and .75 inch thick. Length is not of 
importance, the longer the better. You can reduce the size of the pieces 
and it will dry quicker (good for warmer situations).


Now we start making the biltong.

So you have your meat. You need fine salt (coarse doesn't penetrate as 
well), fine black peper, coriander and brown grape vinegar. The coriander 
must be whole, as fresh coarse ground coriander is better than the fine 
ground packed version but it will do in a pinch. If you cannot get 
coriander, it can be left out and replaced with other spices to your 
liking. On the coriander, use everything including the kernels.

Get a glass or plastic bowl big enough to take all the meat you want to 
make into biltong. DO NOT USE METAL !!!! YOU WON'T LIKE THE ADDED METAL 
TASTE. 

Make a vinegar sprinkler by punching holes in the lid of a bottle. 
Sprinkle the vinegar on the bottom of the bowl, just enough to wet it 
completely and then sprinkle with salt, pepper and coriander. Layer the 
meat side by side until the bottom is evenly covered in a layer of meat. 

The meat should touch but not overlap. Sprinkle vinegar agian to wet the 
layer of meat. The meat should be wet but not have pools of vinegar. Now, 
sprinkle salt, pepper and coriander again. Use the vinegar first as adding 
vinegar after the salt and spices will wash the spices off.

How much spices ? About the same amount of pepper that you would like on a 
similar steak, twice the amount of coriander and three times the salt. 

REMEMBER THAT THIS IS FOR THE BOTTOM LAYER. THE LAYERS IN BETWEEN HAS TO 
COVER BOTH THE TOP AND BOTTOM LAYERS SO IT SHOULD BE DOUBLE.

You then cover with a cotton cloth and leave for 24 hours in cool dark 
place. DO NOT FREEZE THIS MEAT AT ANY STAGE. IT WILL GO BAD.

After 24 hours. using paper clips that you have bent open (S shaped wire 
hooks will work fine as well) Insert the hooks trhough the top part of the 
meat and hang on a wire by the hooks. You can have rows above each other, 
dripping each other is allowed but the MEAT SHOULD NOT BE FOLDED OR TOUCH 
OTHER PIECES OF MEAT. 

The place should be well ventilated, cool and pref. dark. 

Leave the meat in this position for 2 weeks and then start testing 
for how dry you want it. You can leave the meat until it is bone dry or 
eat it when it is still flexable.

I suggest making about 5 lbs. worth the first time. You need to get to 
grips with the sices and salt and also to get an idea as to the drying 
process.

Enjoy it !!!!

Tell me about your attempts.

Aubrey in South Africa.


