Strips, Heat and Airflow: The Best Food Dehydrator Jerky Picks

Jerky is the hardest job you can give a food dehydrator. Fruit and chiles forgive a weak fan or a loose thermostat; strips of marinated beef do not. They need steady heat for many hours, trays that hold long flat strips without crowding, and a top temperature high enough to dry meat quickly. Carne seca and the shredded machaca of northern Mexico start the same way, so a good jerky machine earns its counter space in a Mexican kitchen.

Our main best food dehydrator guide covers drying everything from mango to chiles. This page narrows the choice to meat. It looks at the highest temperature each maker states, the airflow, tray size and timer, and it sets out the USDA’s steps for making jerky safely at home, because no dehydrator makes raw meat safe on its own.

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Quick verdict: which jerky dehydrator to buy

Whichever you choose, follow the USDA’s advice to heat the meat to 160°F before or after drying. The section on food safety below explains how.

Five jerky dehydrators at a glance

Our five standout picks, one for each kind of jerky maker, with the trays and the temperature range each maker or listing states. All eight dehydrators are reviewed in full below.

Product images from Amazon. Temperatures and timers are as stated by each maker or listing; check the listing before you buy.

Our picks for the best food dehydrator jerky makers can rely on

None of these eight machines is a pick on our main dehydrator page. That guide already covers Excalibur’s Performance 10-Tray and Select 8-Tray, Cosori’s 6-tray and 5-tray stainless models, Magic Mill, Presto, Hamilton Beach and the Nesco Snackmaster Pro, so here we chose other models from LEM, Cosori, Excalibur and Nesco with jerky in mind: high top temperatures, room for long strips, and timers that switch off on their own. Each pick lists the maximum temperature its maker states.

How to choose a dehydrator for beef jerky

A jerky dehydrator needs to do four things well: hold a steady drying temperature, move air evenly over flat strips, hold enough meat for your usual batch, and clean up easily after marinade.

1. A dial that holds 130°F to 140°F, and a top setting above it

The USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service says to dry meat in a dehydrator “that has an adjustable temperature dial and will maintain a temperature of at least 130°F to 140°F throughout the drying process.” Every pick here does that. A higher top setting, such as LEM’s 176°F or Cosori’s 165°F, gives you room to dry faster, but FSIS also warns that a dehydrator may not get meat hot enough to reach 160°F on its own, so the top number is not a safety guarantee.

2. Airflow and tray shape

America’s Test Kitchen explains that sliding-shelf dehydrators have the fan in the back, while stacking models have it at the top or bottom, and it found that round trays with a center hole hold less food. For jerky, rear-fan cabinets with square trays, like the LEM, Cosori 10-Tray and Excalibur, let you lay long strips flat. Stacking units such as the Nesco FD-60 and the Cosori 5-Tray are smaller and cheaper, and Nesco’s top-mounted fan keeps drips away from the heater.

3. Capacity for your usual batch

A pound of raw meat shrinks a lot as it dries; FSIS notes that a pound of meat or poultry weighs about four ounces once it has been made into jerky. Plan the trays around the raw weight. Five to eight trays suit a pound or two; ten large trays make sense for several pounds or a hunter’s haul.

4. A timer that switches off

Jerky often finishes overnight. A timer with automatic shutoff, which every pick except the Nesco FD-60 has, means the strips do not keep drying into leather while you sleep.

5. Easy cleaning after marinade

Dishwasher-safe trays and a drip tray save time. Stainless trays, on the LEM BigBite, the Cosori 10-Tray, the Excalibur Performance and the Nesco 8-Tray, avoid plastic contact with food. A good cutting board for meat and a sharp knife help just as much: thin, even slices dry at the same rate.

Jerky food safety: what the USDA recommends

This is the step most dehydrator manuals leave out. According to the USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service, the Meat and Poultry Hotline’s current recommendation is to heat meat to 160°F and poultry to 165°F before the dehydrating process, so that any bacteria present are destroyed by wet heat. FSIS explains why: in a dehydrator, evaporating moisture absorbs most of the heat, so the meat does not warm up until most of the water is gone, and by then bacteria have become more heat resistant.

FSIS’s other steps are practical. Marinate meat in the refrigerator and do not reuse the marinade. Steam or roast the strips to 160°F, or 165°F for poultry, measured with a food thermometer, before drying, then dry them at a steady 130°F to 140°F. An instant-read meat thermometer makes that check quick.

The National Center for Home Food Preservation gives a second option: heat the dried strips in an oven preheated to 275°F for 10 minutes, for strips cut ¼ inch or thinner. It says to slice meat no thicker than ¼ inch, to preheat the dehydrator to 140°F, and that raw poultry is generally not recommended for jerky. For ground meat, it says an internal temperature of 160°F is necessary.

How we picked these eight jerky dehydrators

We started from our main food dehydrator guide and deliberately left out its eight picks, choosing other in-stock models from established makers: LEM, Cosori, Excalibur and Nesco. We favored jerky features: a stated top temperature of at least 155°F, rear or top fans that keep drips off the heater, large or square trays, and timers. Every specification comes from the maker’s Amazon listing, checked through Amazon’s product data, and we wrote “Not stated” where the listing is silent. We used America’s Test Kitchen’s food dehydrator review for background on airflow and tray shape; its tested models are older than the ones here. We have not used these machines ourselves.

We checked each brand against the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission’s recall database. LEM recalled five-tray dehydrators with model number 1009 in 2013 and expanded that recall in 2014, and in 2011 recalled five- and ten-tray units from certain 2010 serial numbers; the LEM models here are the newer 1730 and 1731. Nesco American Harvest recalled its Gardenmaster FD-1020 with certain date codes in 2011, and Excalibur EZ DRY models were recalled by Greenfield World Trade in 2017 and 2019. Cosori’s 2023 recall covered air fryers, not dehydrators. None of the recalled models is recommended here.

Jerky dehydrator questions, answered

What is the best food dehydrator for jerky?

For most people, the LEM BigBite 10-Tray: stainless trays, a rear fan, a 176°F top setting and a five-year warranty. For the most tray space, choose the Cosori 10-Tray; on a budget, the Cosori 5-Tray.

What are the top food dehydrators for jerky from established brands?

LEM, Excalibur, Cosori and Nesco all make dehydrators that reach the 130°F to 140°F drying range the USDA describes, with top settings from 155°F to 176°F. Our best food dehydrator guide covers eight more models from Excalibur, Cosori, Nesco, Magic Mill, Presto and Hamilton Beach.

Do I need to cook meat before putting it in a dehydrator?

The USDA recommends it: heat meat to 160°F and poultry to 165°F before drying. The National Center for Home Food Preservation also allows heating the dried strips in a 275°F oven for 10 minutes afterward instead.

What temperature should a dehydrator be for jerky?

FSIS says to keep it at a steady 130°F to 140°F during drying, after the meat has been heated to 160°F. The National Center for Home Food Preservation says to preheat the dehydrator to 140°F.

How long does homemade jerky keep?

The sources differ a little. The National Center for Home Food Preservation says properly dried jerky keeps at room temperature for two weeks in a sealed container, while FSIS says home-dried jerky can be stored for 1 to 2 months. Pack it airtight; our guide to the best vacuum sealer covers machines for that.

Can I make jerky from ground beef?

Yes, with care. FSIS reports that in the university studies it cites, bacteria survived most often in jerky made with ground beef, and the National Center for Home Food Preservation says ground meat must reach 160°F. If you grind your own, see our electric meat grinder guide.

Our final pick for homemade jerky

Buy the LEM BigBite 10-Tray if you make jerky regularly: it has the highest top temperature, stainless trays and the longest warranty of any single-zone machine here. Choose the Cosori 10-Tray for the biggest batches, the Excalibur RES10 if you dry fruit and meat at the same time, and the Cosori 5-Tray to start small. Whatever you buy, heat the meat to 160°F, as the USDA recommends. For more machines, including fruit and chile dryers, see our best food dehydrator guide.

Related guide: Best jerky gun.

A chile-lime rub is a classic Mexican take on jerky; our guide to Mexican chiles explains which dried chiles to grind for it. And when you would rather someone else did the cooking, see our menu or call to order.