1. What is biltong?
Biltong is a type of meat that has been preserved by curing and air-drying using processes that were developed over centuries in South Africa.
In Dutch, the word biltong is a combination of “bil” being the fleshy part of the back on which a person sits and “tong” meaning tongue, the shape into which meat was cut.
Over the last decades, biltong has become a popular meat snack in Africa and in the last few years it has been spreading in Europe and America.
2. What is biltong jerky?
There is no such thing as biltong jerky! While both biltong and jerky are dried meat snacks, they go through different processes during production.
Biltong is air-dried without going through a heating process, therefore vital nutrients as well as meat taste are in their original form. Jerky on the other hand is dehydrated at high temperatures during which process the vital nutrients may be lost. The artificial additives and sugar added to the typical American jerky have the potential to increase health risks.
Therefore, there is no such thing as biltong jerky! There is beef biltong and there is also beef jerky.
3. How is biltong made?
To make biltong, top round steak is taken through four steps illustrated below:
4. Why is biltong bad for you?
Traditionally, biltong is made from spices that contain only natural ingredients including coriander. There should not be any artificial elements or sugar.
Being a source of mainly protein, iron and potassium that have not been heated through cooking, biltong builds your body without contaminating it.
Biltong can be so tasty that once a packet is opened, the tendency is to keep eating until it is empty. When one packet becomes empty, naturally one wants to open another packet. Your taste buds may never appreciate any other meat. That’s how biltong can be bad for you!