Safari Biltong Jerky Seasoning, 2.2 lbs Beef Spice

I spent much of my childhood in South Africa and am an avid biltong lover. Biltong is hands down one of my favorite foods. I can tell you that this Crown National Safari spice is a fabulous product. Freddy Hirsch and Crown National (both from South Africa) are the biggest players when it comes to pre-made biltong spice. They both make quality products. Which is best? I recently embarked on a quest to find the very best pre-made biltong spice on the planet. I ran side by side comparisons of the following: Crown National Safari; Freddy Hirsch Traditional; Freddy Hirsch Kalahari and Freddy Hirsch Hunter’s Biltong. I tried to do this as scientifically as I could by using the same cut of beef, identical marination times with the same vinegar etc. All of these spice mixes recommend using between 40 g and 50 g of spice per kg of beef. I went mid-way and used exactly 45g per kg for all of them. They were all dried out in the same box for the same amount of time. In this side by side shoot out, both my friend and I preferred the Crown National Safari spice mix. My friend thought that the Crown was only a little better. He said that if they were not side by side, he might have difficulty telling them apart on different days. I thought that the Crown was better by some margin. The biltong made with the Crown Safari spice simply had more flavor and oomph! You put in in your mouth and said, Wow! This is of course based on my personal taste and your mileage may vary. The Crown was a little saltier, sweeter (without being too sweet like jerky) and more flavorful. As an aside, I also compared Crown Safari Chili Bites with Freddy Hirsch Chili Bites spice. Here the results were more mixed. The Crown spice is significantly hotter than the Freddy Hirsch (both at 45g per kg). I love hot spice and have a very high tolerance. People at work call me a fire eater. I landed up having a very strong preference for the Crown Chili. A couple of my friends that are not big spice eaters said that the Crown Chili Bites spice blew their heads off (too spicy). They both preferred the Freddy Hirsch and found it to be more tolerable. If you like intense fiery heat with a warm afterglo, then Crown Chili Bites will be right up your alley. The Freddy Chili Spice was much more muted and had an almost mustardy taste which I didn’t much care for. Crown make another chili spice called MesiterClub Chili Bites spice which is supposed to be less intense than their Safari Chili Bites. I have not tried the MeisterClub yet so I am unable comment. All of these chili spices can be varied to taste. Making biltong at homes a lot of sense if you live in the U.S.. Top Round from Costco is inexpensive and works very well. The results with Crown Safari spice and apple cider vinegar are outstanding. Please note I am not affiliated with Crown National in any way.

Good product, I'll buy again

We made biltong (South African version) and it tastes like what we would buy at the shops. Great spice!

Best Quality product beautiful aroma , a regular on my shopping list

Very tasty spice mix that brought back memories of what 'biltong' should taste like. I've been living in America since 2014 and couldn't develop a palate for jerky, (which is not the same as 'biltong'.) I then decided to try my hand at making my own biltong and surprisingly the result was near perfect. I still need to make a few adjustments to the marinade recipe I've used.