Biltong

Biltong is a word that describes South African dried meat. The word is dutch in origin and is made up of the word 'BIL' meaning buttocks and 'TONG' meaning strip.  It literally translates as 'Strip Of Buttocks' or 'Strip of Ass' if you prefer. Essentially it is 'JERKY'.

We all love Jerky, don't we?

Biltong is a South African delicacy and has been around for a couple of hundred years. It first came about in it's more primitive form as a less pungent form of the Dutch Tassal, which was not exclusively Dutch as it was also produced in areas of France during the late Middle Ages.

Tassal was also made in Batavia. (Jakarta on the Island of Java is the capital city of Indonesia. During the Dutch Colonization of Indonesia, Jakarta was called Batavia).

Biltong made it's way to South Africa with the early Dutch settlers in the form of the Dutch Tassal. It was then adapted by use of the local wildlife like Kudu and Gnu and became extremely popular.

Biltong has ultimately been a favorite with South African’s and Zimbabwean’s for the best part of 400 years now.

Biltong is great for when you are off watching your favorite sporting events whether they be LIVE or televised. No sporting event in South Africa is considered to be complete without a few brewskies and a generous supply of the spicy air dried delicacy that is Biltong.

BILL-tong as described in the Epicurious Food Dictionary:

"Developed in South Africa and a staple in many African countries, biltong consists of strips of cured, air-dried beef or game. Though its keeping properties are the same, it is a finer form of jerked meat than American Jerky. The best biltong has been compared to the Prosciutto of Italy."

There are many different ways to make this delicate food at home. In South Africa, Biltong is often made in the home.

Recipes vary and in most cases are passed down from generation to generation.

Biltong can be made from almost any kind of lean red meat. It must be as lean as you can get, because it is very difficult to cure fat. In South Africa Kudu, Impala, and Ostrich meats are commonly used. But for those of you that don't have any of those beasts running around your neighbourhood, you will have to use beef.

You will need to make a drying box - A drying box is needed so as to replicate the dry atmospheric conditions of Southern Africa. In it's homeland, biltong is dried outdoors! If you are lucky enough to live in a cool dry place - you may simply choose to hang your strips of meat on a clothes line. Being sure to make sure that there is plenty of breeze. Humidity will spoil your Biltong.

A box that can be used for drying biltong needs to have enough width and height so that your strips of beef can hang freely and not touch each other or the sides of the box. It also needs to have enough space so that the air can move freely around the box. Ventilation holes are necessary near the base as well as near the top of the box.

You can use a cardboard box, but today i am going to tell you how to make a drying box from wood. It will last longer...

Go to your local hardware store and buy some timber. Enough to make a box that can be completely sealed. The dimensions of my drying box are: 75cm high, 45cm deep, and 60cm wide. You can use those exact measurements or you may change them to suit yourself.

Make a box with a door and then get a drill and drill some ventilation holes in the sides of your box. Some near the bottom and some near the top. The above picture has ventilation holes in the door, this is also okay!

Now, once you have made the box, you will need to install some rails near the top that you can hang your strips of beef on. 5 or 6 running from side to side evenly spaced should be fine.

The last thing you will need is an electric light socket and a light bulb. This is going to create a dry atmosphere for your biltong.

If you by the mountable type you can mount it with screws. You will have to make some sort of a cover for the light bulb to protect it from the dripping juices in the early stages of drying. A piece of perforated particle board should be fine. It won't  catch all the juices, but it will catch most!!

I recommend that use use silverside beef or London broil for those of you that live in the US. You will then need to get a very sharp knife so as to slice your strips from the chunk of silverside. 

Now being sure to slice your strips with the grain, cut strips of beef that are approximately 1cm thick by about 15cm long or however long your chunk of beef is. Cut away any excess fat at the same time.

Lay your cut strips out side by side on your cutting board and then assault them with liberal amounts of rock salt. You want the rock salt to stick to all sides of the beef strips. Leave for an hour and then scrape off the excess salt with the back of your knife. DO NOT use water. The idea of salting beef is to remove any excess moisture. Washing your strips of beef with water will just put the moisture back in.

You will then need to get a bowl and fill it with enough vinegar so as to be able to dip your strips of beef in it. Dip your strips and then place them on a wire rack so that any excess may drip off.

Give the strips a sprinkling of spice, black pepper or crushed coriander seeds work well.

Congratulations, your strips of meat are now ready to dry.

Get some meat hooks - one for each strip and then hang your strips in your drying box on the rails that you inserted near the top.

Switch on your light bulb (don't use more than a 60 watt bulb), and leave your strips for 3 to 4 days. By the fourth day the process will be complete.

The light bulb doesn't produce much heat. You don't need any heat to make biltong. What the light bulb does is produce ever so slightly warmed air that rises and exits through your ventilation holes at the top. The ventilation holes near the bottom are for the air to get in, the holes at the top are for the air to get out. Without these holes there would be NO circulation. 

This biltong will become quite dark during the drying process. Unlike beef jerky that remains pinkish when dried.

Don't let the color off your biltong turn you off, because this is absolutely delicious.

Your biltong will also be quite hard and you will need a good sturdy knife to be able to slice it before eating. 

One suggestion is to buy a brand new hand plane (usually used for planing wood) that you can use to shave off pieces of your biltong. These flakes are absolutely gorgeous if sprinkled on a bowl of hot rice. Mouth watering deliciousness!!

Enjoy your first batch while it lasts. My first batch of biltong only lasted 2 days. My wife and kids made sure of that.

Biltong can be stored for up to 6 months, even longer if the conditions are perfect.

The best way to store it is in an airtight container. The airtight container then needs to be kept in a cool dry place. Alternatively, you can store it in the fridge.