Biltong Box/Machine

[bluegill]

Anyone in Perth wanting to get rid of their Bilton box/drier/machine? Please let me know if this is the case.

Cheers

Alan

[Omzig]

Why not make your own one? It's just an old cardboard box with holes and a light bulb inside... Or if you want something really high-tech, you can always use a $15 plastic IKEA rubbish bin with holes and a 40W incandescent light bulb inside. Hanging racks can be made from sticks/dowels/wire, and you can use paperclips to hang the meat

Personally, I'm all for the plastic bin solution for hygienic/fire retardant reasons. There are some excellent furniture assembly experts on this forum which will gladly provide you with advice on how to make holes in IKEA furniture. The light fitting is best sourced from Bunnings.

[Sa2Nz2Oz]

Why do you need a box? When I was in NZ I made the best Biltong ever and without a light box!!! NZ has much wetter and damp conditions than SA or AUS. All I did was put some ropes up in the garage (garage didnt have a ceiling so had a bit of heat sometimes), I made my Biltong pieces about 30mm x 15mm in size to dry easier, when I hung it up for the first day I put a ordinary fan onto the Tong for just one day to dry the surface off, I would leave it for a week until I had first pieces to feast on. I bought fresh Silverside in bulk and the Kiwi butchers always asked me "are you making Biltong mate" - they knew we liked this dried meat as they say. Havent tried to make it here in Aus yet due to where I live - I have only a 2 Bdr unit here, imagine me rigging my Biltong line up in the car basement and hanging my meat up like washing - I think the people living here might think im a serial killer!! we have many foreigners here and they dont know what it is, the Aussies know Jerky!!

[Good Witch]

Why do you need a box? When I was in NZ I made the best Biltong ever and without a light box!!! NZ has much wetter and damp conditions than SA or AUS. All I did was put some ropes up in the garage (garage didnt have a ceiling so had a bit of heat sometimes), I made my Biltong pieces about 30mm x 15mm in size to dry easier, when I hung it up for the first day I put a ordinary fan onto the Tong for just one day to dry the surface off, I would leave it for a week until I had first pieces to feast on. I bought fresh Silverside in bulk and the Kiwi butchers always asked me "are you making Biltong mate" - they knew we liked this dried meat as they say. Havent tried to make it here in Aus yet due to where I live - I have only a 2 Bdr unit here, imagine me rigging my Biltong line up in the car basement and hanging my meat up like washing - I think the people living here might think im a serial killer!! we have many foreigners here and they dont know what it is, the Aussies know Jerky!!

That's how I remember my parents making biltong, years ago, when I was a little girl! It was delicious!!!

[bluegill]

Thanks all! Yes, maybe I should just make my own like my Oupa used to make it, Vinegar, Salt Pepper & Hang!! Failing this I might just make a plastic one, the fans at Bunnings are also cheap. The butchers here in Rockingham area sell Biltong but I just want o make my own as well.

Cheers All.

Alan

[Danie]

Alan,

My 5c... I reckon you will be beter off with a box, as there are always flies in Aus, does not matter time of year!

Do the plastic container or build a cheap one from wood sheets...

D

[Antoinette]

Doesn't the vinegar/seasoning and fan keep the flies off? My tannie in die Noord-Kaap het so biltong gemaak en hulle het ook vlieg plae gehad.

[LeeInOz]

Doesn't the vinegar/seasoning and fan keep the flies off? My tannie in die Noord-Kaap het so biltong gemaak en hulle het ook vlieg plae gehad.

In theory this is correct. In practice it doesnt work. if you believe this would work in Australia, just put a small piece on its own spiced where you will hang it. make a few cuts into the meat and leave it for a few days. You will find maggots very soon. I even do this when I make a new box to check it keeps flies out (raw meat no spice sacrifice) In RSA I made in the garage with no box, but only in winter. Tried here and had instant fly farm.

My basic recipe from an RSA meat board publication

per 5kg

Meat 5 Kg

Min Max

Salt 100 to 200 g Drying agent & Preserves Taste

Sugar 36 g Sweetens taste slightly

Sodium Nitrite 3 g Dries better faster no mould

Bicarb 4 g Slows Mould

Pepper 2.5 to 3 mL g flavour

Brown Vinegar 0.6 to 0.8 L Wetting for salting and preservative

Use only 1 spice below

Coriander 16 to 32 g

Aniseed 20 g

Allspice 1 ml

Garlic Salt 3 ml

I like biltong with a burn. So I put birds eye chillis in the mix after drying OR

after a few days drying I sprinkle tobasco which is sucked straight in

if you like it wet and red then use more salt. Hard sticks use less salt

[bitisbitis]

LeeinOz, I want to try your recipe here in Cape Town, so what meat do I use and do I soak the meat in the mixture and then rub in the salt etc. or does it all go in etc. How to help please.... LOL

[Omzig]

Here are some more thoughts. I've been making biltong according to the traditional recipe ( http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&id...=result#PPP1,M1 ) and hanging it by the kitchen window, but I'll definitely build a box in the next week or so.

A box is a must if one intends to experiment with different recipes. Then at least the environment is consistent. It is better to use a box with a fan, since the circulation will be better than with a light bulb. The light bulb doesn't dry the air (the moisture remains constant), but just increases the dew point a bit and provides some circulation through heat convection. A fan will be more efficient and safer. Perhaps an old mobile phone charger powering a small PC-based DC fan will do the trick.

Sodium Nitrite is very strongly discouraged and illegal in many countries as a food additive.

[LeeInOz]

LeeinOz, I want to try your recipe here in Cape Town, so what meat do I use and do I soak the meat in the mixture and then rub in the salt etc. or does it all go in etc. How to help please.... LOL

SPICE

I prepare enough spice for 10 kg meat at a time. Put all the ingredients together. I start with the roasted coriander in a coffee / spice grinder and spin for a few seconds (the type with blades) ( I used to use a pestle and mortar to grind but this is finer and faster), then add whole pepper corns then sea salt or rock salt into the mix. I get a powder as fine as salt.

MEAT

Silverside is the best. It is a coarser grain meat and loses less size. It is also quite big and a long muscle so it is easier to cut with the grain.

Many use rump but it is more expensive and finer grained. 7 kg seems an average size but I have seen them 5kg to 9 kg

I then trim ALL the sinew gristle and SOME excess fat off. ( I hate biltong that becomes bits of string). When I had dogs they got all of this, now it goes in the bin

PREPARATION

lightly sprinkle the vinegar on a piece, then rub in the mixture over the surface on both sides. If you make thin sticks go easy on the spice. ( My family like very thin dry sticks) I like the bigger red moist pieces

In Australia siverside is considered pumped full of water so you need to be specific that it is the cut of meat you want before they destroy it with water

There is an excellent book by the South African Meat board. It is available at www.kalahari.net with pictures. They released it many years ago. It has boerewors recipes and much more. I bought it when I started making biltong 15 years ago. I will scan a few pages and post them here when I find it.

Edited April 19, 2009 by LeeInOz

[LeeInOz]

Here are some more thoughts. I've been making biltong according to the traditional recipe ( http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&id...=result#PPP1,M1 ) and hanging it by the kitchen window, but I'll definitely build a box in the next week or so.

A box is a must if one intends to experiment with different recipes. Then at least the environment is consistent. It is better to use a box with a fan, since the circulation will be better than with a light bulb. The light bulb doesn't dry the air (the moisture remains constant), but just increases the dew point a bit and provides some circulation through heat convection. A fan will be more efficient and safer. Perhaps an old mobile phone charger powering a small PC-based DC fan will do the trick.

Sodium Nitrite is very strongly discouraged and illegal in many countries as a food additive.

FAN I use a 240 V fan same size as a PC fan. They are easy to get at electronic shops. DSE or Jaycar in Australia.

Sodium Nitrite. I used salt petre in South Africa but it is not available here in Aus ( I got it at Pharmacy in RSA). After talking to a butcher here he told me to use sodium nitrite becuase it does a similar thing. (Only a tiny amount is used). Australia is weird in that respect becuase they try to outlaw anything dangerous. I never use the normal salt, only pURE SEA SALT or similar becuase they have an agent in the salt for normal use called 554 or similar that causes many health issues including Altzeheimers.

In Mackay I had a box with a wall unit airconditioner, then a heater. I cooled the air to 17 deg, then reheated it to 26 deg. I use a RH Temp meter from LASCAR and log data before making.

I lost too much meat to mould in hte humidity. It dried the meat in about 5 to 8 days in 80%RH. I also have an Ionizer which is on in the box. Ozone kills mould. Another thing to keep at hand is a spray bottle of vinegar to spray the box before and after ( kills mould). Now I just have a fan in a box (good enough in Brisbane dryer weather).

[Janneman]

LeeInOz, would that be Sodium Nitrite or Sodium Nitrate?

It seems to me that Sodium Nitrite has the potential to be more harmful than its "cousin".

[Omzig]

The following options exist for basic meat preservatives:

Sodium Nitrite: NaNO2 (E250 food preservative, popular, preserves colour)

Sodium Nitrate: NaNO3 (E251 food preservative)

Potassium Nitrite: KNO2 (E249 food preservative)

Potassium Nitrate: KNO3 (E252 food preservative, saltpeter, traditional, makes meat pink)

I also agree with the local butcher that NaNO2 is a good replacement and probably a better preservative than KNO3.

Either option is probably fine when used in a well-controlled production environment, but I don't think they are really necessary when making home-made biltong. After all we can just keep the stuff in the fridge

[bitisbitis]

Thanks LeeInOz, will give it a try....

[LeeInOz]

The following options exist for basic meat preservatives:

Sodium Nitrite: NaNO2 (E250 food preservative, popular, preserves colour)

Sodium Nitrate: NaNO3 (E251 food preservative)

Potassium Nitrite: KNO2 (E249 food preservative)

Potassium Nitrate: KNO3 (E252 food preservative, saltpeter, traditional, makes meat pink)

I also agree with the local butcher that NaNO2 is a good replacement and probably a better preservative than KNO3.

Either option is probably fine when used in a well-controlled production environment, but I don't think they are really necessary when making home-made biltong. After all we can just keep the stuff in the fridge

I was given a small packet ( a hanful ) of it a few years and still have a bit left. It is a white/pink powder that looks like like salt. They buy it in 5 kg buckets. 3g is about 1/2 tsp. When it runs out I will go back to not using it. I want to find salt petre again.

bitsisbitsis. Glad to help

I have been trying to scan a few pages from a book called Make Your Own Biltong and Droewors because it has great pics and clear explainations. The file was 2M for 6 pages so I tried BW and the resolution is bad to get it to 100k. I can email the scanned colour pages if you PM with an email address or post a few pages at a time to this thread

[Biltong Cutters and Dryers]

Hi

My husband make biltong dryers. Can take about 4Kg biltong and he only ask $150 for them. He also makes biltong cutters for $40 each.

He delivers through out Perth and area.

Please feel free to contact Jaco at. 0407711909

[Biltong Cutters and Dryers]

Hi

My husband make biltong dryers. Can take about 4Kg biltong and he only ask $150 for them. He also makes biltong cutters for $40 each.

He delivers through out Perth and area.

Please feel free to contact Jaco at. 0407711909