In the bush jerky is more than just an ideal hiking snack.
Jerky is a versatile that can be used as an ingredient in outdoor meals as well as a snack. You could add small pieces of jerky to a pasta sauce, include some shredded jerky to your scrambled eggs, add small pieces of jerky to a wrap or quesadilla (using freeze dried cheese) or add some shredded jerky to baked beans.
Pemmican
Pemmican is a concentrated mixture of fat and protein used as a nutritious food. It was invented by the native peoples of North America and was widely adopted as a high-energy food by Europeans involved in the fur trade and later by Arctic and Antarctic explorers. Make pemmican at home, wrap individual pieces in plastic wrap and you will have a high energy snack for the trail.
To make pemmican
100gm jerky
1 cup raisins (or similar dried fruit)
1 cup dried apricots, roughly chopped
½ cup ground nuts (of your choice)
1 tablespoon orange zest
generous pinch of allspice
1/3 cup copha, melted
Process the jerky in a food processor until it is very finely chopped. Remove the jerky from the processor and place to one side. Process the raisins, apricots, nuts, zest and allspice until finely ground. Return the jerky to the processor as well as the melted copha. Continue to process until the mixture forms into a ball. Remove the mixture from the processor and roll it into small balls (about 2cm in size). Wrap in plastic wrap and store in an airtight container.
Onion pancakes with shredded jerky
2 cups plain flour
5teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs (2 tablespoons dry egg powder plus ¼ cup water)
1 tablespoon dried chives
2 cups milk (2/3 cup dry instant milk powder plus 2 cups water)
1/3 cup vegetable oil
½ cup shredded or grated jerky
If you are using fresh eggs and milk, beat the eggs, adding the milk and oil. Stir in the dry ingredients and beat until smooth. If you are using dried eggs as well as dried milk, you can simply add all your dry ingredients. The dried ingredients can now be stored in a container for use until you are ready to cook the pancakes.
When ready to cook the pancakes add the water and oil and stir well. Allow to stand for five minutes. While the pancake batter is standing, heat a fry pan over a medium heat. Depending on the cooking surface of your fry pan, you may wish to give it a wipe with a little oil to prevent the pancakes sticking as they cook.
Drop spoonfuls of the pancake batter into the hot pan. Cook the pancakes for a minute or until bubbles appear on the surface of the pancake. Flip them over and cook on the other side. Remove the pancakes from the pan, place to one side and continue to cook the remaining pancake batter.
To serve, place a few of the onion pancakes on each plate, add a small drizzle of oil and then generously sprinkle with the shredded jerky.
There is an alternative to the onion pancakes with shredded jerky using dehydrated potato flakes as the dry mixture. Make up the dehydrated potatoes, eggs, and dehydrated milk according to the instructions on the packets. Add the equivalent of one egg to 2 cups of rehydrated potato plus a tablespoon of dried chives. Make the ingredients up to a thick patty like consistency. Heat some oil in a frypan and when the oil is hot, add spoonfuls of the potato mixture to the pan. Sautéthe potato cakes on both sides until golden brown. Serve the potato cakes with onion topped with a generous amount of shredded jerky.
Words_Lynn Bain