John C. Pavao wrote:
>
> Bought a meat slicer recently.  Boy, does that make making pemmican easier.
>
I usually grind my meat with the food processor (using the rotating
knifes) and then spread it with the help of an ordinary gable onto
the wire mesh of the dehydrator. This is fast and easy (I dont doubt
that it is even better with a slicer - I have been thinking of that
as well). It also make a delicious and crunchy jerky, especially if
you add some spices (herbs de provence is my favourite) when grinding.
I also sometimes use ground meat as bought from the shop, althoug due
to fat content you probably cant store it too long (I have not had any
problems so far).

> I have a question about that regarding cooking of foods.  Some of what I've
> read recently says that cooking foods ruins much of their value.  Does
> anyone know how this applies to the rendering of suet to make pemmican?

When mixing the suet with the meat, I check the tmperature of the melted
suet not to be more than 45-50 degrees (Celcius), i e just above the
melting point of the suet, in order to not destroy the meat.

- Hans