Teriyaki Beef Jerky

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Teriyaki Beef Jerky is a staple snack in our pantry. Tender beef strips marinated in a sweet and tangy homemade teriyaki sauce are perfect for road trips, camping, and snacking. I prefer my jerky smoked, but I’ve included variations for using your oven or dehydrator as well.

Stack of teriyaki beef jerky on the grill grates of a smoker. Text overlay reads: Homemade Teriyaki Beef Jerky.

Homemade Teriyaki Beef Jerky

Making your own beef jerky just can’t be beat, in my opinion. You get so much flavor when you dry the meat yourself, and you have more control over the final result.

When it comes to making your own beef jerky, it all starts with getting the best cuts of beef for jerky-making. I try to pick a nice roast with very little fat marbling. My first choice is an eye of round roast. After that, I think a top round, sirloin roast, or rump roast would also work well. These cuts do have a bit more fat/gristle, but a lot of times the price is right so I don’t mind.

Slicing Meat for Beef Jerky

I own a meat slicer, and have sliced my own meat for jerky before. If you plan on slicing your own meat, I recommend putting your roast in the freezer for 30 minutes to an hour before slicing. The chilled roast will be more firm and you will get a much better result with more even slices. If you aren’t slicing at home, find a good butcher and buy your roast from them. They will be more than happy to do the slicing for you!

I slice my jerky against the grain. In my opinion, this makes the jerky easier to chew and eat.  Some people prefer cutting with the grain because once it is dry you get those nice long strands of jerky that you can tear off and work through. I’ve also heard people mention that slicing with the grain can cause your jerky to fall apart, but I haven’t experienced that personally. In fact, all of the pictures for this recipe are of jerky that is sliced against the grain and it held up great with an awesome bite.

Sliced and marinated teriyaki beef jerky spread out on a smoker with smoke rising up from the bottom of the smoker.

Teriyaki Beef Jerky Marinade

Once your meat is sliced and ready to go, it’s time to build the teriyaki marinade! With all good marinades, you need a balance of sweet, savory, and spicy. This has all of the right elements with a slight Asian inspired flare. I recommend marinating your jerky for 8-10 hours, but many people prefer to marinate for 24 hours (or even 48) to really strengthen the flavors. This will make the jerky quite a bit saltier too, so keep that in mind. Here’s what you’ll need to assemble for this marinade:

 

  • 1 cup soy sauce
  • 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup rice vinegar
  • 1-inch knob fresh ginger
  • 1 Tablespoon sesame oil
  • 4 garlic cloves
  • 1 Tablespoon sesame seeds
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper

An optional addition is to add 1 teaspoon of Instacure #1 (also called Prague powder #1 or Pink Salt) to the marinade recipe. 1 teaspoon of cure will distribute through the marinade and cure up to 5 pounds of meat. Because this recipe calls for a 2-3 pound roast you can get away with using 1/2 teaspoon of cure. If you are making 5 pounds, double the entire marinade recipe and add 1 full teaspoon of the curing salt. The cure will extend the shelf life of the beef jerky and also make it shelf stable.

If you don’t use the curing salt, your finished jerky will last up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator in an airtight bag. If you do use the cure, your jerky can last up to 2 weeks at room temperature in an airtight bag.

How to Make Teriyaki Beef Jerky

This jerky can be dried in a variety of ways, either in a smoker, oven, or designated dehydrator. Here’s how to get tasty jerky from each:

  1. Smoker. I have several smokers at my disposal and my favorite for jerky is my pellet grill. I can maintain temperatures around 160-180 degrees F the entire time. This allows the jerky to slowly cook through while smoking.
  2. Oven. If you’re without a smoker, you can still dehydrate your jerky in your oven by laying out your jerky on a cooling rack that has been set on top of a baking sheet. Follow the same time and temperature listed in the recipe, but leave the door of your oven slightly cracked so the moisture can escape and your jerky can dry properly. I like to do this by placing a wooden spoon in the door to keep it propped open. It’ll just be missing that reddish color and smoky flavor.
  3. Dehydrator. If you are using a dehydrator, please read the instructions accompanying your machine. Every dehydrator works differently and the timeline will be unique to your machine. Most will dehydrate jerky in a few hours, very similar to using an oven.

The real secret, whether smoker, oven, or dehydrator, is to prep your jerky before drying. Removing the meat from the marinade and patting off the excess moisture is crucial for even cooking. I like to layer my jerky strips between paper towels and thoroughly pat dry. If you want a little extra something, now is a great time to dust with some additional sesame seeds.

Stack of teriyaki beef jerky on the grill grates of a smoker.

More Beef Jerky Recipes

If you liked this recipe for teriyaki beef jerky, you’re sure to love these other tasty jerky recipes from Hey Grill Hey. They each bring their own tasty flavor, and you won’t be able to keep them around for long!

Teriyaki Beef Jerky Recipe

Teriyaki Beef Jerky

By: Susie Bulloch (heygrillhey.com)
4.92 from 25 votes
Teriyaki Beef Jerky is a staple snack in our pantry. Tender beef strips marinated in a sweet and tangy homemade teriyaki sauce. I prefer my jerky smoked, but I've included variations for using your oven or dehydrator as well.
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time3 hours
Total Time3 hours 20 minutes
Servings8 people

Ingredients
 

  • 1 2-3 pound eye of round roast sliced thin against the grain

Teriyaki Marinade

  • 1 cup soy sauce
  • ½ cup dark brown sugar
  • ¼ cup rice vinegar
  • 1 inch knob fresh ginger sliced
  • 4 cloves garlic sliced
  • 1 Tablespoon sesame oil
  • 1 Tablespoon sesame seeds
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper

Instructions
 

  • Marinate the beef. Transfer the sliced beef to a gallon sized zip top bag and pour in the ingredients for the marinade. Massage the marinade into the meat and refrigerate for at least 8-12 hours, or up to 24 hours.
  • Preheat your oven or smoker. Preheat your smoker or oven to approximately 170 degrees F. Follow any preheating or preparation instructions if using a dehydrator.
  • Smoke the marinated meat. Remove the meat from the marinade and dry each strip thoroughly by laying on paper towels. Transfer the strips to the grill grate, jerky rack, or cooling rack and smoke/cook for 2-3 hours (depending on the thickness of your slices, some thicker pieces can take 4-5 hours). Check often after the first hour to be sure your jerky is drying evenly. You may need to move pieces around on the grates if some are dying faster than others. You are looking for jerky that is firm and still slightly pliable, but not soft and squishy. If you bend your jerky and it breaks, you've cooked it a little too long.
  • Steam the jerky, store, and enjoy. Place the finished jerky in a gallon zip top bag while it is still warm. Don't seal closed all the way. The jerky will steam in the bag slightly and this step will make the jerky moist. The jerky will last 2 weeks in the fridge.

Nutrition

Calories: 264kcal | Carbohydrates: 1g | Protein: 38g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 105mg | Sodium: 96mg | Potassium: 591mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 45mg | Iron: 4mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Like this? Leave a comment below!

**This post was originally published in June 2018. We recently updated it with more information and helpful tips. The recipe remains the same.

Teriyaki Beef Jerky

About

FOUNDER/BBQ BOSS LADY

Susie is the BBQ Brain behind the Hey Grill Hey website. Her passion for smoked meats and developing fun, new recipes have landed her on the Food Network, cooking turkeys with Shaq, and on a couple of Guinness World Records. When she’s not grilling, she is hanging out with Todd and their three kids, preferably outdoors!

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Recipe Rating




Reader Reviews

89 Reviews

  1. James Wright says:

    Love this recipe! I take out the ginger and add 1/8 cup pineapple juice and a half jalapeño. I then double the recipe and don’t dry it before putting it in the Traeger. So flavorful!

  2. Curt says:

    Just wondering why the terriaki recipe doesn’t call for mortons quick cure salt like the coffee recipe does? ( which ws awesome btw)

  3. Rick says:

    I added a little more garlic and ginger. This is a great recipe.

  4. Troy Fitzpatrick says:

    This is an amazing teriyaji jerky recipe. It’s the only one I use now! I have a question though. Do you think I could use this marinade for chicken wings?

    1. Hey Grill Hey says:

      For sure!

      1. Tim K says:

        It would be great for skinless chicken breast too.

  5. Laura says:

    I made this with moose meat as written but used half low sodium and half mushroom soy sauce. I added about 1tsp liquid smoke cause I am too lazy to smoke it. I did it for about 4 hours at 160 in my dehydrator and it is so good!!!! (I accidentally left it in the marinade for 48 hours but it was not too salty). Definitely a keeper!!

  6. Mark says:

    I lay parchment down and put a layer of Yoshida’s, Sriracha, and Sesame seeds down, drag slices through on one side and lay them on the other side. I roll that up and put it in a gallon zip lock. It maintains the bigger slices better than other Marinade methods. Thank you for all the great recipes and methods. I refer plenty of others to HGH all over social media. You’re the best at what you do.

  7. Venus S says:

    I made this recipe in my large-capacity air fryer (160F for 3 hours)

  8. Mike says:

    Absolute awesome!! Thank you!

  9. JuiceStane says:

    I Have a question for anyone and or everyone. i want to make a batch of teriyaki jerky that isnt too sweet but has a strong teriyaki taste and decent spice. i can figure most of that out on my own. My Question surrounds the use of ginger and rice vinegar. 1. i feel like the ginger would stray from my intended flavor so im gonna skip using it, however i have used rice wine vinegar with other things and im curious as to what specific tastes and flavor it actually has on the jerky?

    1. Laura says:

      I would leave in the ginger. I made this and it was truly fantastic. The teriyaki flavour was perfect. The vinegar tenderizes the meat but I could not taste it in the finished product.