Where to buy billtong

Timepiece

Can anyone tell me where I might find billtong for sale. Ideally somewhere in South Dublin

Alun

Don't know if this is convenient, but there's a butcher in the Leopardstown Heights shopping centre (just off the Ballyogan Road) that has a South African butcher working for them and they do both biltong and boereworst. Have only tried the boereworst, not the biltong, I should say.

Cavehill Red

I have my own Biltong Maker and I'm near UCD.
Bring me the meat, and I'll have the biltong for you in three or four days, if I don't have a batch of my own on the go!

MissFlitworth

There's a butcher on Parnell st, just down near Chapters, that does South African meats, might be worth a look

Timepiece

Alun wrote: »

Don't know if this is convenient, but there's a butcher in the Leopardstown Heights shopping centre (just off the Ballyogan Road) that has a South African butcher working for them and they do both biltong and boereworst. Have only tried the boereworst, not the biltong, I should say.

Alun, many thanks, I found them, Nyhan Brothers Leopardstown Valley. will be round there this weekend.

Alun

Timepiece wrote: »

Alun, many thanks, I found them, Nyhan Brothers Leopardstown Valley. will be round there this weekend.

Ah right,I knew it was Leopardstown <something or the other>. Pretty easy to find .. they're in the one big building there with Dunnes Stores, just opposite the entrance to Dunnes. They're open (or at least they were the last time I was there) on Sunday too.

Timepiece

Cavehill Red, Never thought about making the stuff. Thanks for your reply. I'll have to do more research on my next trip to SA. .. Just three weeks away. Might take you up on your kind offer when I get back.

Timepiece

MissFlitworth wrote: »

There's a butcher on Parnell st, just down near Chapters, that does South African meats, might be worth a look

Thank you . Will certainly check this one out..

Cavehill Red

Timepiece wrote: »

Cavehill Red, Never thought about making the stuff. Thanks for your reply. I'll have to do more research on my next trip to SA. .. Just three weeks away. Might take you up on your kind offer when I get back.

Well, if you're down there shortly, pick up a biltong maker of your own! Some nice designs available in most hardware stores, large supermarkets even.
Basically, it's a safe plastic inert casing in which to hang your curing meat safe from nasty bugs and flies. Plugs into the wall, and features a little bulb to emit heat and speed up the curing/drying process.
Stock up on biltong spice down there too, otherwise you'll have to recreate it here (not that it's too difficult - roast coriander seeds, black pepper, rock salt, etc.)
Failing that, there's a South African shop just off the South Quays that sells biltong spice imported from SA.
My biltong maker takes a few kilo of meat at a time. I have two kilos of sirloin (Tesco deal last weekend - I splashed out!) in there at the mo, ready tomorrow, or this evening.
Normally, I use round steak - it's leaner and cheaper.
But if you don't get your own biltong maker, PM me when you get back or indeed feel free to buy from the commercial butchers people have mentioned.
I've had biltong by two of them and it was excellent. But it was also pretty pricey, and I can replicate the taste at home for a fraction of the cost.

Timepiece

Again, thanks for the advice. I'll see if I can pick one of these gadgets up. Might be back to you for some spice recipies. I presume its legal to bring the spices back into the country..

Cavehill Red

Timepiece wrote: »

Again, thanks for the advice. I'll see if I can pick one of these gadgets up. Might be back to you for some spice recipies. I presume its legal to bring the spices back into the country..

It is indeed. Look in the ingredients for nitrates or salt petre, though. Some formulations include these to keep the meat looking pink, but it's not too good for ya.
As for biltong spice recipes, I go with the tried and tested roasted coriander seeds, crushed with pestle and mortar along with rock salt, black pepper and add paprika to taste.
That goes over the meat, then it's refrigerated overnight to cure. Sometimes I might marinade it too with my secret marinade!
Then the meat gets dipped in a dilute vinegar solution to blacken the outside, and hung in the biltong maker.
There's a shop in town selling biltong makers too, but you'd get them down there much cheaper. I bought mine there and had them ship it to Ireland for me. Took about three months to arrive, but at least I didn't have to haul it around airports!

Krusty_Clown

Intriguing thread. What do you do with Billtong? Just pull off a piece and eat it, or use it on other recipes/dishes? Is it like jerky?

Redpunto

Whats billtong??

Cavehill Red

Redpunto wrote: »

Whats billtong??

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biltong

Google is your friend.

Mena

Redpunto wrote: »

Whats billtong??

The reason life is worth living!

MissFlitworth

MissFlitworth wrote: »

There's a butcher on Parnell st, just down near Chapters, that does South African meats, might be worth a look

In here over the weekend and they definitely have Billtong

robroyman

I made my own biltong maker from an old cardboard box (that a TV came in). I bought a light bulb fitting from a hardware and fitted a cable to it and a bulb (40W max!) in it. I then screwed it into another cardboard box (an old Daz detergent box with holes punched all over it) and fitted that into the main box. I then took 2 wooden poles (anything will do) and set these up so that they created rails for hanging the meat. I then make the biltong as follows:
What you then need to make biltong:
Meat (round steak)
Coriander seeds
Paprika
Rock Salt
Pepper
Vinegar (malt is fine)
String / thread
Knife

1. Buy some round steak at a market (cheaper). Get leanest and thinnest pieces.
2. Cut into strips (4 cm wide, as long as your box can take).
3. Wash under water to remove old blood.
4. Place in glass/plastic dish (NOT metal).
5. Drizzle with vinegar (I use malt vinegar - make a hole in the lid if needed to allow even dispersal). Leave for at least 10 mins.
6. Make the spice: scorch some coriander seeds in a hot frying pan, transfer into a small bowl and grind with a spoon (or use a mortar/pestle). Add some rock salt, pepper and paprika to taste. Experimentation will tell you how much
7. Put spice mix on a large plate.
8. Cover meat with spice mix by putting each piece individually into the spice mix on the plate.
9. Put all spiced pieces back in the dish used before.
10. Cover with clingwrap, leave 4 hours - overnight in fridge.
11. Remove from fridge, dip each piece in a solution of 50% water 50% vinegar to remove most of the visible spice - you may want to leave some coriander on for the knobbly effect
12. Pierce each piece at the top with a knife and thread a piece of string through.
13. Tie each piece to the rail in the biltong maker.
14. Switch on the bulb, leave for 2-3 days (depending how you like it). Bend pieces to check moisture.
15. Cut up and enjoy!

Oh, and if you want to re-use your biltong box, remember to put some old cardboard and napkins on the bottom to catch the drips!!