The chief and founder, Blair Swiler, is a chef. Initially, Blair only made jerky for his family using a proprietary smoking process. Then his business partner, and now co-founder, Dennis Riedel, realized the potential of selling “Filet in a Bag”. In their words, it is “Jerky Done Right”. They aspire to only make the best jerky they can, where they don’t believe that anything, or anyone, should ever stop improving. This Chef’s Cut Real Jerky brand name is distributed by RSJ Ventures LLC, and they are based out of New York.
The next review on Chef’s Cut Real Jerky will focus on a 2.5 ounce/71 gram bag of their chipotle cracked pepper flavored beef jerky. We previously reviewed this flavor in 2016, where the bag design has since been tweaked, and the ingredient list is improved. This flavor is described as combining the infamous chipotle chili, roasted jalapenos, and fresh cracked black pepper, to create an extra mouth-watering oomph to every bite. The bag was purchased on sale for $3.59 at a Bulk Barn store in Brampton, Ontario, and we decided to review it now because the expiry date was nearing.
Ingredient Review
Ingredients: Beef, Soy Sauce (Water, Sugar, Salt, Hydrolyzed Corn and Soy Protein, Caramel Color, Natural Flavor, Cultured Dextrose, Lactic Acid, Green Tea Extract, Mustard Oil), Sugar, Worcestershire Sauce (Distilled White Vinegar, Molasses, Sugar, Water, Salt, Onions, Anchovies, Garlic, Cloves, Tamarind Extract, Natural Flavorings, Chili Pepper Extract), Horseradish (Horseradish Roots, Vinegar, Salt and Mustard Oil), Liquid Smoke (Water, Natural Hickory Smoke Flavor, Vinegar, Molasses, Caramel Color and Salt), Chipotle Paste (Chipotle Peppers, Water, Salt and Acetic Acid), Cultured Celery Powder, Sea Salt, Black Pepper, Red Pepper. Allergen Warnings: Soy, Anchovies
The beef used is not guaranteed to be free of growth hormones or additional antibiotics. Also, the beef is not guaranteed to have at least partial free range access to graze on grass. As a result, the highest ingredient rating that can be awarded is a Good (8/10) rating.
The liquid marinade consists of a poor soy sauce, a respectable brand of Worcestershire sauce, liquid smoke, and a good chipotle paste.
There are some healthy ingredients added such as horseradish, black pepper, and red pepper. The heat is achieved from chipotle peppers. which are healthy if eaten in moderation, because they flush toxins out of the body.
The sugar level is high at 6 grams of sugar per 28 grams of jerky to lose a rating. Our preference is 3 grams of sugar or less. The salt level is acceptable at 340mg of salt per 28 grams of jerky.
This jerky does qualify to have no sodium nitrite. Instead, minimally processed sea salt is the main preservative used. To a lesser extent cultured celery powder also acts as a preservative with its natural nitrates. This jerky does not qualify to be MSG free, because the highly processed flavor enhancers hydrolyzed corn protein and hydrolyzed soy protein are used to lose another rating.
Alright (6/10) – Ingredient Rating
Taste Review
Written by guest jerky reviewer Paul Rekker
When I open the bag, I once again smell juice, once again going to guess pineapple. The jerky is soft and somewhat dry, but quite juicy. The jerky is sliced medium to thick, the pieces are medium to large in size, and there is no oily residue left on your fingers.
The first flavors I encounter are salt, sweet (possibly just slightly too sweet), pepper, garlic, pineapple juice, a mediocre kick, not too intense, maybe a 1.5 or a 2 out of 5 on the heat scale.
When I read chipotle in the title, I was intrigued. And, like advertised, it delivers decently on the chipotle. However, my loins were metaphorically stirred when I read “cracked pepper” in the description. I happen to love intense pepper, which cracked pepper is supposed to be, but, to my chagrin, the pepper is just present at best, not the star of the show by any means.
I have to say, this jerky is quite the positive taste experience, just not wowing me, and not coming across as advertised, at least not intense enough for my pleasure. An 8/10 in my opinion gentlemen…
Here is what Mark had to say about this Chipotle Cracked Pepper beef jerky flavor from Chef’s Cut Real Jerky: “Paul nailed this review!!! The smoked flavor comes across well. With a flavor name containing ‘cracked pepper’, it falls woefully short on the peppered flavor. This jerky was shared between 7 people, where all of the opinions were positive. Here are the official ratings between the Group of Seven (Mark – 8, Paul – 8, Stephane – 9, Nolan – 9, Mark M. – 9, Sid – 8, Ava – 7)”.
This 2.5 ounce/71 gram bag was on sale for $3.59, which works out to $1.43 an ounce. That rates as a very cheap price.
Bag Review
This resealable plastic bag has everything imprinted directly on the bag itself, both on the front and back. There are no labels affixed to this bag. There is a graphic of a bull on the front. On the back is a high resolution picture of jerky strips on a cutting board lathered in barbecue sauce.
A slogan printed is “Real Jerky Co.”. Some facts printed on this bag are “High in Protein”, “Made With Premium Beef”, “Handcrafted”, “Product of U.S.A.”, “10g Protein Per Serving”, and “Certified Gluten Free”.
All bag categories are covered here except one. Missing is a transparent window to view the jerky, a pet peeve of ours. To the credit of Chef’s Cut Real Jerky, an email address is provided for customer inquiries. Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter handles are displayed. As per Canadian law, French translations are provided.
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