tamatoledonews.com (SPECIAL) – Easy to make, delicious to eat and fun for the whole family, jerky is a nutritious snack for school, work and recreational times. When a family dries meat and makes jerky, the family members step back into the history of man by learning to preserve meat like early settlers and Native Americans once did.

You can make jerky at home, flavor it in many-different ways and then take it on family outings and hunting, fishing, hiking and biking trips. You’ll enjoy impressing your schoolmates, office colleagues and co-workers with tasty homemade jerky. Once you introduce your friends to modern-day jerky, they’ll all ask for more and want your recipes. Then they can enjoy making their own jerky at home. A family can prepare jerky from almost any type of lean meat, including beef, elk, turkey and venison, and use a wide variety of seasonings and marinades to give the jerky unusual tastes and flavorings that will tickle the taste buds of even the most-persnickety gourmets.

Most people believe that Native Americans first practiced the art of drying meat and making it into jerky. Although Native American tribes did dry buffalo, venison and other meats they harvested from the wilderness to make jerky, there’s also evidence that early cavemen had developed methods for drying meat before they learned how to start fires and cook over them. Early man used dried meat when on hunting trips, and people in other centuries took dried meat with them as they fought wars, moved from one place to another and explored the seas and the lands.

In recent years, Americans have rediscovered the benefits of jerky. Today many convenience stores, sporting-goods stores and gift shops sell modern-day jerky, generally at high prices. But never fear, you can make delicious jerky with unique flavors and seasonings in your own kitchen. In award-winning magazine and book author J. Wayne Fears’ book, “How to Make Jerky and Pemmican,” he tells you how to prepare meat inexpensively and flavor, dry and store the meat at home. Here’s one of his favorite recipes.

Teriyaki Jerky

Ingredients:

1 pound of lean meat cut into 1/4-inch-thick strips

1/2-cup teriyaki sauce

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon salt

1/2-teaspoon liquid smoke

Preparation:

Blend all ingredients, except the meat. Place the meat in a bowl, and pour the combined ingredients over the meat. Cover with plastic wrap, and store in a refrigerator overnight. Next remove the meat from the container, and place it in an oven, a smoker or a dehydrator to dry until the jerky bends without breaking. Then store the jerky in sealable plastic freezer bags in the freezer.