This recipe started with a question: if my homemade beef summer sausage is already one of my family’s favorite snacks, could I turn the same basic idea into grab-and-go beef sticks?
Three batches later, I think we nailed it.
I wanted a homemade beef stick that didn’t require a dehydrator, jerky gun, or any other special equipment. Just ground beef, seven simple ingredients, parchment paper, and your oven. It took a little trial and error to figure out the right thickness, seasoning, and shaping method, but the final version is surprisingly simple.
And my kids freaking love them.
That might be my favorite part of this recipe. These are exactly the kind of thing I want stocked in my freezer heading into the school year and fall sports season. They’re already portioned, there’s nothing to slice or prep, and because they’re so thin, they thaw incredibly quickly. I can pull a few straight from the freezer in the morning, put them in a lunchbox, and they’re ready to eat by lunchtime. They’re just as handy for an afternoon snack or something to grab on the way to practice.
The recipe uses Morton Tender Quick and needs to cure overnight, so you do need to plan one day ahead—but the actual hands-on work is minimal. Make a batch, stash them in the refrigerator or freezer, and you’ve got an easy homemade protein ready when you need it.
And I have a feeling this is only the beginning. Now that we have the basic beef stick recipe figured out, I’m already thinking about what flavor we should try next. I made a WONDERFUL Teriyaki version (those ingredients are listed below the original recipe…you just follow the same steps as the original recipe, but slightly modify the ingredients)
Homemade Beef Sticks
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef
- 2 tsp Morton Tender Quick
- ¼ tsp garlic salt
- ½ Tbsp mustard seed
- ½ Tbsp liquid smoke
- ½ Tbsp granulated sugar
- 1 tsp coarse black pepper
Instructions
- Mix everything really well. I use my stand mixer.
- Roll the meat between parchment paper until it's about 2–3 mm thick, then cut it into strips roughly 1 cm wide x 6 cm long. I recommend using a large chef's knife or bench scraper to press straight down…don't drag the knife through the meat. Slide the parchment paper onto a half sheet pan and cover.
- Refrigerate overnight to cure.
- 24 hours later, uncover the half sheet pan, and 're-score' the lines from the day before…again, don't drag the knife or bench scraper. Bake on the parchment at 275°F for about 1 hour. The color will change from brown to a bright pink. The internal temperature should be at least 165ºF. Let them cool enough to handle, break the sticks apart, blot well with paper towels, and refrigerate or freeze.
Notes
You can also try a pizza cutter. I did! For me, it tended to pull the meat along with it instead of giving me a really clean cut. I had much better luck pressing straight down and straight back up with a chef’s knife or bench scraper rather than dragging anything through the meat. For freezing, you could absolutely flash freeze these on a tray first and then transfer them to a bag. I just…don’t want another step. It takes up freezer space and I haven’t found it necessary. Instead, I like to lay the sticks flat in a quart-size freezer bag, layering them rather than letting them bunch up at the bottom. Freeze the bag flat and you can easily pull out however many you need. And because they’re so thin, they defrost FAST. Pull a few out in the morning and they’re easily thawed by lunchtime—or definitely by soccer practice that evening.
They do need to stay refrigerated or frozen.
Teriyaki Beef Sticks
Ingredients
- For 1 lb ground beef:
- 2 tsp Morton Tender Quick
- 1 Tbsp liquid aminos (or soy sauce)
- 1 Tbsp brown sugar
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp dried onion flakes
- ½ tsp coarse black pepper
- ½ Tbsp liquid smoke
- ½ tsp sesame oil
Did you make this recipe?
Please let me know how it turned out for you! Leave a comment below.