Pemmican
Pemmican is the most original long-term provisions of North American indigenous peoples, consisting of dried ground beef, rendered tallow and optionally dried berries. The ratio of fat to dried meat is critical for shelf life and caloric density – up to 3000 kcal per 100 g are possible. Correctly made and stored in airtight containers, pemmican can be kept without refrigeration for years.
Ingredients(for 1 kg)
Instructions
Drying the Meat
8–12 hoursCut lean beef (e.g. rump, top round – completely free of fat and sinew) into slices as thin as possible, 2–3 mm. Dry completely in a dehydrator or oven (convection) at 70 °C for 8–12 hours until the meat is rock hard and fully brittle.
Grinding the Meat
20 min.Allow the fully dried meat to cool, then grind it to a fine powder in a food processor, blender or traditionally in a mortar. The powder should have a dry, fibrous consistency with no residual moisture whatsoever.
Rendering Tallow & Mixing
30 min.Render beef tallow slowly at low heat (<85 °C) and clarify through a fine sieve. Allow clarified tallow to cool slightly until still liquid (approx. 60–70 °C). Mix meat powder, salt and ground dried berries, then stir in hot tallow in a thin stream until a homogeneous, moldable mass forms.
Shaping & Storage
1–2 hoursPress the still warm mass into flat molds, baking tins or wraps and allow to harden completely at room temperature. Store in airtight containers, vacuum bags or traditionally in linen cloths. Correctly made, shelf life at room temperature is several months to years.
Pro Tip
Use only completely dried meat powder – even slight residual moisture leads to mold growth and drastically shortens shelf life. Mix the clarified tallow with the meat powder only as hot as necessary (<85 °C) to avoid denaturing the proteins.
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