I’m in Randy’s camp on the 3/8″-1/2″ thick meat. I mix the cure and seasonings together and coat the meat well with it. From the fridge while curing to the smoker racks I do nothing…. no rinse, no try to shake off anything. And I do NOT put water in the smoker.
Thin jerky slices can be tougher than nails while the thicker jerky seems to have some chewable character to it. The thicker slices are fully cooked at around 160 degrees but generally are not dry enough so I leave in the smoker to get up to about 205 degrees, the smoker gets shut down and the meat is left in the smoker until its at air temp. IF it is still too moist, I place it on oven racks and set the oven at 200, checking the jerky every hour until it can be sent without breaking.
Moisture is the enemy of any smoked product as far as spoilage is concerned. The pink cure goes a long way in preventing spoilage but if any smoked product has too much moisture in, it even after curing, it can and will mold. And this is where home smoked products differ from those that are bought in packages at the store. That store bought stuff has a multitude of other curing agents in it that allows the product to go on store shelves for an extended period of time. The pink, or quick, cure cannot offer the same degree of safety.
The Morton Tenderqwik product mentioned here in this thread and others will work for those who want to make their own curing product. For Lake Trout and salmon I mix equal parts of tenderqwik a name brand, not a store brand, of dark brown sugar and rub this into both sides of the fish fillet and set in a glass baking dish for a couple days in the fridge. A quick rinse under cold water, dried on a clean towel and in the smoker it goes. I try to hold the smoke temp at around 175 degrees until the meat is pliable but not soft and mushy. Shut the smoker down and allow to come to air temp in the smoker.
You’ll notice that I allow anything in the smoker to come to air temp inside the unit. Taking warm product out and sealing it in a vacuum bag then to a freezer with any kind of warm in it will result in a mushy product when thawed for use. Summer sausages 2″or greater in diameter I will allow to cool to air or room temp once the links have reached and internal temp of 152-154 degrees as they’ll still cook to a higher temp for about 1/2 hour from removing them from the smoker. Universally, everything I smoke will be allowed to come to air or room temp BEFORE it gets vacuumed sealed. If just putting the product in a ziplock you can do whatever as ziplocks offer zero protecting from freezing temps.
