The Best Cuts Of Meat To Use For The Tastiest Beef Jerky

Homemade jerky is a great canvas for culinary exploration because you can marinate the meat in any combination of spices you like. However, you’ll have to use a lean cut of beef.

Fatty cuts don't work for jerky because fat cannot be dehydrated, and moisture is conducive to bacterial growth. This is why the best cuts for beef jerky all come from the round.

While the top round is not as active as other muscles in the beef round — making it the most tender option — it’s still very lean and can become tough if not prepared properly.

For this reason, it’s important to slice the meat very thinly across the grain for maximum tenderness. Bottom round, on the other hand, has more marbling than the top round.

Its meat is extremely lean; this makes it all the more essential to slice your beef thinly and give it a nice long marinade. Lastly, eye of round can also be used to make jerky.

It's tougher than top round, but as with bottom round jerky, thin slices and a few hours spent soaking in a flavorful marinade will do wonders for the texture.

The cut is long but narrow, so when you slice it across the grain, you get perfectly sized pieces of beef jerky. If you're a first-time jerky maker, eye of round is a great choice.