About Lucky Beef Jerky
Some jerky brands start in a test kitchen; this one started with cattle. Lucky Beef Jerky comes from Nebraska Star Beef, a company owned and operated by the Klute family of Kearney, Nebraska, who have raised corn and cattle in the state for four generations. The family's story begins shortly after Nebraska became a state in 1867, when they stopped their trip short in the Platte Valley and put down roots. Today the business runs from a farm north of Holdrege, with Dale Klute, a lifelong cattleman, at the head of a team made up almost entirely of relatives. Jerky came along as a sideline: the original plan was to add one flavor to the product line and leave it there, a plan the brand admits did not survive. Peppered was the flavor that started it all.
What makes Lucky Beef Jerky different
The beef is the point. Nebraska Star Beef describes its cattle as single source and raised by the family itself near Holdrege, without antibiotics, growth hormones or any other drug treatment. The jerky is cut from cross-cut beef rounds, which the brand describes as a very lean cut from the hindquarters, hand trimmed and sliced into thick, cross-grain pieces. Those slices are marinated under vacuum, then slow cooked with heavy smoke, and every batch is made by hand and kept under 200 pounds. The company says it uses no MSG, sodium nitrite or potassium sorbate in the product. The same seasonings go into the DIY jerky kits Nebraska Star Beef sells, so what you taste here is the blend the brand hands to home jerky makers too.
Lucky Beef Jerky flavors we carry
Everything here is slab-style beef jerky in 3 oz bags, and the range runs from mild to spicy. If you want a crowd-pleaser, the Original is the brand's best seller by a wide margin; it is built on the Signature Seasoning the family designed for steaks, described as savory but neither spicy nor salty, and it sits comfortably alongside our other original-flavor beef jerky. Peppered is where Lucky Beef Jerky began, and the brand calls it more bold than spicy; compare it with the rest of our peppered beef jerky. Teriyaki is the second best seller, a traditional take the brand describes as not sweet and not spicy, and a solid entry in our teriyaki beef jerky lineup. Red Pepper is the one with heat: red pepper rounded out with black pepper, brown sugar and salt, which the brand says leans to the spicy side, easy going for serious hot-food fans and probably too hot for delicate palates. You will find it in our spicy beef jerky collection, and the whole Nebraska lineup sits within our wider beef jerky selection. Everything currently in stock is in the grid above.
Who it's for
If you like a thick, smoky chew that still comes out tender, this is traditional slab jerky rather than a thin, snappy strip. Heat is easy to navigate: Original and Teriyaki have none called out, Peppered is more bold than spicy, and Red Pepper is the one to reach for if you want a kick. Shoppers avoiding MSG, sodium nitrite or potassium sorbate will find the manufacturer states none are used, though full ingredient and allergen lists are not published on its product pages, so check the bag label before you buy. The manufacturer makes no gluten, keto or other dietary claims.
JerkyBrands is an independent retailer; the Lucky Beef Jerky name and logo are trademarks of their owner.
