🔥 Homemade Smoked Beef Jerky Seasoning 🔥

After a lot of testing, I finally dialed in my go-to dry beef jerky rub — no liquid marinade, no soy sauce, no nonsense. Just beef, meat tenderizer, and this seasoning. Savory, smoky, and perfectly balanced.

🧂 Smoked Jerky Seasoning (Pint Jar)
Mix together:

• 3 Tbsp smoked paprika
• 4 Tbsp fine sea salt
• 4 Tbsp granulated garlic
• 4 Tbsp granulated onion
• 3 Tbsp coarse black pepper
• 2 tsp crushed red pepper
• 2–3 tsp brown sugar (optional, very subtle)
• 4 tsp tomato powder (optional - but it does add some richness)

Stir well, jar it up, and shake before using.

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🥩 How I Use It for Beef Jerky (Dry Rub Method)
Meat: Top or bottom round, thinly sliced
Equipment: Dehydrator
For 1 lb of beef:
1½–2 tsp meat tenderizer
2½–3 tsp jerky seasoning

1. Toss beef evenly with tenderizer and seasoning
2. Let rest 30–45 minutes max (don’t go longer or it gets mushy)
3. Lay slices flat on dehydrator trays (no overlap)

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⏱️ Dehydrator Instructions
Temperature: 160°F
Time: 4–6 hours (depends on slice thickness)

Jerky is done when it bends and cracks but doesn’t snap.
Let it rest 4–6 hours before storing — flavor gets even better.
No liquid, no mess, just pure beef flavor with a smoky kick.
This one’s a keeper. 🥩🔥

Finally got nice enough weather to get these beauties finished and placed in the house! I am so thrilled with how they turned out! Now bad for being a little rusty in my woodworking skills.

Last year we bought our first house. It is a bit smaller then the house we were renting, so some of our furniture didn't quite fit. So, I use that as a challenge to build our own. And boy have I been having so much fun getting back into using the power tools! :)

One of the projects I have recently been working on are end tables for our couch. I cruised Pinterest for ideas and found some table ideas I could use to build to fit our needs. I found one design that was very simple, but they were selling them for $160 - Holy Cow! That is totally out of our price range!

I drew up a plan, went to the local lumber yard (always support local businesses if you can), purchased my lumber and then took it home to get started. Luckily my husband is pretty on board when it comes to my crazy ideas. And, of course I am doing this in winter, so most of the project has been inside. And then having to wait for warm enough days to stain, seal, and poly.

Click on each image to see the corresponding tutorial, printable, recipe, etc. ENJOY!