Apple butter gives beef bacon a thick spiced-fruit coating, with a little cider vinegar to balance the richness. Cinnamon, ginger and a restrained amount of smoke keep the apple flavor prominent.

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Video by Jerky · Watch on YouTube

Ingredients

Starting batch: 2 lb raw beef bacon; finished yield varies with fat rendering and drying.

• 2 lb beef bacon, sliced ⅛ inch thick
• ½ cup apple butter
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 2 tsp honey
• 1 tsp liquid smoke
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp ground black pepper
• ½ tsp garlic powder
• ¼ tsp ground ginger
• Optional: pinch of cayenne

Equipment: sharp knife, cutting board, blender, covered nonreactive container, oven, rimmed baking pan, oven-safe rack, thin-tip thermometer, clean tongs, paper towels, and an adjustable-temperature dehydrator.

Allergens: Soy sauce commonly contains soy and wheat; Worcestershire may contain fish. Check apple butter and other packaged ingredient labels.

How to make this jerky

Step 1: Separate the beef bacon

Use pre-sliced beef bacon about ⅛ inch thick. Separate the strips, cutting very long pieces in half if helpful. Beef bacon is made from beef belly and contains much more fat than lean round steak.

Step 2: Prepare the coating base

Combine apple butter, soy sauce, Worcestershire, cider vinegar, brown sugar and honey in a blender.

Step 3: Mix the seasoning

Add liquid smoke, cinnamon, black pepper, garlic powder, ginger and optional cayenne. Blend until the apple-butter coating is smooth.

Step 4: Coat and refrigerate

Spread the marinade across all surfaces of each strip in a covered nonreactive container. Separate folded pieces so no raw surface is missed. Refrigerate at 40°F or below for 24 hours.

Step 5: Fully cook before drying

Drain the bacon and discard raw marinade. Arrange on an oven-safe rack over a rimmed baking pan. Bake at 325°F until fully cooked and each strip reaches 160°F on a thin-tip thermometer. Blot rendered fat with clean paper towels, then transfer with clean tongs to clean drying racks. Dry at 145–155°F until the cooled sample has a chewy texture, checking often and blotting surface fat. The source photograph shows spacing before drying; the full oven-cooking step is an added BULK adaptation.

Step 6: Cool and keep refrigerated

Cool fully and refrigerate promptly at 40°F or below in a clean covered container. Use within 4 days or freeze. This fatty cooked bacon snack remains perishable; drying and a bend test do not establish shelf stability.

Why this flavor works

Apple butter supplies thick spiced-fruit sweetness. Cider vinegar, ginger and cinnamon brighten the rich beef bacon. Similar slice thickness helps the coating and drying remain consistent.

Serving and storage

Serve small refrigerated portions as a rich snack. Use within 4 days or freeze; keep chilled between servings.

Keep the finished jerky refrigerated. Pack only fully cooled strips, keep hands and containers clean, and freeze portions you will not eat promptly. Moisture, thickness, and handling affect keeping quality; this home method does not establish commercial shelf stability.

A ready-to-eat option between batches

For a convenient jerky snack when you are not making a batch, explore BULK Texas Style Original Beef Jerky. Its seasoning and production process differ from this homemade adaptation.

Browse every published BULK jerky recipe.

Sources and further reading

• USDA: bacon cooking and refrigerated storage
• Apple Butter Beef Bacon Jerky (It Actually Worked!) | Beef Jerky Recipe - Flavor Series — Jerky
• USDA: how to make meat or poultry jerky at home
• National Center for Home Food Preservation: jerky

Original BULK adaptation after reviewing the source video’s automatic captions and ingredient discussion. Source footage and creator credit belong to Jerky. Photographs are timestamped source-video stills. Use the full written method for details.

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