Who's A Cheeky Boy, Then?

krizon

krizon

At the Start
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May 2, 2003
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Dahn sarf
I cut up a large stick of biltong into munchable strips today, and put it in a glass bowl near the open window to expedite drying. The old gull who lives atop the Buddhist Centre down the road flew onto the sill and inspected it very carefully. "He won't know what it is," I thought, and watched as he very daintily removed one strip, swallowed it whole, then another, and, before I could say "I say, would you kindly desist?", a third. All very neatly done, in the manner of an expert sword-swallower! :D
 
Those gulls have got some neck, haven't they?? Mind you, in Gib we have the macaques too of course & they really do possess no fear! A friend of mine lived in a block of flats that were a little way up the Rock & in the summer (when the apes wander down a bit further) she used to have to guard her 6yo son against them as they would sit outside the building & jump on him to try & steal his schoolbag. If you go up the Rock carrying a plastic bag they'll do their utmost to snatch it off you too. They also have a habit of coming quite far down sometimes & invading places - we had our Christmas party at a hotel on Catalan Bay last year; my boss boked a room in the hotel & whilst he was watching TV during the afternoon a macacque strolled through the open window & scared the life out of him!
 
Yup, the old gull lives next door as well, Merlin! Doesn't like biltong at all, though, so mine's safe from her, at least! :D

Colin - sorry, should've explained. I loved it as a kid, and I've not grown out of the habit. Fortunately, there's a South African company which imports all kinds of S.A. produce just along the road at Newhaven, and I order the sticks from there. You can get it shredded, in packets, but I like to buy the strips in 'dry' condition, where just the middle is moist, and then carve them up into smaller pieces, which I can gnaw while watching telly. I like the meat dry, so I air-dry the slices for an additional day or so. It's dead easy to make, if you ever want to try. You can use venison, too. The South Africans have used springbok, kudu, ostrich and, of course, beef! I prefer the beef, having tried the others, which I find taste a bit strong.

To make your own biltong: take any sort of beef, but it depends on whether you like it very lean, or marbled with fat, as to what you buy. Cut it into strips about 10" long x 4" wide, fairly thinnish (you have to remember it'll shrink during drying). Soak the meat in well-salted water overnight. Dry off, season well with salt and pepper corns, tie one end with string and hang the strips in any well-ventilated space (you can hang it outside in hot and sunny weather) and wait about three weeks. You can test how it's drying by slicing a bit now and then and eat it at the consistency you prefer. Hang it for longer for a dryer texture.

When you take any of it down, you can then slice it into small portions, OR, instead of hanging up larger slices, you can simply slice the meat into the size you want to eat it at, and go through the process above. Smaller pieces will obviously dry quicker.

It must be stored in a glass or wooden open container, not sealed, and not allowed to sweat. You can also freeze what you can't manage to eat, and it'll thaw in only a few minutes, retaining any moistness you've left in it very well. Yummy! :)
 
I would suggest that K means brine - i.e very salty otherwise it won't be sun dried but rotted and disgusting
 
I tried beef jerky in America a few years ago. Can't say it did anything for me but maybe that was because when I was asked if I fancied some beef jerky I thought I was being propositioned <_<
 
It's SIMILAR, but not the same. Jerky is often made with sugar and weird additives, which gives it a very different taste to biltong.

No, Ardross, as I've written, you SOAK THE MEAT IN WELL-SALTED WATER OVERNIGHT. Next day, you dry it off, season it with salt (i.e. rub salt into it), etc., etc.

I've made enough of it to know it works. It's really air-dried, rather than just sun-dried, so it'll work in the UK, regardless of weather, if it's hung up in a dry, well-ventilated room.
 
:lol: I wouldn't mind just ONE of her millions, Merlin! But, looks like I'll have to wait for Friday night and the £77,000,000 Euro-rollover! :lol: :lol:
 
You're not dealing with Fanny Craddock here, duckie! I dunno - bowlful of water, half a handful of salt? I don't do things with measuring jugs.
 
Originally posted by krizon@Jul 26 2005, 11:40 PM
:lol: I wouldn't mind just ONE of her millions, Merlin! But, looks like I'll have to wait for Friday night and the £77,000,000 Euro-rollover! :lol: :lol:
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I'll share it with you Jon I am on for £6 bought 4 today............... :rolleyes:
 
If I won that mind-boggling amount, I'd for sure be splashing out on forumites! We'd all have a wonderful horsepitality box at the festivals, everyone could eat and drink until they fell down, and everyone would have an envelope with a very, very useful cheque inside to spend on whatever they wanted. It'd be the biggest fun in the world to spread a bit of helpfulness and happiness, and I wouldn't be forgetting lots of good causes, either. JUST GIMME THE MONEY!!! :lol:

Are you using the same numbers all the time, Merlin, or lucky-dipping?
 
Jon 1 fixed set... birthdays and 3 what I term as !!! UNLUCKY DIPS!!! as they aint been lucky for me as yet???????? but old adage you must be in it to have a chance to win it!! good luck with your choices too.............. ;)
 
If I won the £77m...

Mindboggling innit.

I don't suppose you'd see me for a while. I'd be off on a world cruise while I thought about what I was going to do with it. I might play it up on the Scoop6 :unsure:
 
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