hey guys, looking to make some duck and goose jerky in a dehydrator. you guys who have made it before, does it need to be preheated/cooked in an oven beforehand? i can't seem to find very good information online about this. also, since i'm cooking illiterate, how would you do that????

appreciate it, thanks.

talk to fowl dreams and gr_elliot, they been maknig some batches this year , i hear

I made a couple big batches this past weekend and it turned out excellent. I did not preheat or precook it. Just marinaded it, pulled them out of the marinade and patted them semi-dry with paper towls (not drying them out, just removing the excess so I didn't flood my dehydrator), seasoned them..and let 'em go for about 8 hours... personally I like to eat it after it's been on about 2 hours...but to get true jerky it needs to be on a lot longer imo

cboone, you sound like me and my son making jerky. We start eating it as soon as it's warm and end up with very little actual jerky due to snacking on it during the drying process. All of my experience is with venison jerky, but have a few duck filets I might have to try that on.

yea I made some. I've heard of guys cooking the meat for about 15 mins. at 350. But if I've read right as long as you use a cure then that is not necessary. I've made 4 batches totaling about 18 lbs of meat that I started with. Ended up with about 12 lbs. of meat after dried. Nobody has gotten sick or anything so I think it's fine.

I did mine in the oven at 170(as low as my oven would go) for about 10 hours. I did some on a broiler pan, and some I hung on ka bob skewers through the oven rack. Both ways turned out great. The Broiler pan was easier though.

I just can't see wasting such a great tasting fowl by making jerky. Maybe one day I will, we'll see.

My dad is the worst about eating all the jerky before it's done. Several times we've wiped out the beef and venison jerky in less than an hour after it went on.

I've always used the cure stuff. They got the cure and seasoning kits at Academy and I've tried a few flavors...good stuff. I've never precooked it. I've now done it on a food dehydrator and smoked it on my little pit. If you have a pit smoking it is the way to go....turns out really good and is quicker but a lot more time spend tending the fire. I smoked mine and kept it around 175 and it was done in like 4 hour...will take a few hours more on a food dehydrator.

thanks for the info, got a good dehydrator for christmas and want to try it out, plus the freezers full! got some good cure, so that is supposed to take care of whatever precooking might do?
plus my dehydrator goes up to 160 i think.

I have been making it for several years, never pre-cook, I smoke it for 3 hours at 170-200 degrees on a smoker. I make about 30-40 pounds per season and give it away to people all the time, evryone loves it and no one has ever got sick from it. From kids to adults, never any problems with not pre-cooking.

Has anyone tried the Hi Mountain Cures? I assume you can mix em up and add stuff to spice it up if you want

Here's an excerpt from the USDA website on ducks and geese and cooking temperature. I'm going to bet that even most dehydrators hit this temp with the thin slicing of jerky.

Can Safely Cooked Duck and Goose Be Pink?
Cooked muscle meats can be pink even when the meat has reached a safe minimum internal temperature. If fresh duck or goose has reached a safe minimum internal temperature of 165 °F as measured with a food thermometer, even though it may still be pink in the center, it should be safe. The pink color can be due to the cooking method or added ingredients. For reasons of personal preference, consumers may choose to cook poultry to higher temperatures.

I have used the Hi Mountain cures, and they are all pretty good. I usually crack alot of fresh pepper on top, cuz I like peppered jerky.

Wow, I cook ducks on the grill very rare and they are great, never had any problems cooking them like steak. Never had anyone get sick either.

I need some jerky.