Mushroom Jerky

I’m all for beef jerky, but my husband can’t handle most of the meat jerky options, and turkey based jerky is usually hard to find.

So, we’ve been buying him different plant-based jerky varieties. He may not be on a plant-based diet overall, but they tend to serve his needs.

... and they’re usually as expensive as my beef jerkies!

So, we’ve been working on a few different plant based jerky recipes for him.

It’s super easy to make, very customizable, the ingredients are cheap and easy to come by, and it’s SUPER satisfying.

The finished product has a great chewy texture and amazing flavor - mushrooms are great at soaking up whatever you marinate them in.

The only problem is that this particular healthy snack is *incredibly* easy to plow through.

Either one of us can polish off what started as a whole pound of mushrooms ... without even thinking about it.

Taste and texture wise, I actually prefer it to the beef jerkies I normally buy. (I’ve really got to get into making beef jerky, though!)

I’m going to go grab another handful of my latest batch, so let’s wrap this up and get YOU closer to having some of this deliciousness, yourself!

Are you following our new RV Camping blog? It’s 2 Nerds in a Truck !

Ingredients

This recipe uses really simple ingredients - you’ll be able to find them in your pantry, and in any grocery store.

It’s also really 2 base recipes - a Teriyaki version, and a “smoky” version... and both recipes can be customized to your tastes.

Anyway, a few notes for you:

Mushrooms

My husband and I are huge fans of mushrooms, and - really! - what’s not to love?

Great taste, and good for adding some savory umami flavor to whatever you’re using them for.

They’re also a good source of good source of fiber, vitamin D, selenium, and a few B vitamins (riboflavin, niacin, and pantothenic acid).

We use portobello mushrooms, which are an excellent choice for making jerky.

The big caps are easy to work with, cut into nice big strips, and dehydrate down to a really nice, meaty texture.

That said, feel free to use whatever mushrooms you like - shiitake mushrooms and oyster mushrooms are other popular choices for making mushroom jerky.

Teriyaki Mushroom Jerky

This is my favorite flavor of the two mushroom jerky recipes (ingredient amounts are listed in the recipe card at the end of this post), and it uses:

Coconut Aminos, Tamari, or Gluten-Free Soy Sauce
Seasoned Rice Vinegar
Sesame Oil
Brown Sugar
Honey
Ginger Paste
Garlic Paste
Sesame Seeds
Ground Black Pepper
Onion Powder
Red Pepper Flakes

Note: I can’t have the red pepper flakes anymore, so I’ve taken to adding a bit of Ground Ginger to give it a bit more heat.

SO good, I don’t miss the chilis!

Smoky Mushroom Jerky

This is my husband’s favourite of the jerky marinades - it’s smoky and a bit spicy. It uses:

Coconut Aminos, Tamari, or Gluten-Free Soy Sauce
Apple Cider Vinegar
Olive Oil
Brown Sugar
Garlic Powder
Mustard Powder
Onion Powder
Smoked Paprika
Ground Black Pepper
Smoked Serrano Powder

Substitutions and Variations

As I mentioned, this recipe is HIGHLY customizable. Here are a few options to consider:

If you don’t need to be gluten free, you can use regular soy sauce instead of the gluten free options mentioned above.

The olive oil in the smoky recipe can be swapped out for avocado oil or vegetable oil

You can use rice wine vinegar, apple cider vinegar, or even white vinegar in either recipe.

The brown sugar can be swapped out for an equal amount of maple syrup, agave, or organic coconut sugar.

I make mine low carb by using Brown Allulose (50% more than called for in the recipe, as it’s not quite as sweet as sugar).

If you like your vegan jerky extra salty, add a little Smoked Sea Salt - SO good!

You can play around with the spices, and spice level.

Cayenne Pepper, Chili Powder, Crushed Chilies, Hatch Chile Powder, and Jalapeno Powder are all good spice options for bringing a bit of kick to the smoky recipe.

For the teriyaki recipe, I’ll usually just use a bit more of the pepper flakes, as I don’t find these other options work as well with the teriyaki flavor profile, IMHO.

Food Dehydrator

This mushroom jerky and our Mushroom Jerky Recipe were the first two projects we made in our new Cosori 6 Tray Food Dehydrator.

LOVE IT!

It’s much more space efficient than our now-retired food dehydrator, easier to clean, and the temperature and timer controls come in really handy.

Before that, we were using a 20 year old plastic food dehydrator. Not sure of the brand (the label wore off many years ago!), but there were stack round trays, and no temperature control.

This recipe would work just fine without temperature control, you’d just want to keep an eye on it the first time you make the recipe, and take note of the time it takes to get to your desired level of dryness.

How to Make Mushroom Jerky

The full recipe is in the printable recipe card at the end of this post, here is the visual walk through:

Prepare and Marinate the Mushrooms

Wash mushrooms, remove the stems, and scrape off the gills.

Place in a large ziplock plastic bag.

Squeeze out any excess air, seal, and chill for at least 1 hour.

When You’re Ready to Dehydrate

Strain the mushrooms well, but don’t blot them. You want excess moisture gone, as much as possible - but you don’t want to wipe away any flavour!

Place your marinated mushroom slices in a single layer on your dehydrator trays, leaving plenty of space between each for air to flow.

We did 6.5 hours at 145 F, but your cook times may vary based on the thickness of your mushrooms, and your particular dehydrator.

You’re looking for the mushrooms be dry, but still kind of flexible. They will dry/toughen up a bit more as they cool.

Drying longer will result in brittle jerky - it’ll all depend on your personal tastes, play around with it to see what you like, and what works for you.

Let your mushroom jerky fully cool to room temperature.

Storage

Once completely cool, transfer to an airtight container. We like to keep ours in a large resealable bag in the fridge.

It will be good for at least two weeks, but we’ve never had a leftovers beyond that point, to test longevity!

Note: The nutritional information reads higher than it is in reality - the recipe software takes into account ALL of the ingredients used. You discard a lot of it, when you drain the marinade off the mushrooms!

More Homemade Jerky Recipes

Are you a fan of jerky, whether for road tripping, camping, or just as a high protein snack? I have SO much fun making it - here are some of my go-to recipes for homemade jerkies!

Basic Ground Beef Jerky
Blueberry Bison Jerky
Buffalo Wing Chicken Jerky
Chipotle Chicken Jerky
Ginger Beef Jerky
Ground Venison Jerky
Homemade Salmon Jerky
Honey Garlic Chicken Jerky
Jalapeno Chicken Jerky
Jerk Chicken Jerky
Lingonberry Elk Jerky
Mango Habanero Chicken Jerky
Pumpkin Spice Chicken Jerky
Rosemary & Blueberry Beef Jerky
Shawarma Chicken Jerky
Spicy Garlic Chicken Jerky
Spicy Orange Chicken Jerky
Sriracha Chicken Jerky
Tofu Jerky, 2 Ways
Pepperoni Jerky

... But wait, there's more! We've been having so much fun designing gourmet jerky recipes, we started a whole new blog for them! Check out Dried & Tasty for all kinds of fun recipes to make in your food dehydrator!

Share the Love!

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