Tag Archives: beef jerky

Field Trip Jerky

My wife and I came across this jerky at the Columbus Circle Holiday Market the other day.

20151206_175358

We sampled a few flavors and picked out our top three for purchase; they were offering three bags for $20. This seems to be pretty average pricing for jerky, which is expensive in general (especially for the good shit).

DSC09410

So we picked up cracked pepper turkey jerky, which is nice and tender, really flavorful and addicting. Probably our favorite.

DSC09413

DSC09415

The second was this crushed chili flake turkey jerky, which had a good spice level to it and also very tender.

DSC09417

DSC09419

Last was the spiced honey beef, which was sweet with a hint of spice at the end.

DSC09420

DSC09423

All very good. I recommend this if you see it. Grab a pack! The cracked pepper turkey is my favorite of the three.

Krave Jerky

My buddy picked up a pair of jerky bags and shared them with me. Once again I preferred the turkey jerky to the beef in this taste lineup of lemon garlic turkey vs pineapple orange beef.

20150805_151404

Both the texture and the flavor of the turkey variety seemed better to me, though the beef was indeed tender.

20150805_152358

I thought I’d like the pineapple orange beef more. Perhaps it needed a spicy element. The lemon garlic turkey had a kick from the cracked black pepper that was on it.

Some more flavors I picked up:

20150821_185426

20150821_185515

20150821_185706

Here we go: first up is chili lime beef. This was pretty good. It is somewhat similar to the chili garlic, but a bit brighter from the citrus. Definitely liked the spice level and the texture was soft and tender.

DSC09083

DSC09086

Next up was basil citrus turkey. Once again I find that i like the non-beef meats better in jerky form for some reason. No idea why that is, but this flavor was spot on: you get that great herby basil flavor and the brightness of citrus in each bite.

DSC09084

DSC09085

Next was lemon garlic turkey, which I already reviewed above.

DSC09087

DSC09088

Then came this black cherry barbecue pork jerky. I had high hopes of this one but it fell flat on flavor. I’m hoping that it was just an errant piece that didn’t absorb a lot of flavor for whatever reason. I will report back if the remainder of the bag is better.

DSC09091

DSC09092

Continuing through the color wheel was this red bag of chili garlic beef jerky. This was distantly similar to the asian style dry jerky products that I know and love so much. Big winner here. And the pieces of tender beef are really large, so that’s good too.

DSC09097

DSC09098

Grilled sweet teriyaki pork was very nice, and a great texture. A worthy selection in the jerky game.

DSC09093

DSC09094

Last was this sweet chipotle beef. Here, the pieces were even BIGGER than the chili garlic slabs. This had a nice mild flavor that will please any jerky connoisseur.

DSC09089

DSC09090

Vua Kho Bo Jerky

This stuff is nothing shy of amazing. So far this might be the best tasting jerky that I’ve ever had. The only down-side is that it is messy as fuck to eat. This isn’t ideal for laying on the couch and popping into your mouth while you watch a movie of flip through the TV channels. Who does that anymore, anyway? We fucking scroll through the on-screen guide looking for something better than whatever channel the TV happens to be on, or we comb our DVR’s for a show we can finally start to binge-watch, now that there are more than five of six of them recorded. Anyway… Back to business. You need a plate and several napkins when you eat this stuff. It’s fucking crazy messy. You’ll be shocked when you see how far some of the bits and pieces of tasty shit fly when you pull it apart for smaller, more manageable-sized pieces. Pictured below are the regular and spicy beef versions, but they have tons of variety to choose from. The spicy is VERY spicy. I love it.

vua kho bo jerky

You can score this shit in most Asian markets, or dry goods stores around Chinatown. The wording on the package is Vietnamese, and roughly translates to something like King Beef Jerky, according to my wife.

Here are some close-ups.

Spicy:

20150612_213537

Regular:

20150612_213544

Fusion Jerky

I’ve been chowing on jerky lately. I keep finding good new shit. My wife and I grabbed these on an impulse purchase at Bed Bath & Beyond, of all places. I suppose these are considered part of the “beyond” section. Anyway, bastards, these are really freaking delicious. Lemon pepper chicken and island teriyaki pork jerky by Fusion Jerky. Pick up a bag if you see them. There was a spicy chipotle beef flavor as well. Should have gotten all three.

fusion jerky

The meat wasn’t too chewy, like some jerky can be. For the chicken, that might have been because it doesn’t have the same fibrous consistency as beef. But the pork was pretty easy to chew as well. The flavors were intense but not overpowering. I couldn’t stop shoveling this crap into my body.

Update: This flavor was great too.

Lawless Jerky

Attorney Matt Tolnick created Lawless Jerky and got the fuck out of the lawyering game. God bless him, and good for him. I’m trying to do the same (though not with jerky, of course), so I know how real that struggle can be.

Anyway this stuff is essentially craft beef jerky, all natural, no preservatives, no nitrates/nitrites, and with real flavors that are different from all the rest of the slimy, waxy, over-processed shit you’re seeing out there today at gas stations and in supermarket check-out aisles around the country. You can actually pronounce the list of ingredients, like onion powder and paprika. No chemical garbage. And all the jerky is made from 100% grass-fed beef, so it’s lean, and only 80-85 calories per serving, depending on the flavor. That’s great for weight-conscious guys like me, and it comes in re-sealable ziplock style packages, so you can lock in the freshness if you don’t devour the entire bag at once.

DSC06155

DSC06156

How did I hear about this shit? A buddy of mine told me about this stuff and dropped a coupon code on me so I could try a bunch at a good price. Unfortunately, I didn’t realize that this code was reserved for military personnel only, shipping only to legit military addresses. I felt like a big, fat dick when the good people at Lawless Jerky contacted me, asking for my bona fides to make sure I was legit military. I’m not. And I’m glad to see that these guys are actually checking up on things to make sure the sanctity of that coupon code only applies to our brave soldiers who sacrifice every day for our pathetic asses. Good on you, Lawless Jerky! And I apologize for the mix-up.

DSC06157

The gents quickly and painlessly refunded me, but also sent along a sampling of jerky to me anyway, free of charge. I was shocked! I was totally ready and willing to pay full price, as I had heard great things and the flavor descriptions are very enticing.

What are these flavors, you ask?

DSC06144

Japanese Curry; Pho; Sweet Sriracha; Aloha Teriyaki; Honey Chipotle; and Mango Habanero. HOLY FUCK! How can you try one and not any of the others?!?? I will eat pho flavored shit if served to me on a nice plate… maybe… But seriously, just reading these flavors caused a hair-raising, salivary gland-squeezing, teeth watering (yes… teeth watering) crave to sweep over my entire gustatory system. I needed these things in my gut at once.

DSC06153

So what’s my verdict? My holding, my decision, if you will? AWESOME! Get these fucking things ASAP. Every single flavor has something special about it that you will want to have again and again. But here’s a breakdown of the specifics of each flavor, incase you’re a big throbbing pussy and you don’t want to go in for the full sampler pack:

Japanese Curry: This definitely tasted exactly like you would expect. I was actually hoping for MORE of that characteristic curry flavor, but I was happy to see the beef shine through as the star of the show. Actually, I think this flavor would be really great on something like chicken or turkey jerky as well. I wonder if the guys at Lawless are thinking about getting into the non-beef stuff as well?

DSC06151

Pho: All of the right ingredients for pho are represented here in the jerky: cilantro, lime, anise, and other aromatics that you get with a delicious bowl of Vietnamese beef soup. This was a very tasty bag, but not my favorite of the six (which I had expected it to be). The great thing about this flavor is that you can really taste that meaty flavor. Like pho, this jerky is all about the meat itself as opposed to the coating of flavor.

DSC06150

Sweet Sriracha: Candidate for best flavor of the group, this was the right balance of sweet and spicy together, with a generous coating of flavoring on each piece of beef in the bag. And with the meteoric rise in popularity of Sriracha sauce, this baby should catch on as a big money maker for Lawless. Well played!

DSC06146

Aloha Teriyaki: This was nice because it had sesame seeds sprinkled on the beef. The flavoring was more of a glaze, as you might expect, as opposed to the dry seasonings on the Sweet Sriracha and Japanese Curry flavors. But it wasn’t wet like some Asian flavored jerky is. This is a comfortable and easy to eat jerky. A definite pleaser for all fans of jerky.

DSC06149

Honey Chipotle: This was my least favorite of the bunch, but that doesn’t mean it was bad by any means. I really enjoyed it. I think, for me, this simply was the most “safe” or “common” flavor of the group, aside from maybe the Aloha Teriyaki flavor. As such, I wasn’t as excited about it, but I still kept reaching in for more. This, like Aloha Teriyaki, is a crowd pleaser as well. Easily scarfed down at parties or while making a long cross country drive.

DSC06147

Mango Habanero: This was very close to being my favorite. It’s neck and neck with the Sweet Sriracha for me, but my wife gave this one her choice for favorite. It, too, has the right balance of sweet and spicy. Really nice. There’s something magical about this flavor combination. I even love it at Buffalo Wild Wings. Ha!

DSC06148

So there you have it. I think these would even be good with dipping sauces that you can make at home to match the flavors listed on the bag. So good. Be a man and get them all, and tell your military pals about the deal. I think they’re still offering some deals for active military. Check out their Twitter page for updates and other deals.