Ed's Custom Beef Jerky - Green Habanero

Ed's Custom Beef Jerky is the creation of Ed Carbury, based out of Huntington Beach, CA, and has been in operation since 2003.

Ed originally started selling his Habanero beef jerky on eBay, and soon perfected a dozen more flavors so that consumers could mix and match their orders. All of his jerky is made from USDA London Broil and then vacuum sealed. He uses no preservatives. Ed's Custom Beef Jerky has won taste competitions on Peppers and More.

This Green Habanero variety is described by Ed as, "Beef Jerky flavored to your individual taste and heat tolerance. This is Green Habanero, it hits you fast and strong."

Ingredients

USDA beef, soy sauce, worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, spices, flavorings, hot sauce, garlic powder, pepper, onion powder, cayenne pepper

Taste

The first thing I taste from the surface of these pieces is a light sweet, followed by a light habanero pepper flavor, and then a good deal of burn. There's a little bit of saltiness noticeable.

The chewing brings in a more defined habanero pepper flavor, a bit more saltiness along with some garlic and some of the natural meat flavors. There's a tanginess too, almost like lime or citrus.

For being marketed as, "Green Habanero" it seems to fit the billing. I get a well-noticeable green-habanero flavor, and a good deal of heat to go with it.

Otherwise, the flavors that define this jerky starts with green-habanero, imparting a distinct chile pepper taste. A light saltiness is next most noticeable, along with a tanginess similar to lime. The natural meat flavors round out the remaining taste profile.

I can also pick up the garlic and onion in this.

As for the heat, this ranks on my personal heat scale as being medium-hot (level 4 out of 5), which could be seen as just "hot" for others.

Overall, the ingredients combine really well to create a jerky that puts the emphasis on the habanero pepper flavor, with a light seasoning of salt and garlic to generate a savory taste. But the ingredients don't overwhelm too much such that I can still taste the natural meat flavors.

Meat Consistency

These are slices of whole meat, cut into bite-sized pieces.

This is a dry jerky with a lightly sticky surface feel. Chewing seems easy to do, with just a little bit of chewiness, but overall a tender chew.

The chewing texture starts out with little bit of initial chewing resistance, but easily breaks down and feels meaty right away. By the time it's chewed down to a soft mass, it feels very much like chewing pieces of steak.

I don't see any fat on these pieces, nor any gristle or tendon. I felt no stringiness and found no unchewable tissues. It's very meaty.

As for clean eating, this is very clean. I find no residue on my fingertips.

Snack Value

Ed's Custom Beef Jerky sells this Green Habanero beef jerky at a price of $15.00 for two 4oz bags. Shipping is flat rate $5.05 across the United States. If you bought 16oz of this stuff, it would cost you $2.19 per ounce.

For general jerky snacking purposes, at the $2.19 per ounce price, it's a good value. I'm getting a really good flavor, excellent meat consistency, and good chewing texture, at a price that's slightly more than what I'd pay for other brands in stores. Even the cost is slightly higher, the taste, consistency, and chewing is way better.

As a Green Habanero style beef jerky, it's also a good value. I can easily taste the natural flavor of habanero peppers, and I get a good deal of heat, but not too excessive.

Rating

I'm giving this a best rating.

This Green Habanero beef jerky from Ed's Custom Beef Jerky puts out some great habanero pepper flavor, along with a good deal of habanero heat, but doesn't scorch you too bad, allowing for a continuous flow of spicy dried meat into your mouth. What makes this jerky great is the well-noticeable flavor of habaneros. But making it even better is a great blend of seasonings that creates a savory chew with some citrus-like tanginess.

And I also love how the natural meat flavors still show through this, reminding us that the goodness of beef jerky is in the flavor and chewing texture of beef.

As for the chewing, I found it to chew like real pieces of steak, and was largely free of stringiness or other unchewable tissues.

Rating: Best

Buy this online:

• http://www.edscustombeefjerky.com/