How to Incorporate Beef Jerky into a Healthy Diet
Beef jerky is a delicious snack that can be eaten anywhere. It’s packed with protein and various nutrients, making it a great choice for on-the-go snacking or grabbing a bite between bigger meals. While beef jerky certainly tastes delicious on its own, there are more ways you can incorporate it into your diet to get even more variety. It can also become a great substitute for bacon that tastes just as good but contains less fat, making it suitable for low-carb diets. At BEEFA, we believe that beef jerky is the type of snack that can make or break your day, offering a boost of energy when you most need it.
5 Mouth-Watering Beef Jerky Recipes
There’s no right or wrong way to eat beef jerky. It’s a healthy snack that tastes great on its own, but this doesn’t mean you can’t experiment a bit, adding this source of protein, vitamins, and minerals to your other meals. Here are a few recipes that may become your new favorites.
1. Up Your Omelet Game
Eating beef jerky for breakfast can give you a considerable energy boost, keeping you full for hours to come. Beef jerky is rich in protein and contains minerals like iron and zinc that are crucial for your body to function well. For a vibrant start of the day, add your favorite type of beef jerky to an omelet, along with some mushrooms, peppers, onions, and mozzarella cheese. In this case, beef jerky can become a healthier substitute for bacon, adding more flavor to your meal.
2. Make Your Soup Taste Special
Adding beef jerky to your favorite soup recipe can elevate its taste to new heights. If you like eating soup with chicken, beef, or bacon, you might as well switch things up a bit and try different flavors of beef jerky instead. This delicious ingredient matches well with a wide range of dishes - fresh vegetable soups, veggie stews, corn soups, pumpkin soups, and various spicy soups from Asian cuisines. If you want a fast, yet flavorful meal, try cooking ramen soup with beef jerky, miso, and mushrooms. Add some onions, garlic cloves, and dried chives for an extra boost of flavor.
3. A Topping for Deviled Eggs
While deviled eggs certainly taste amazing on their own, they will pack an extra flavor punch once you add some beef jerky as a topping. Use your favorite deviled eggs recipe, which can be prepared with just a few simple ingredients: boiled eggs, dijon mustard, salt, and pepper. Cut the hard-boiled eggs in half, remove the yolks, and mash them with a fork, adding a tablespoon of Dijon mustard, a pinch of pepper, and some salt. Fill in the egg whites with this delicious mixture and top everything with finely chopped beef jerky to add even more taste and texture.
4. Bring Your Salad to a Whole New Level
As far as healthy eating is concerned, no balanced diet is complete without a green salad. Salads can be used either as a light side dish or as a standalone snack. If you prefer the latter, then adding beef jerky to a simple salad recipe can easily become your go-to dish. Take a few leaves of Romaine lettuce, 2-3 halved cherry tomatoes, diced pepper, and some chopped white button mushrooms. Mix all the ingredients in a bowl and sprinkle them with olive oil or a light dressing of your choice. Complete your salad with thinly sliced beef jerky.
5. Fried Rice with Beef Jerky
Fried rice is a tried and tested dish that can satisfy even the most demanding eater. Want to make it taste even better? Then throw in some finely cut beef jerky to the mix. If you want to retain the crunchy texture of beef jerky, add it during the last stages of cooking your fried rice dish. If you want it to be softer, you can add it earlier and have a meatier flavor as a result. To get that perfect fluffy texture of rice, opt for long-grain types like jasmine or basmati. Beef jerky can become a great substitute for eggs if you want to add more protein to your meal.