Jerky Meat Yield Calculator
How much jerky will your meat make — or how much raw meat you need for a target amount. Yield for beef, venison, turkey, chicken, pork, ground meat and salmon by how dry you take it, with servings, protein, dehydrator trays, drying time, cost per kg and USDA safety temperatures.
How it works
jerky = trimmed meat × (100 − water − 20% of fat + marinade solids) ÷ (1 − final moisture) ÷ 100 · trimmed = raw × (1 − trim) · raw needed = target ÷ yield · moisture-to-protein = jerky water ÷ protein · cost per kg = raw cost ÷ kg of jerky
Jerky is mostly a story of water leaving the meat. Lean raw meat is about 72–75% water and 21–24% protein, and drying keeps almost all of the protein while removing most of the water. So the finished weight is the dry matter of the meat divided by how much moisture you leave in: chewy jerky at about 23% moisture comes out at roughly a third of the trimmed weight, which is why about three pounds of raw meat make one pound of jerky. Fattier cuts have a little more dry matter but lose some fat as drips; sweet marinades add a few percent of sugar. The calculator uses USDA composition figures for each meat, then gives the yield, servings, protein, the moisture-to-protein ratio (USDA’s jerky standard is 0.75 : 1 or less), trays, drying time and the cost per kilogram, or works backwards from the amount of jerky you want. For safety, USDA advises heating meat to 160°F and poultry to 165°F before drying, then drying at 130–140°F or above.
Worked example
You start with 1,500 g of trimmed top round at $12 per kg and dry it to a standard chew (23% moisture). Top round is about 72.6% water and 3% fat, so 100 g holds 100 − 72.6 − 0.6 = 26.8 g of dry matter, and the jerky weighs 26.8 ÷ 0.77 = 34.8 g per 100 g of meat. That gives 1,500 × 0.348 ≈ 522 g of jerky, a 35% yield, or 18 one-ounce servings. The meat cost $18, so the jerky works out to $18 ÷ 0.522 kg ≈ $34.49 per kg, about 98 cents a serving.
Sources: USDA FSIS — Jerky and Food Safety · USDA FSIS — Compliance Guideline for Meat and Poultry Jerky · USDA FoodData Central — raw meat composition
Frequently asked questions
How much raw meat do I need for a pound of jerky?
About 2½ to 3½ pounds, depending on how dry you take it: roughly 2.6 lb for tender jerky, 2.9 lb for a standard chew and 3.3 lb for very dry jerky with lean beef. Switch to “Meat for a jerky goal” to get the exact amount.
What temperature makes jerky safe?
USDA advises heating meat strips to 160°F (71 °C) and poultry to 165°F (74 °C) before drying, because a dehydrator may never get the meat that hot by itself, and then drying at a steady 130–140°F (54–60 °C) or above. Marinate in the refrigerator and keep home-dried jerky no more than 1 to 2 months.
Why use lean cuts for jerky?
Fat does not dry out and can turn rancid, shortening shelf life. Lean cuts like eye of round, top round and venison store longer. Fattier cuts give a slightly higher yield per trimmed pound, but most of that is fat you would rather trim off.
Does the marinade change the yield?
The water in a marinade dries off, so it does not add weight in the end. What stays is the dissolved salt and sugar: about 1% for a savory soy marinade and 2–4% for a sweet teriyaki or brown-sugar one. Choose the marinade under More options.
How do I know when jerky is done?
Standard jerky bends and cracks without snapping, and no moist spots show when you tear a piece. Weigh the batch: when it reaches the finished weight shown here for your dryness, it is close.
Related calculators
Food-safety guidance follows USDA FSIS advice for home jerky; yields are estimates from typical meat composition. Use a thermometer and tested recipes.