As someone who enjoys hiking and camping, I’m always on the lookout for healthy snacks that travel well and give me energy.  When I select my snacks, I look for a high protein content (helps with muscle building and repair, satiety, and weight management), no refined sugar and no artificial preservatives.  It’s more than a little challenging to find snacks that fit the bill and also taste good.  Recently I was listening to one of my favorite health and nutrition podcasts called The Genius Life, and Max Lugavere mentioned how much he enjoyed something called Biltong. 

When I first heard Max say it, I thought he was saying “Bull Tongue”, and I was grossed out wondering why he was recommending something so nasty.  When I looked into it, I found out Biltong is actually a staple snack in South Africa (and is not a tongue!)  Here is an excerpt from Kalahari Biltong’s website about how they discovered this amazing healthy snack:

Kalahari Biltong was started after the adventure of a lifetime – where three best friends traveled to South Africa to race a total of 175 miles in an Ironman and Ultra Marathon, all within 6 days. Upon arrival, our South African teammate introduced us to his homeland’s unofficial national treasure, Biltong. What is it? Probably the most delicious meat snack we’ve ever had in our lives.

After literally eating close to our body weight in Biltong we were hooked. Imagine the tenderness and texture of prosciutto, the lean protein of jerky, and the beef flavor of steak tartare. Being in awe of the depth of flavor, we were stunned when we learned of the sheer simplicity of ingredients and the inherently natural process of crafting Biltong.

From that point on we knew there was no going back to endless gnawing on dry, damaged-by-high-heat, and pumped-full-of-artificial-ingredient jerky, that we have been suffering from in the USA. Things had to change. Immediately upon arriving home, we swore to find a way to liberate the American taste bud from the oppression of jerky.

I love Jerky, so last week I ordered some Biltong to see how it would taste.  Only 6 ingredients: Top-Round American Beef, Vinegar, Salt, Black Pepper, Chili Powder, Coriander.  How awesome is that??  No junky ingredients, 32 grams of protein per bag, no sugar, no gluten, no soy and it tastes really good!  It’s more tender than jerky and looks a little like bacon.

Since we are currently snowed in, today I’m making their bison chili recipe with my Biltong!  I’m looking forward to warming up with a tasty bowl in a few hours.

Biltong is definitely going to be something I buy again, as I enjoy how tender and flavorful it is.  Next up I’m going to try their garlic variety.  If you’d like to try it, you can use my referral code to get 15% off your purchase.  Let me know what you think if you do!

Thanks for reading about my adventure into the world of heat-free dried meat!

Emily

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