Dehydrator

[nyxlily]

I debated on where to put this topic.. here or the "gear" section. I guess it makes more sense here :D

Anyhoo, if anyone here dehydrates their food, what's your recommended dehydrator? I'm currently looking at the cheapest yet highly rated Nesco FD-35. It seems to do the job!

I never thought I would even try this, but with the berry season coming up (and strawberries already here!!) I wanna dry some fruit and berries for the winter.

[Martell]

Yeah I have a Nesco and it works great for me. Bed, Bath & Beyond sells them, and they always have those 20% discounts, so it's a good place to pick one up. You might have to call around though.

I think I recommend this book anytime anyone brings up dehydrators, but check out Backpack Gourmet by Linda Yaffe.

[sarbar]

With dehydrators buy as good as you can justify Nesco's are well made, just be sure to get one with a fan and adjustable temp setting.
I have a Dehydrator 101 page on our site with all the basics http://www.freezerbagcooking.com/dehydrating.htm

[Grannyhiker]

Mine is an American Harvest and I like it. Well, I should, it was my daughter-in-law's and she gave it to me!

I hoped we'd hear from you, Sarbar; I'm a great fan of your technique! I hate washing dishes!

[sarbar]

GH, I am thinking of doing some dehydrating 101 videos in the future - the cooking and baking videos we have done have been popular so it might be fun to do a series of ones - a step above my drying pictorials
I dry pasta more than anything else - I love having "instant" pasta on the trail!

[nyxlily]

Thanks for the input so far! I didn't even think about adjustable temperatures.. because I didn't know you need to, lol.

And Sabar, thanks for your helpful link! Those models seems well worth the price.

While I'm not familiar (yet) with your site, I've seen it come again and again in backpacking circles and have browsed through your recipes quite a few times :) I can't wait to really take advantage of it!

How much electricity does these things actually consume? I mean, in the end, it must be worth it than to buy dried foods in stores, right? I just don't want to run up my bills. So is it more efficient to dry a whole lotta stuff at a time and use all the trays? Or would it average out since you won't need as much heat or tme (I'm guessing) to use just one tray and dry what you need.

[sarbar]

The best move is to do all trays at once.

I buy a lot from www.harmonyhousefoods.com - their stuff is very good, fast shipping and if you buy enough the shipping is free Their beans are precooked and dried, which work well in freezerbag style meals.

I dry mostly pasta, rices and things like hummus at home. Stuff that I cannot get anywhere else.

[Grannyhiker]

It's best to dehydrate foods in the winter, when the heat from the dehydrator will help your heating system. It's probably worst to dehydrate when it's hot out, especially if your house has A/C and the two are working against each other. Of course with my usual "plan ahead" mentality, I will be dehydrating foods this coming weekend! I will put the dehydrator in my garage to keep from heating up my kitchen--maybe the already hot, dry air in the garage will reduce the amount of electricity needed for the dehydrator!

I haven't checked the power usage, but a dehydrator with fan and thermostat would appear to be quite efficient.

Be sure to read Sarbar's website articles on dehydrating before you start. Chicken doesn't dry well unless it has been pressure cooked (she suggests using canned chicken). My personal experience with dehydrating peas is that even after 20 minutes' cooking (that's boiling on the stove, not sitting in a freezer bag), they were still the consistency of buckshot and could break a tooth. For veggies like peas and corn, I'd suggest getting the freeze-dried ones from "Just Tomatoes" and adding them to the already dehydrated food. I also like to get their freeze-dried fruit for longer backpacks because it's a lot lighter, although very pricey. Also, unless you have a source of free or inexpensive fruit, it's less expensive to buy dried fruit from the bulk bins in the organic food department of Fred Meyer. If you want to dry your own fruit, dip the fruit pieces in a citric acid solution if you don't want them to turn dark. Sulphur dioxide makes anything taste horrible, which is why I won't buy the packaged dried fruit sold in most supermarkets.

Above all, the first time you dehydrate a dish, do just a small amount and test it out at home. You don't want to find out in the middle of a long backpack that you have an inedible meal! Been there, done that.

[sarbar]

Things that suck for quick rehydrating:
Dried peas, dried corn, cubed dried potatoes and sliced celery. Learned my lessons on those!!

I always buy freeze dried peas and corn Worth the cost. And...with home dried items - keep it uniform in size for best results. I'll add that bags of frozen veggies work great - the vegetables are precooked. Just spread and dry!