About Homegrown Meats
Some of the best jerky stories start behind a meat counter. Homegrown Meats began with a group of friends who all grew up in San Diego, an idea for a butcher shop, and backgrounds that ran from cattle farming and hospitality to the grocery business and branding. In 2010 they started selling small-batch beef jerky made in-house at the shop, packed in farmers market-style baggies and sold to local regulars. As the jerky caught on, the operation grew with it. After partnering with a co-packer in Colton, California, the brand expanded first into friends’ grocery stores, then into Whole Foods and other major chains, and today its jerky is sold online nationwide. Along the way it has collaborated with San Diego’s Stone Brewing Co. on two flavors and with Gringo Bandito, a Southern California hot sauce company. Through all that growth, Homegrown Meats describes itself as independent, owned by multiple families and still true to its roots.
What makes Homegrown Meats different
The beef is the headline. Homegrown Meats uses 100% grass-fed and grass-finished beef, and the brand says it partners exclusively with ranchers who raise cattle thoughtfully and follow sustainable farming practices, sourcing its other ingredients locally whenever possible. Each batch is tumbled in marinade for at least 24 hours and laid on the cooking screens by hand, which the brand frames as a quality-control step. Natural flavorings do the seasoning work: according to the manufacturer, the jerky is gluten-free and non-GMO, with no artificial sweeteners, colors or preservatives, no added nitrates or nitrites, and no MSG. Several recipes are tied to people and places, too. Joel’s Traditional honors founding member Joel Mendenhall, whose family has raised cattle on San Diego’s Palomar Mountain since the 1800s, and the Carne Asada came from Mama Garcia of El Napolito sharing her family recipe.
Homegrown Meats flavors we carry
If you want a classic, start with the tender-cut Western-style recipes: coarse cracked black pepper with a touch of brown sugar, the traditional profile named for Joel, or a sweet barbecue built on mesquite smoke flavor. They sit comfortably next to our other peppered beef jerky and barbecue beef jerky. For something tangier, there is an orange teriyaki the brand describes as tender and tangy with a subtle hint of California oranges, a natural stop if you are browsing teriyaki beef jerky, and a Paleo recipe that swaps brown sugar for honey and keeps the seasoning to a hint of honey and black pepper.
Heat climbs from there. The carne asada, infused with real fruit juice, ancho powder, oregano and cayenne, has no heat called out, while the Gringo Bandito collaboration is billed as hot sauce powered and the sriracha-style recipe as hot and tangy. The jalapeño flavor is the one the brand calls its spiciest, pairing hickory smoke flavor with what it describes as a serious kick; you will find it alongside our other jalapeño beef jerky. Then there are the two Stone Brewing collaborations, one infused with Tangerine Express IPA, which the brand says takes on the beer’s crisp bitterness and vibrant citrus notes, and one with Arrogant Bastard Ale, described as aggressive and intense. Every bag is 2.5 ounces, and you can weigh the range against the rest of our beef jerky. The flavors we carry are in the grid above.
Who it's for
If you prefer a tender chew to a tough one, most of this lineup is described as tender-cut, with heat that runs from none called out up to a jalapeño the brand warns you about. It suits shoppers who read ingredient panels: grass-fed beef, no added nitrates or nitrites and no artificial preservatives, according to the manufacturer, plus a Paleo recipe sweetened with honey instead of brown sugar. Check allergens flavor by flavor rather than assuming one list covers all: most recipes use a gluten-free tamari that contains soy, and the two Stone collaborations carry a Contains Soy line. The sriracha-style recipe includes red wine vinegar with potassium metabisulfite, the beer flavors list IPA or ale among their ingredients, and honey appears in several recipes.
JerkyBrands is an independent retailer; the Homegrown Meats name and logo are trademarks of their owner.
