KP's Beef Jerky - Original

KP's Beef Jerky appears to be a new brand of jerky that's hitting the market as of late. I don't have a lot of background info on the company, other than what they present on their packages. It appears to be distributed by Skyhawk Solutions LTD, based out of Woodbridge, IL.

The company's website says its made in small batches, and they offer three flavors, this Original, a Spicy Onion & Garlic, and a Jalapeno & Lemon, all of which I'll be reviewing.

This Original variety is described by the company as "Perfectly seasoned with a distinct hickory smoked flavor make this a classic snack."

Ingredients

Beef, liquid smoke, vinegar, worcestershire sauce, corn syrup solids, lemon juice, salt, beef base, spices, onion, celery, garlic, sodium nitrite.

Taste

The first thing I taste from the surface of these pieces is a smoky flavor, followed by a light saltiness, and a light bit of seasoning.

The chewing flavor starts with more smokiness, and now something more of a saucy flavor. There's just a light bit of natural meat flavor, while the light bit of seasoning continues.

The flavor that seems to come through the most in this jerky is a saucy flavor. It's not really worcestershire, which is listed more prominently in the ingredients list, but I do taste faint traces of it. It's probably more like the "beef base", perhaps like a beef broth flavor.

There's a lot of smoky flavor mixed into that, and just a light bit of seasoning, perhaps most recognizable as onion.

The level of saltiness in this feels light to moderate.

As far as natural meat flavors go, there's just light bit of it noticeable poking through the beef broth flavor.

There's not much of any sweetness to this, perhaps just ever so faint.

Overall, what you're going to notice in this is beef broth flavor, with a good deal of smokiness, and then light touches of natural meat flavor, and a light onion flavor.

Meat Consistency

These are slices of whole meat, sliced into strips of medium to thick thickness, and in lengths ranging from two to six inches.

This a semi-moist jerky with a semi-moist surface feel. These strips are very flexible, being able to bend back on to themselves without cracking. Biting off chunks require a little bit of effort, but overall not bad. Chewing is slightly tough, and requires a little effort to get through.

The chewing texture starts out feeling moist and chewy, with some initial chewing resistance. A few labored chews are enough to get this to break down, and it chews down to a soft mass in about 20 seconds. At that point, it feels very much like a real piece of meat, quite steak-like, comparable to one cooked medium-well.

I don't see any visible pieces of fat, and neither any gristle or tendon. I encountered a little bit of stringiness, but not really any unchewable tissues.

In terms of clean eating, I get a light stickiness on my fingers, but not quite enough to require a licking, though I do find myself wiping my fingers on my jeans before touching my keyboard.




Snack Value

KP's Beef Jerky sells this Original variety from its website at a price of $9.95 for a 4oz package. The shipping is free. If you buy four packages, the website actually discounts the total price down to $26.30. That works out to a price of $1.64 per ounce.

For general jerky snacking purposes, at the $1.64 price per ounce, it seems to offer a good value. I get an average amount of snackability for an overall satisfactory flavor, good meat consistency, good chewing texture, though a little tough.

Rating

I'm giving this an average rating.

This Original variety from KP's Beef Jerky offers up a snackable flavor overall, with a moderately salty, heavily smoky, beef broth flavor, with a little bit of natural meat flavors.

It has a good meat consistency and chewing texture, which is probably it's stronger point, though it tends to be on the chewy side.

But it doesn't really offer any kind of bold, sensational, flavor. Considering its marketed as the brand's Original flavor, it tends to taste quite "regular". If anything, it's the liquid smoke that generates the most unique flavor.

My recommended beer pairing for this, go with a brown ale, such as the Moose Drool by Big Sky Brewing, or the Rogue Hazelnut Brown Ale.

Rating: Average

Buy this online:

• http://kpsbeefjerky.com/