Charqui – South American Dried Meat
Charqui is a traditional South American dried meat preserved by salting and air-drying. The meat is cut into thin strips, salted, and dried in the air or a dehydrator. The method originates from the Andes and allows long shelf life without refrigeration.
Ingredients(for 1 kg)
Instructions
Preparation
30 minutesTrim the beef (e.g. top round) of sinew and fat. Cut against the grain into 3–4 mm thin strips. Mix together salt, pepper, garlic and chili.
Curing
12 hoursRub the meat strips evenly with the salt mixture, layer in a container and cure covered in the refrigerator at 4 °C for 12 hours. Turn occasionally.
Cold Smoking & Drying
24–36 hoursRinse the meat strips, pat dry and cold smoke in the smoker at 25–30 °C with beech wood for 6 hours. Then continue drying for up to 30 hours until the meat is pliable-firm and reduced to about 50% of its original weight.
Pro Tip
Hang the meat strips instead of laying them flat – this allows air to circulate all around and results in more even, faster drying.
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