{"id":967,"date":"2020-07-23T23:44:32","date_gmt":"2020-07-23T23:44:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/?p=967"},"modified":"2020-07-24T00:08:18","modified_gmt":"2020-07-24T00:08:18","slug":"how-to-make-homemade-dehydrated-chicken-jerky","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/index.php\/2020\/07\/23\/how-to-make-homemade-dehydrated-chicken-jerky\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Make Homemade Dehydrated Chicken Jerky"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>It\u2019s the 5th month that we are still under Shelter in Place order with limited business reopen. While I am not fully back to provide in-person dog behavior consultation and training, I continue to use this time to improve my knowledge on canine behavior by attending webinars and online workshops. As much as I can read and observe from my canine learning materials, I still need other things to spice up my daily routine which leads me to explore the fun of homemade dog treats. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>My dog, Bailey, always enjoys homemade treats more than store-bought. Chicken jerky is one of the few items he would eat if I get it from stores. Because of his age (going to be 11 years old in 3 months!) and teeth condition, I notice he doesn\u2019t like store-bought chicken jerky as much as before. He would still eat them but requires the jerky to be cut into small bits for easy chewing. So, I decide to make homemade jerky for him so I can control the thickness and hardness of the jerky.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>What you need to make homemade chicken jerky:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>A dehydrator (I have this one: Nesco\nProfessional 600W 5-Tray Food Dehydrator, FD-75PR)<\/li><li>2 packs of frozen chicken breasts<\/li><li>8-12 hours drying time depending on the\nthickness of the meat<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>You can use pretty much any meat protein that your dog likes to make into jerky. I have tested with beef, chicken, chicken hearts, chicken gizzards, smelts, calamari and squids. I used to get these ingredients from a local Asian supermarket but due to COVID-19, I haven\u2019t been to my favorite Asian supermarket for as long as we are in SIP. Because these proteins are raw, it is recommended to freeze for at least 3 weeks to minimize any potential parasite risks. Store-bought, human-grade meats are pretty safe because most of them are pre-frozen, but I still like to freeze it for 3 weeks before I get it ready for jerky. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Once the meat is\nfrozen for 3 weeks, I take the meat out of freezer to defrost. While it is\nsemi-frozen, that\u2019s the time to cut the meat into the desirable thin layers. After\nthe 2 packages of chicken breasts are all cut to size, place them on the dehydrator\ntrays with space between each piece.\n\nThis time, I made some thin chicken chips and\nchicken twists, just for fun.\n\n\n\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"500\" height=\"408\" src=\"https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/raw_chikcen.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-978\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/raw_chikcen.png 500w, https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/raw_chikcen-300x245.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><figcaption>Raw chicken pieces are ready for DH~<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The temperature to dehydrate protein is set at 160\u00b0 F\nor 71\u00b0\nC. Depends on how thick the pieces are, it would take at least 8-12\nhours for chicken. For oily meat or fish, you will need to keep it for longer\ntime. If you are doing bully sticks, it can go up to 36 hours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"500\" height=\"381\" src=\"https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/nesco.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-976\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/nesco.png 500w, https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/nesco-300x229.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><figcaption>Nesco Professional 600W 5-Tray Food Dehydrator, FD-75PR<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>So, while the meat is in the dehydrator drying, I have time to listen to quite a few webinars and learned about dealing with dog-dog aggression cases and helping fearful and anxious dogs through play.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/4_hrs.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-980\" width=\"353\" height=\"407\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/4_hrs.png 500w, https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/4_hrs-260x300.png 260w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 353px) 100vw, 353px\" \/><figcaption>After 4 hours in the dehydrator,the meat is already looking like a jerky but still soft in some parts that are thicker.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>I kept checking on the meat and finally, they looked DONE after 9 hours!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"500\" height=\"306\" src=\"https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/all_done.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-979\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/all_done.png 500w, https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/all_done-300x184.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><figcaption>Chicken jerky &amp; chicken twist<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Once the jerky is done, let it cool on a cookie rack for at\nleast 2 hours. Don\u2019t rush to put them into a plastic zip-loc bag or a mason jar\nwhile the jerky is still warm. This would make it go rancid quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I like to let the jerky cool off for at least 2-3 hours, sometimes overnight, before I store them in a zip-loc bag or a cookie jar. Since it is a relatively big batch when I make jerky, I usually leave 1\/3 of the portion out for a week to use. Keep the 2\/3 portion in an air-tight container for up to 6 weeks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/bailey_qa.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-975\" width=\"395\" height=\"438\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/bailey_qa.png 500w, https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/bailey_qa-271x300.png 271w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 395px) 100vw, 395px\" \/><figcaption>Bailey did a quality control and loved it.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>It\u2019s the 5th month that we are still under Shelter in Place order with limited business reopen. While I am not fully back to provide in-person dog behavior consultation and training, I continue to use this time to improve my knowledge on canine behavior by attending webinars and online workshops. As much as I can &hellip; <\/p>\n<p class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/index.php\/2020\/07\/23\/how-to-make-homemade-dehydrated-chicken-jerky\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;How to Make Homemade Dehydrated Chicken Jerky&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false},"categories":[5,7],"tags":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/967"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=967"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/967\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":982,"href":"https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/967\/revisions\/982"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=967"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=967"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.k9learning.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=967"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}