# Anyone dehydrate dark meat chicken for LTS?



## Sonya (Oct 20, 2016)

So I have dehydrated some chicken breast, boiled it first and rinsed to remove as much fat as possible. Hope it will store well for 2-3 years in mylar (no refrigeration).

But dark meat chicken has about twice the fat. Has anyone dehydrated that for storage? Does the increased fat content make a huge difference?

Any ideas on how long it will last?


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## hawgrider (Oct 24, 2014)

Did you use a cure like Mortons tender cure?


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## Sonya (Oct 20, 2016)

hawgrider said:


> Did you use a cure like Mortons tender cure?


No, but thanks for reminding me. I should use a cure for some of the chicken breast, I read it makes it more tender. Also using a pressure cooker.

The dark meat is being dehydrated for the dogs, so I wasn't planning to cure it at all. Though if it extends shelf life and doesn't contain salt I guess I could.


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## hawgrider (Oct 24, 2014)

Sonya said:


> No, but thanks for reminding me. I should use a cure for some of the chicken breast, I read it makes it more tender. Also using a pressure cooker.
> 
> The dark meat is being dehydrated for the dogs, so I wasn't planning to cure it at all. Though if it extends shelf life and doesn't contain salt I guess I could.


That would be my concern is dehydrating meat without a cure. A pressure cooker would certainly get hot enough to kill the boogies but I still think I would use a cure so nothing grew while the meat was dehydrating. I think Id treat it like jerky. Just my opinion and worth exactly what you paid for it.:tango_face_smile:

The alternative would be just to can it in the pressure cooker and not dehydrate it.

Even cured jerky will not last several years at room temp Id freeze it. Your looking at about 2 months-



> Home dehydrated chicken strips should last at least 1 to 2 months stored at room temperature (depending on storage conditions and environment), and much longer if refrigerated or frozen.


 http://modernsurvivalblog.com/survival-kitchen/dehydrate-chicken-strips/


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## bigwheel (Sep 22, 2014)

Well not much thing as no salt cure. Mortons Tender Quick is 99.9 percent salt. Having clowned around with jerky a few times...discovered the biggest enemy of shelf life is mold. To hold that bad boy at bay requires shutting it off from O2 or moisture. Either one will work. Both is better most likely. Several ways to do it. A paper towel in the bottom of the stack before being sealed works pretty good to keep the moisture down..then you got the mylar to keep out the air. I would freeze it. It last a long time like that. Not in the ice box cause that will give mold.


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## hawgrider (Oct 24, 2014)

bigwheel said:


> Well not much thing as no salt cure. Mortons Tender Quick is 99.9 percent salt. Having clowned around with jerky a few times...discovered the biggest enemy of shelf life is mold. To hold that bad boy at bay requires shutting it off from O2 or moisture. Either one will work. Both is better most likely. Several ways to do it. A paper towel in the bottom of the stack before being sealed works pretty good to keep the moisture down..then you got the mylar to keep out the air. I would freeze it. It last a long time like that. Not in the ice box cause that will give mold.


Yes the cures are salt. I like the Mortons tender quick its readily available at any grocery store. Some folks use the pink cure(Prague Powder)


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## bigwheel (Sep 22, 2014)

Yep..its wonderful stuff. Just pretend its salt. I havent bought any of them goofy powders in many moons.


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## Sonya (Oct 20, 2016)

hawgrider said:


> That would be my concern is dehydrating meat without a cure. A pressure cooker would certainly get hot enough to kill the boogies but I still think I would use a cure so nothing grew while the meat was dehydrating. I think Id treat it like jerky. Just my opinion and worth exactly what you paid for it.:tango_face_smile:
> 
> The alternative would be just to can it in the pressure cooker and not dehydrate it.
> 
> ...


But jerky isn't all that dry, it is leathery/chewy. Plus it is usually dehydrated raw and most dehydrators won't get it hot enough to kill pathogens (though heating it in an oven afterwards would). Botulism could possibly grow in jerky if the moisture content was high enough, but 't won't grow in very dry meat. From what I have read low fat meat that is dried as much as possible (i.e. breaks like glass) should last a few years in mylar with an oxygen absorber, plus I throw in a desiccant.

I think the only thing that could go wrong would be rancid fat, which is why I probably won't dehydrate the dark meat. So far I have only done very low fat meat like liver, beef hearts or chicken breast and I should probably stick to that.

It will be boiled briefly before consumption.


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## Redneck (Oct 6, 2016)

I find Southern Indiana Butcher Supply is a great source for curing products. I buy bulk curing salts & jerky seasonings from these folks. They have a huge selection.

Butcher, Meat Processing, Brewing, & BBQ Supplies and Equipment


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## Slippy (Nov 14, 2013)

Good to know we have plenty of meat jerkers on the forum...:vs_whistle:


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## Sonya (Oct 20, 2016)

For anyone that actually DOES dehydrate chicken, if you haven't tried pressure cooking it do!

I read it makes the meat much more tender after rehydration. In addition, I just pressure cooked some chicken breast and was amazed at how it felt "dryer" right out of the pot, and appears to be dehydrating faster than normal (normal being boiled chicken).

I may have pressure cooked it a bit too long, as it is also rather crumbly, but still, it works a heck of a lot better than boiling.


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## bigwheel (Sep 22, 2014)

Thanks for the heads up on that.


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## hawgrider (Oct 24, 2014)

Sonya said:


> But jerky isn't all that dry, it is leathery/chewy. Plus it is usually dehydrated raw and most dehydrators won't get it hot enough to kill pathogens (though heating it in an oven afterwards would). Botulism could possibly grow in jerky if the moisture content was high enough, but 't won't grow in very dry meat. From what I have read low fat meat that is dried as much as possible (i.e. breaks like glass) should last a few years in mylar with an oxygen absorber, plus I throw in a desiccant.
> 
> I think the only thing that could go wrong would be rancid fat, which is why I probably won't dehydrate the dark meat. So far I have only done very low fat meat like liver, beef hearts or chicken breast and I should probably stick to that.
> 
> It will be boiled briefly before consumption.


 Oven first or last. Reach 165 good to go.

Edit 165° internal chicken temp. Even if you pressure cook and can it the Ball book food nazis say you are you suppose to re heat or boil to ensure no boogies. Eating it out of the jar they claim is not safe although some people do.


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## Sonya (Oct 20, 2016)

hawgrider said:


> Oven first or last. Reach 165 good to go.
> 
> Edit 165° internal chicken temp. Even if you pressure cook and can it the Ball book food nazis say you are you suppose to re heat or boil to ensure no boogies. Eating it out of the jar they claim is not safe although some people do.


After proper pressure canning it should be completely safe, the canning kills any botulism spores. The concern is if the can seal broke and no one noticed, or if it wasn't pressure canned long enough. That is why they recommend boiling, it won't kill the spores but it will render the deadly toxin harmless.

165 degrees wouldn't do a darn thing to botulism spores on beef jerky though, the spores would be fine and capable of reproducing under the right conditions. Jerky probably doesn't contain enough moisture though. There aren't very many cases of botulism reported on a yearly basis, even with the home canning resurgence, I don't recall seeing one from beef jerky.


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## hawgrider (Oct 24, 2014)

Sonya said:


> After proper pressure canning it should be completely safe, the canning kills any botulism spores. The concern is if the can seal broke and no one noticed, or if it wasn't pressure canned long enough. That is why they recommend boiling, it won't kill the spores but it will render the deadly toxin harmless.
> 
> 165 degrees wouldn't do a darn thing to botulism spores on beef jerky though, the spores would be fine and capable of reproducing under the right conditions. Jerky probably doesn't contain enough moisture though. There aren't very many cases of botulism reported on a yearly basis, even with the home canning resurgence, I don't recall seeing one from beef jerky.


For jerky the cure is the safety net along with the proper temp. 
Chicken 165°
Beef/venison 160°

Jerky and Food Safety


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## bigwheel (Sep 22, 2014)

Making beef jerky get to 165 on the front end makes it taste pretty bad and screws the texture up big time. Doing it on the back end works much better but some say it aint as easy to kill dried germs as it is wet germs. I use cure..and make it break the magic temp at the end. Aint killed nobody yet. A dehydrated chicken sounds a bit kinky lol.


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## Sonya (Oct 20, 2016)

bigwheel said:


> Making beef jerky get to 165 on the front end makes it taste pretty bad and screws the texture up big time. Doing it on the back end works much better but some say it aint as easy to kill dried germs as it is wet germs. I use cure..and make it break the magic temp at the end. Aint killed nobody yet. A dehydrated chicken sounds a bit kinky lol.


I think the 165 thing is to kill e-coli especially with beef. For healthy adults it probably isn't a concern, but for small kids or folks with a trashed immune system it would be.


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