Making Beef Jerky With My Grandpa | The Story Behind Jerky Boys
- Jun 30
- 2 min read
Making Beef Jerky With My Grandpa: Where Jerky Boys Began
A few days ago, I had the chance to do something really special—I went back to my grandparents’ house to make another batch of beef jerky with my grandpa.
As we stood there making jerky together, it reminded me exactly where Jerky Boys began.
Growing up, my grandpa would make beef jerky from his family recipe and mail it to us. Every time a package showed up, everyone knew what was inside. My family couldn’t wait to open it, and before long our neighbors and friends were asking if they could have some too.
It never lasted very long.
There was just something different about it. It wasn’t the kind of beef jerky you’d find on a store shelf. It was homemade, made with care, and every batch tasted like it came straight from family.
As I got older, I kept thinking the same thing:
This jerky is too good to stay only in our family.
I wanted other people to experience what we had grown up loving for so many years.
So I talked to my grandpa about starting a company. He loved the idea, gave me his blessing to use the family recipe, and that’s where Jerky Boys was born.
Since then, it’s been an incredible journey.
What started with my grandpa making beef jerky for our family has grown into a business built by our family. My dad, my brothers, and I have all worked together to grow Jerky Boys, and along the way we were fortunate enough to have Dale Earnhardt Jr. become a partner after he fell in love with the jerky too.
Even with everything that’s happened, one thing has never changed—the recipe.
It’s still the same family recipe my grandpa shared with us all those years ago. The same flavors we grew up waiting for. The same tradition that started in our family.
One of my favorite parts of this journey is getting to show my grandpa what Jerky Boys has become. Every chance I get, I share your reviews, your messages, and the stories from customers who tell us how much they love our beef jerky. Seeing him smile knowing that something he started is now being enjoyed by people all across the country is something I’ll never take for granted.
That’s why this visit meant so much.
For a little while, we weren’t talking about growing a business or shipping orders. We were simply making beef jerky together again, just like we used to.
Moments like that remind me why I started Jerky Boys in the first place.
No matter how much we grow, we’ll always remember where we came from. Every bag of Jerky Boys carries a piece of my family’s story, and none of it would exist without my grandpa deciding to make beef jerky all those years ago.
To everyone who has supported Jerky Boys, ordered from us, shared our story, or left us a review—thank you.
You’re not just buying beef jerky.
You’re helping carry on a family tradition that means the world to us.
-Christian Koch
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