Grill Your Ass Off Jerky - Sweet and Spicy

Grill Your Ass Off is a line of jerky and seasonings that launched in 2016 by Army Veterans, Jason Murff, based out of Hutto, TX. Murff had actually started with a line of seasonings and just now expanded into jerky.

The idea for his brand stems back into his Army days when he developed seasonings for his brothers in arms. After the service, he went into college to sharpen his business skills and went on to launch his new brand. Murff donates a portion of his proceeds to charities that benefit military and first responders.

This Sweet and Spicy jerky is described by Murff as a, "combination of soy and sugar with a surprising spice", going on to say that it's for, "for lovers of sweet meat".

Ingredients

Beef, water, soy sauce, black pepper, pineapple juice, sugar, salt cure (93.75% salt and 6.25% sodium nitrite)

Review

The first flavor that hits my tongue is a moderate sweet, followed by a light salt and a touch of black pepper. The chewing brings on a light soy sauce, while the black pepper ramps up a bit.

For being marketed as a "Sweet and Spicy" beef jerky, you get a moderate levels of the two. It's sweet, but not a whole lot, and it's spicy, but not a whole lot either. The spicy comes from black pepper, for being ground pepper, it manages to retain a sharper flavor without going overboard. It's not hot at all, and is remains mild. The sweet does help balance out the spice, but it too doesn't go overboard and stays subdued.

Otherwise, the primary taste profile is a sweetened soy sauce marinade spiced with a moderate level of black pepper. The pineapple juice noted in the ingredients is not noticeable. The level of saltiness feels moderate as well.

These are very thin sliced slabs that feel dry, yet are chewy. In this particular variety, the slabs are very flexible and even take on a rubbery chew initially. There's none of light crunch in this jerky compared to the company's other varieties. Once chewed down soft, it continues to feel rubbery, even a little gummy, not steak-like at all, nor even meaty.

Verdict

This Sweet and Spicy beef jerky from Grill Your Ass Off takes on the classic flavor genre in true American form, with thin sliced slabs, a sweetened soy sauce marinade, and a light black pepper spice, certain be a big hit in the southern states and Appalachians. It's not heavily sweet nor heavily spicy, really just a low to moderate level of both to help make these soy sauced slabs of chew a little more interesting. While I found the chewing texture rather rubbery, and even somewhat gummy, it actually hits the target demographic pretty well with the kind of meat snack popular in those parts. Overall, it's not a jerky that'll send an entire country into frenzy, but should do well with fans of this particular style.

Rating: Good (4/5)