Biltong is a kind of cured meat that originated in South Africa. Many different types of meat are used to produce it, ranging from beef to game meats to fillets of ostrich. It is typically made from raw fillets of meat cut into strips which are dipped in vinegar and then have salt and a variety of dried herbs rubbed into them. The strips of meat are then left to dry for about 4 days or until ready to eat.
This was the way that meat was preserved in the olden days to prevent flies laying their eggs on the meat and to stop the meat from rotting in the intense heat. This method is still used today and it is a popular snack for eating on the move or with gin and tonic in the evening.
The first time I ate biltong was on a journey through Zimbabwe and we had bought some 'wet' biltong. Wet biltong means that the meat has not been dried all the way through and is still soft, whereas normal biltong is completely dry and can be quite brittle and tough to chew at times. I loved the wet biltong but a limit was imposed on me as to how much I could eat - this was not because I was going to demolish the whole lot, although this was possible, but simply because there is a lot of chewing involved, eating too much if you were not used to it can result in serious jaw ache! I did moan about this, ate too much and got jaw ache, but it was worth it every minute!
I remember the first time I made biltong. I was given an impala carcass and as I had not got enough room in the freezer for it all I decided to make biltong, like one does whilst one is in Africa! It was quite an easy process, although it did take a long time to cut the meat up into suitable strips. I used coriander and black pepper as my seasoning and hung the meat from a makeshift washing line in my veranda by clothes pegs. I can proudly say the end result was delicious. I did, however, physically see the reason for the vinegar – it kept some very fat blue flies (with bulbous red eyes) off my tasty snacks whilst they were drying. Three days later they were ready to eat, and there was no one there to stop me from getting jaw ache!
I remember the first time I made biltong. I was given an impala carcass and as I had not got enough room in the freezer for it all I decided to make biltong, like one does whilst one is in Africa! It was quite an easy process, although it did take a long time to cut the meat up into suitable strips. I used coriander and black pepper as my seasoning and hung the meat from a makeshift washing line in my veranda by clothes pegs. I can proudly say the end result was delicious. I did, however, physically see the reason for the vinegar – it kept some very fat blue flies (with bulbous red eyes) off my tasty snacks whilst they were drying. Three days later they were ready to eat, and there was no one there to stop me from getting jaw ache!
Biltong anyone?
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