The Basics of How to Make Biltong

Biltong is a popular South African dried meat snack that is now enjoyed around the world, particularly in Australia, India, Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom. While most biltong lovers prefer to buy biltong either at local retailers or online, others prefer to prepare their own high-protein, low-carb meat treats. To assist those who would like to venture into the world of making biltong at home, here is some basic information about selecting ingredients, and flavouring and drying the meat.

How to Make Biltong: The Basic Ingredients

Biltong is most commonly made with a combination of vinegar, salt, sugar, black pepper and coriander. Other ingredients that may be used include garlic, onion powder, nutmeg, Worcestershire sauce, saltpetre and chilli peppers. In traditional preparation methods, the meat being used to create the biltong is marinated for a few hours in a cider vinegar solution prior to being flavoured and prepared for the drying process. Nowadays, it is also becoming more common to see biltong makers using a vinegar solution featuring malt vinegar or balsamic vinegar in combination with or instead of the typical use of cider vinegar. These variations in the use of different spices and vinegars are part of the driving force behind the increasing variety of biltong flavours and textures available today.

How to Make Biltong: Flavouring the Meat

After the meat is marinated in the vinegar solution for the desired amount of time, the liquid is poured off in preparation for the flavouring process. The meat is then flavoured with a mix of spices that traditionally is made up of equal parts brown sugar, black pepper, coriander and salt roughly ground together. As mentioned above, it is now quite common to see other spices added to this mix, such as nutmeg, garlic or peppers. The meat is then liberally dusted with this ground spice mixture, which is rubbed into the meat. This step is followed by the meat being placed in a refrigerator overnight or set aside for a few hours before being hung to dry. If excess liquid is detected at this time, it should be poured off before hanging the meat in your preferred drying situation.

How to Make Biltong: Drying the Meat

Traditionally, biltong was made in rural settings, which resulted in open-air drying of the meat. Now it is not uncommon for biltong to be made in city settings, which can be accomplished by drying the meat in boxes constructed of wood or cardboard. Of course, for larger productions of biltong, it is also possible to create a specially designed, ventilated drying room with climate control and plenty of space in which to hang your meat. These methods will typically take about four days to produce a traditional, slow-dried biltong with a medium cure.

It is possible to speed up the biltong drying process by using an electric lamp or an electric stove; however, some biltong aficionados believe these methods – while faster – do not deliver the taste achieved with slower drying methods.

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