Monday, January 22, 2024

Kingmade Jerky - Classic Recipe

Kingmade Jerky is a brand that hit the market in 2013, launched by Jeff King, and based out of McKinney, TX. King had been working as a golf caddie for many years, with a hobby in making homemade jerky.

After bringing some batches of his jerky to the golf course, his fellow golfers liked it a lot, and kept asking him for more. It was only a few years later that big names like Tiger Woods, Graeme McDowell, Brandt Snedeker, Davis Love III, Rickie Fowler and Billy Horschel, among others, began buying jerky from him. Today, King has gone full corporate and now sells jerky to major retail outlets across the country.

This "Classic Recipe" is described as being made from flank steak, and seasoned with steakhouse spices, brown sugar, and is touted as the lowest sodium beef jerky on the market.

Monday, January 15, 2024

Chudabeef Jerky Strips - Original

chudabeef jerky
Chudabeef Jerky Strips is a brand launched by Kevin Casey based out of Long Beach, CA. The brand has been in business since 2014, and at the beginning of 2015 had just completed a successful Kickstarter campaign.

Kevin is an active hiker and had been making his own jerky for his trips through the wilderness. His friends loved it so much, they offered to pay him for some. That got him interested in starting his own jerky business.

This Original is described the company as, "...crisp, smoky, peppery goodness", along with, "...a perfect blend of flavors that satisfies the taste buds of every jerky lover."

Monday, January 8, 2024

Astro Fresh Jerky - Astro Cowboy Peppered

astro fresh jerky
Astro Fresh Jerky is a brand owned by HJP Trading, LLC based out of Los Angeles, CA. It was started by Roy Park in early 2015 who found an old family recipe that dated back to the late 1980s.

Since then, Roy has been selling his jerky in local markets and retailers in California. Recently they started a website and are now taking online orders.

Astro Fresh Jerky currently lists 10 varieties of beef jerky and 1 variety of chicken jerky.

Monday, January 1, 2024

Naked Cow Jerky - Smoke

naked cow jerky
Naked Cow Jerky is a new brand that launched in October 2015. It's a brand of Appalachian Jerky Company.

Naked Cow Jerky was launched to specifically to cater to a growing audience seeking minimally processed jerky, made with natural ingredients. Their jerky offerings are made with 100% grass fed beef, sea salt, and spiced. They use no artificial preservatives, nitrates/nitrites, MSG or soy. They claim to be "paleo-friendly", gluten-free, and made in a USDA inspected facility. They are currently selling in Boston, MA area at various retail locations and Cross-Fit gyms. It's also available online.

This "Smoke" variety is based on the "Primal Smoke" variety from Appalachian Jerky Company, and then modified for the specific audience that Naked Cow Jerky is targeted to.

Monday, December 25, 2023

Jedidiah's Beef Brisket Jerky - Sweet Teriyaki

jedidiahs beef brisket jerky
Jedidiah's Jerky is a brand that we reviewed before (read the reviews here). Some time ago, they revamped their line of jerky with new recipes and new branding, and moved their headquarters to Laughlin, NV to Beatty, NV. Jedidiah's Jerky also has since opened up a chain of beef jerky stores called, "Jed's Jerky" throughout Nevada and California.

This new "Beef Brisket" line replaced the company's old "Private Reserve" line, which was also beef brisket. This new recipe has much less sodium than the previous recipe. You can read the previous review of that Private Reserve Teriyaki here.

This "Sweet Teriyaki" jerky is described by the company as being slowly marinated in their special Teriyaki sauce, and claims it to be a, "flavor explosion in your mouth!"

Wednesday, December 20, 2023

Coppernose Jerky - Garlic & Chili

coppernose jerky
Coppernose Jerky is a new brand that launched in the Summer of 2015. Based out of the Oxfordshire town of Burford, in England, Coppernose was founded by Liam Derry.

Liam was working on a degree at the Royal Agricultural College in Cirencester when the idea for Coppernose came about. Coppernose today is a run by Liam and his family. They use ethically sourced, 100% grass fed, British beef, allowing them to trace their meats all the way back to the farm. They use sliverside cuts, in long strips, and then marinated for 12 hours before dehydration. Coppernose Jerky is sold in small shops and outdoor markets throughout England, as well as from its website.

This "Garlic & Chili" variety is simply described as, "A delicious combination of garlic and chili..."

Monday, December 18, 2023

The New Primal - New Meat Sticks

the new primal
The New Primal recently announced its new line of beef and turkey sticks. We previously reviewed their beef jerky a couple of years ago (see link here).

These new meat sticks are made from grass-fed beef and free-range turkey. They are also claimed to be gluten-free, Non-GMO, soy free, free of hormones and antibiotics, and paleo friendly. The company also claims that they are made from 100% beef and 100% turkey.

The New Primal got its start in 2009 when Charleston, SC-based Jason Burke embarked on a quest to make snacks suitable for his active and healthy lifestyle. He picked up on the paleo-diet, and soon launched his own brand of meat snacks and trail mixes.

Monday, December 11, 2023

Astro Fresh Jerky - Original

astro fresh jerky
Astro Fresh Jerky is a brand owned by HJP Trading, LLC based out of Los Angeles, CA. It was started by Roy Park in early 2015 who found an old family recipe that dated back to the late 1980s.

Since then, Roy has been selling his jerky in local markets and retailers in California. Recently they started a website and are now taking online orders.

Astro Fresh Jerky currently lists 10 varieties of beef jerky and 1 variety of chicken jerky.

Wednesday, December 6, 2023

Trailhead Beef Jerky - Black Pepper

trailhead beef jerky
Trailhead Beef Jerky is a brand of Trailhead Fine Foods, based out of Welshpool, Wales. The brand was launched in August of 2011 by Kevin Bigland in Cradley Heath, England, but in January 2013, the company was sold to Jason Howard, who moved it to Welshpool.

We originally reviewed two flavors from Trailhead back in June 2012, the "Hot Smoked Chipotle" and the "XXX Naga Jolokia", the latter scored a 5-star rating from us. Since being purchased by Jason in 2013, the company underwent a rebranding, and has since won the coveted, "Great Taste Award of 2015" for this Black Pepper beef jerky.

Trailhead describes this as, "The finest blend of herbs and spices finished with the finest cracked black pepper corns give a multiple level flavour experience."

Monday, December 4, 2023

Keeno's Beef Jerky - Mild

keenos beef jerky
Keno's Beef Jerky is a brand owned by Gary Keeney, baesed out of Wichita Falls, TX. Established in 2010, Keeno's manufacturing process is state inspected, and the company runs an outlet store in the same building.

Keeney got into the jerky business while working at Dell Computers, where he sold bags of his homemade stuff to fellow employees. After getting laid off, he went into business for himself with the aid of a $17,000.00 prize for winning the IdeaWF competition hosted by Midwestern State University. Keeney also won the 2014 Peppers and More World Jerky Contest.

This "Mild" jerky is described by Keeno's as "a crowd pleaser of both young and old", assuming to be flavored to suit all palates and tolerances.