What Is Biltong? (And Why Most of What You're Buying Isn't Really It)
Biltong is air-dried, spiced meat from South Africa — and most of what you'll find in UK retailers isn't the real thing. Here's what makes proper biltong different, and why it matters.
Most of what you’ll find in UK retailers isn’t really biltong — it’s beef jerky wearing a biltong costume.
You’ll spot it in Express shops, Sainsbury’s, the usual suspects. It’s fine if you don’t know better. But once you’ve had the real thing, you can’t unsee it. The texture is wrong. The spice is flat. The drying process has clearly been rushed to hit a shelf-life target.
The actual good stuff? That’s coming from independent makers — mostly South Africans who’ve brought the craft over and aren’t cutting corners on drying time or spice ratios. Those guys get it right. The retail chains are chasing margin, not flavour.
I grew up eating biltong in South Africa. I’ve been making it myself in the UK for years — hanging strips off hooks in my kitchen, eating pieces before they’re even finished drying, eventually building a Raspberry Pi-controlled drying box when I got obsessed enough to start dialling in the humidity and airflow properly. That’s what eventually became Kured.
So. What actually is biltong?
The basics
Biltong is air-dried, spiced meat. The word comes from Dutch: bil (rump) and tong (strip). It originated in South Africa centuries before fridges or preservatives existed — salt, vinegar, and dry air were the only tools available, and they worked.
The process is simple: marinate thick strips of beef in vinegar and spices, hang them in moving air for several days, and let time do the work. No heat. No smoke. No shortcuts.
Why it’s not beef jerky
This is the question I get most often, and it matters.
Jerky is cooked — smoked or oven-dried at high heat. That process breaks down the meat fibres and drives off most of the flavour, so manufacturers compensate with sugar, soy sauce, and a long list of preservatives. The texture goes flat and chewy.
Biltong is never cooked. It’s cured with vinegar and salt, then cold air-dried. The meat keeps its natural structure and fat marbling, which is why a proper slice cuts clean and has depth of flavour that jerky just doesn’t.
The macros are different too. A 25g serving of biltong typically has 15–17g of protein and almost zero carbs. The same amount of jerky usually gives you 10–12g of protein with 5–8g of added sugar.
What goes into it
Classic biltong has almost nothing in it, which is the point:
- Beef — silverside, topside, or rump. The cut matters more than most people realise.
- Coarse salt — draws out moisture and starts the cure
- Brown vinegar — tenderises the meat and acts as a natural preservative
- Coriander seeds — toasted and cracked. This is the non-negotiable one. If it doesn’t smell of coriander, something’s off.
- Black pepper — coarsely ground
That’s it. Some recipes add garlic, chilli, or worcestershire sauce, but those are variations on a foundation. No nitrates. No stabilisers. No ingredient list that requires a chemistry degree.
Wet vs dry
Once you start eating biltong regularly, you’ll develop a preference. I eat it at every stage of drying — but here’s the difference:
Wet biltong comes off the dryer early. It still has give when you press it, the centre is dark pink, and the texture is closer to a very dense steak than anything you’d call a snack. Best flavour, but it only lasts a few days at room temperature.
Dry biltong stays on longer — firm all the way through, deep brown, snaps cleanly. Concentrated flavour, longer shelf life, what most retailers sell (when they bother making it properly).
Most people start on dry because that’s what’s available, then try wet and wonder why they waited so long.
Is it actually healthy?
For most people, genuinely yes:
- 15–17g protein per 25g serving
- Low carb, often zero sugar
- Minimal processing
- No artificial preservatives in quality biltong
- Good source of iron, zinc, and B12
The one caveat is sodium — curing uses salt and biltong has a fair amount of it. Worth knowing if you’re eating a lot of it, but for most people it’s one of the cleanest snacks you can buy.
Where to start
If you’ve never had biltong, start with Classic Original. No heat, no distractions — just beef, coriander, salt, and vinegar done properly. Once you have that as your reference point, everything else makes sense as a variation on something you already understand.
And if you want to go further down the rabbit hole — different cuts, spice ratios, home drying, humidity control — we’ll cover all of it here.
Kured is small-batch biltong made in the UK using traditional South African methods. Join the waitlist to be first to know when we launch.