About Joburg Jerky



From Software to Sausage


south african biltong
David Libesman’s father, Michael, started his career as a butcher 60 years ago. David arrived in the USA in 1998 and now resides in Merion Station, PA, where he runs a software company. For 11 years he searched high and low for Boerewors and Biltong with the taste and texture that he grew up with. He then decided to bring back old family recipes and techniques for making these traditional delightful foods and do it himself.

After making a few batches of Boerewors and Biltong for personal use, David began to share the treat with friends and neighbors. To his surprise, people began to request orders for their friends, parties, or for themselves. The overwhelming demand led to the creation of Joburg™ Kosher Foods, LLC. The company’s mission is to be the first Kosher food manufacturer to make high quality, authentic South African Boerewors and Biltong widely available in retail shops and foodservice channels throughout the USA.



From World Cup to World Cuisine

kosher sausageFor the first time ever, Kosher consumers, ex-patriot South Africans and discerning food lovers of any persuasion will have the opportunity to purchase authentic South African, Glatt Kosher Biltong and Boerewors in restaurants, specialty shops and supermarkets across the U.S. Delectable and satisfying, these gourmet quality, 100% beef products are made with a 40-year old family recipe brought to the U.S. from Johannesburg, or ‘Joburg’ as the natives call it, by David Libesman.

Joburg™ Beef Boerewors, or ‘Farmer Sausage,’ add a new dimension to the gourmet sausage category. South Africans are passionate about their Boerewors, and for good reason. “Boeries on the braai” is a national South African pastime characterized by the wonderful aroma, succulent flavor and warmatmosphere of a family barbecue. Now consumers across America can experience this, too!



kosher-beef-jerkyBiltong is a staple in South Africa that is available in stores, butcher shops and roadside stands throughout the country. While Kosher beef jerky has been available in the U.S. market, Joburg™ Kosher Biltong offers an exciting, new taste experience, as it is marinated, seasoned and slowly cured- not cooked, like jerky. Every chew releases more flavor for sustained enjoyment.
Joburg™ Kosher sells only Kosher Biltong and Kosher Boerewors and allows you to buy Biltong in the USA. In this section we will discuss the background and history of Biltong. Biltong is a South African Food. The word comes from Dutch with ‘BIL’ meaning buttock and ‘TONG’ meaning strip. Biltong has been around for centuries; for instance, a more primitive form, the Dutch tassal, was also prepared in certain areas of France during the late Middle Ages. Tassal was also made in Batavia, and made its way to South Africa with the Dutch settlers where it was adapted to the less pungent biltong.

Biltong has been a favorite with South African food eaters for close on 400 years now. This mildly spiced and salted, cured Beef is marinated and seasoned and cured slowly for days in the unique South African style. South African dried meat, has sustained these people since the early days of the Voortrekkers.

No Rugby, Cricket, Tennis, Boxing or other sporting occasion in South Africa - whether it be watched live or on television - is quite complete without a few beers and a good supply of Biltong. It also makes a great traveling companion as it can last for long periods of time with very little attention, always providing sustenance in the absence of other foods or delicacies. Biltong is now becoming very popular in the USA and is becoming the preferred choice for Beef Jerky afficianados because of it's natural homemade beef jerky taste.

Biltong is used in a multitude of ways to complement other dishes: thinly sliced as a filling for omelets, sliced or shredded as a filling for pancakes, crepes and quiches, salads, and spreads. Of course, the South African farmer's favorite: plenty of shredded Biltong on a slice of freshly baked bread with plenty of butter. People are always looking for a good Biltong Recipe or Beef Jerky Recipe. we will include many of our Biltong Recipes in our Biltong recipe page to show you how to make your favorite South African beef jerky dish.

There are typically two main types of biltong – Beef Biltong and Game Biltong. Both are good, but some people prefer one above the other. Lamb, pork and poultry are not used for biltong, although ostrich meat makes good biltong and is popular in South Africa it is not Kosher. Beef is probably the most popular and most delicious of all of all Biltongs.

While Joburg™ Kosher makes only Kosher Boerewors  (Kosher Gourmet Sausage) in this section we will discuss the background and history of the Boerewors sausage. Boerewors (farmer's sausage) comes from the Afrikaans words boer (farmer) and wors (sausage), and it is pronounced "boo ruh VORS] is as traditionally South African as Biltong, ( South African Beef Jerky ) Koeksisters, Pap (maize porridge) and Vetkoek (fat cake). "Boeries" as it is affectionately know by locals, is staple fare in South Africa. It is wholesome, delicious and reasonably inexpensive. Above all, it tastes like nothing else on the rest of this planet! It has been described by discriminating palates as eating high end gourmet sausage.

Boerewors is another inheritance from pioneering South African forefathers who used to combine minced meat and cubed spek (beef fat) with spices and preservatives (vinegar) which were freely available from the then South African Cape Colony.

During their trek (journey) through the hinterland (coast line) large quantities of wors would be made during their outspan (stopover) and that which could not be eaten would be hung to dry and taken along for sustenance as they continued their explorations.

In the decades that followed this type of wors gradually evolved and the term "Boerewors" became entrenched in our culture.

Boerewors is made from coarsely minced beef (sometimes combined lamb) and spices (usually toasted coriander seed, black pepper, nutmeg, cloves and allspice). Like many other forms of sausage, boerewors contains a high proportion of fat, and is preserved with salt and vinegar, and packed in sausage casings. Traditional boerewors is usually formed into a continuous spiral, as illustrated on the right. Boerewors is often served with pap (traditional South African porridge made from mielie-meal). Boerewors is also very common throughout Southern Africa, as well as with expatriate communities in countries like Australia, The Netherlands, the United Kingdom, the USA / United States and Ireland.

Boerewors is usually braaied (barbecued), but may be grilled in an electric griller, or fried. Alternatively it can also be grilled in an oven. Sometimes, inferior types of boerewors are sold as braaiwors, and may contain more than 30% fat, soy, tripe (heart and/or lungs) and water

The secret in the making of good boerewors lies in the quality of the ingredients used. The better the quality of the meat the better tasting the boerewors. We will be adding many Boerewors Recipes for you to view soon you will also be able to add your own Boerewors recipe.

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