Apple butter, beef bacon, and a jerky that shouldn't exist... until now. Doug took two ingredients most people have never cooked with and turned them into one of the Jerky.com Test Kitchen's Hall of Fame flavors: sweet, smoky, savory and chewy. If you love bacon jerky, try our Bacon Jerky Assortment. Then watch the video and make this one yourself.
Why beef bacon and apple butter?
Beef bacon comes from beef belly, the same cut as pork bacon, with a deeper, beefier flavor and that same strip of fat for flavor and moisture. Pork bacon crisps; beef bacon chews. As Doug puts it, "If bacon was a car, regular pork is a sedan, but the beef bacon, it's like a supercar."
Apple butter isn't dairy, applesauce or jelly. It's apples slow-cooked with spices like cinnamon and clove and reduced to a dark, caramelized spread. It's not overly sweet, it clings to the meat, and it caramelizes during drying into a glossy, sticky finish.
Ingredients (2 lb batch):
- 2 lbs beef bacon, pre-sliced about 1/8 inch
- 1/2 cup apple butter
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 2 tsp honey
- 1 tsp liquid smoke
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp ground ginger
- Pinch of cayenne (optional)
- Optional glaze: 2-3 tbsp apple butter thinned with 1-2 tbsp apple juice or water
Instructions:
Blend the marinade: Add the apple butter, soy sauce, Worcestershire, apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, honey, liquid smoke, cinnamon, black pepper, garlic powder, ginger and a pinch of cayenne to a blender. Blend until completely smooth, with no clumps or streaks. It should look like a glossy barbecue sauce.
Prep the beef bacon: Pre-sliced beef bacon is the easy route. If you slice your own, aim for about 1/8 inch: much thinner and it crisps like chips. If the strips are wet, pat them dry so the marinade can grab on.
Marinate: Lay the strips in a single layer, pour the marinade over the top and massage it into every surface with your hands. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours; overnight is better. We went 24 hours in these marinade containers.
Rack it up: Let the bacon sit out about 20 minutes, lightly spray the trays so the strips don't stick, then lay each strip flat with room for air to circulate.
Dry it: We dried ours in our Cosori dehydrator at 158Ā°F. Plan on 4 to 8 hours depending on slice size and how chewy you like it; ours was still rendering fat at the 3-hour check and took about 6 to 8 hours total.
Check doneness: Let it cool, then bend a piece. It should bend without snapping, a little sticky from the rendered fat. Blot the strips with a paper towel.
Glaze (optional, but do it): Thin a little apple butter with apple juice, brush it over the finished jerky and dry it about another hour to set the shine.
Test kitchen note: We dried at 158Ā°F. The USDA recommends heating beef to 160Ā°F (poultry to 165Ā°F) before or during drying. The simplest way is to dry at 160Ā°F. If your dehydrator can't reach 160Ā°F, steam or roast the strips to 160Ā°F first.
More bacon jerky ideas: try our maple bourbon bacon jerky. Building your own flavor? See our beef jerky marinade guide.
Taste test notes: The first bite got an "Oh, wow." The panel tasted apple first, "even before the bacon," then cinnamon and spice. "I expected it to be super sweet, but it's not. It's more savory than sweet." Another taster: "It was way better than I ever would have expected it would be." On texture: "Has a wide range of textures for one jerky product." The glazed side came out stickier and glossier, and it "definitely added a lot of punch." The verdict was Hall of Fame. Kenny: "I'd say yes because this has some qualities about it that separates it from the other jerkys we've made."
Can I buy it? Apple Butter Beef Bacon isn't one of our flavors right now. Want first shot at new Test Kitchen flavors? Sign up to become an Official Jerky.com Taste Tester. You'll try new flavor drops first and vote on which ones stay.
Apple Butter Beef Bacon Jerky FAQ
What is beef bacon?
Beef bacon is made from beef belly, the same cut as pork bacon, with a deeper, beefier flavor and a strip of fat running through it. It chews rather than crisps, which makes it great for jerky.
What is apple butter?
Apple butter has no dairy in it. It's apples slow-cooked with spices like cinnamon and clove until they reduce into a dark, spreadable, caramelized butter. It makes a marinade that clings to the meat.
Is apple butter beef bacon jerky sweet?
Less than you'd expect. Our panel tasted apple first, then cinnamon and spice, and found it more savory than sweet.
How long should I marinate beef bacon jerky?
At least 4 hours, and overnight is better. We marinated ours for 24 hours.
What temperature should I dry beef bacon jerky at?
The USDA recommends heating beef to 160Ā°F (poultry to 165Ā°F) before or during drying. The simplest way is to dry at 160Ā°F. If your dehydrator can't reach 160Ā°F, steam or roast the strips to 160Ā°F first.
Why is my beef bacon jerky greasy?
Beef bacon has a lot of fat that renders as it dries. Blot the finished strips with a paper towel.
Rather skip the work? Try ours: the Bacon Jerky Assortment or Honey Pepper Bacon Jerky, or browse all our bacon jerky.
Got an idea for our next beef bacon or apple butter experiment? Tell us in the comments!
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