Make Your Own Biltong Box

Meat drying in a wooden box to make biltong

South Africa’s favourite snack can be easily made at home with the right tools, the right recipe, and a bit of drying time. It’s not hard to make your own biltong box, which will turn meat into delectable biltong in under a week.

You need:

Pine board in the following dimensions:
- 2 x 600mm x 450mm x 20mm (back and door)
- 2 x 560mm x 300mm x 20mm (sides)
- 2 x 300mm x 450mm x 20mm (top and bottom)
Wood glue
220V PC fan
Light fitting
Light bulb
2 x hinges
1 x latch
3.5mm x 40mm wood screws
3mm x 20mm screws
4 x plastic air vents
3 x 475mm x 15mm copper pipe
6 x 15mm copper end caps
2 x 1.5m two-core electrical cord
2 x plugs
S hooks (or wire)
Superglue

Tools:

Sander, pencil, tape measure, paint brush, 2mm, 6mm and 16mm drill bits, 50mm hole saw (or jigsaw), 105mm hole saw (or jigsaw), cordless drill and driver bit.

Steps:

1. Drill holes in the back and sides, as shown in the diagrams.

2. Glue and screw the top to the two sides, drilling pilot holes before doing so.

3. Flip the structure over and attach the bottom to the two sides using glue and screws, having drilled pilot holes.

4. Sand the biltong box as well as the door and back.

5. Drill pilot holes and then glue and screw the back to the structure.

6. Screw the plastic air vents over the ventilation holes in the sides.

7. Screw the fan to the back, over the 105mm hole. (Make sure the fan is pulling air out of the box and not blowing it in.) Wire the fan to a plug.

8. Push a piece of electrical cord through the 6mm hole in the back and wire up the light fitting. Screw it in place inside the box. Fit a plug to the other end of the wire.

9. Slide the copper pipes through the 16mm holes in the two sides. Use super glue to glue end caps onto them.

10. Use hinges to fit the door to the box. (Remember to use 20mm screws through the sides, and 40mm screws into the end of the door. Drill pilot holes first.)

11. Fit the latch to the door and biltong box, to keep the door closed.

12. Seal the inside of the box with an easy-to-clean sealant like Woodoc WaterBorne Marine.

13. Fit a bulb to the light fitting. (Use an old-fashioned bulb, not an LED. LEDs don’t get warm enough to dry the air and create air movement.)