# dehydrator fun



## Sarah J (Jun 28, 2003)

I played this weekend. My extended family would call it busy, I call it playing. Put up 10 pounds of carrots in the dehydrator (1 quart jar and one half-pint jar at the end), cut the rest of the celery from the garden and ran *that* through the dehydrator, too. We'll be doing lamb jerky next and I have to can up some of the beef that's left-over from previous years. Making room in my refrigerator and freezer for the cow and lamb who went to freezer camp this morning. :dance:


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## moonwolf (Sep 20, 2004)

I use my dehydrator mostly for jerky, though I've also dehydrated vegetable matter such as green beans, and fruits such as wild plums, and of course lots of edible mushrooms. I find the food dehydrator an essential homesteading tool.


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## redneckswife (May 2, 2013)

My first batch of Dehydrated apples ever today:dance:.

Oh my gosh is it addicting, I put some in plain and some in with cinnamon & sugar:happy:.

I should of gotten this thing early in the spring, I would of saved so much freezer space:Bawling:


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## jkhs (Sep 17, 2010)

This summer I followed some advice I received from someone on this board and dehydrated some peach slices-they were TO DIE FOR!


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## redneckswife (May 2, 2013)

Okay, are there any raw fruits or vegetables that I can't slice and put in the dehydrator?

Or I guess what I mean to ask are there any fruits/vegetables that don't dehydrate well uncooked?

Suggestions on dehydrating sweet potatoes?

Can I dehydrate the peels with sugar and cinnamon too(I kept all of them in case you guys said it would work), the peel is my favorite part?

I love this thing:rock:


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## Vosey (Dec 8, 2012)

I also just got a dehydrator this year and love it! Not only is it great for long term food storage but I can make soups and stews so much faster. And without it I think we would have had to buy another freezer!

redneckswife - a few things need to be treated before dehydrating. Potatoes for instance need to be blanched or steamed or they turn black. I think apples and pears need a bath in something (maybe citric acid? I haven't done any). But we dehydrated peaches and strawberry slices this summer beautifully.

If mpennington is around she dehydrates everything and lots of pears and the peelings. And I bet she'd know about sweet potatoes.


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## praieri winds (Apr 16, 2010)

any stone fruit as well as apples need to be treated I like to use lemon juice, I baked my sweet potatoes and cooled completely before slicing thinly then drying tomatoes do great they need to be peeled though or they curl real bad you can dry cooked ground beef and chicken or turkey but watch the drying temp needs to be at least 145 I do herbs and fruits cooler about 110 and yes it is addictive have fun


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## The_rpp (Oct 19, 2013)

Vosey said:


> I also just got a dehydrator this year and love it! Not only is it great for long term food storage but I can make soups and stews so much faster. And without it I think we would have had to buy another freezer!
> 
> redneckswife - a few things need to be treated before dehydrating. Potatoes for instance need to be blanched or steamed or they turn black. I think apples and pears need a bath in something (maybe citric acid? I haven't done any). But we dehydrated peaches and strawberry slices this summer beautifully.
> 
> If mpennington is around she dehydrates everything and lots of pears and the peelings. And I bet she'd know about sweet potatoes.


I have been dehydrating for years. When I first started doing it, I was just trying to save some herbs.

Then, one day, as an experiment, I dried a few pears since I was not going to be able to eat them. I learned I had to soak them briefly in a mild lemon juice or citric acid solution. I decided to add some sugar to the solution. Oh my goodness!!! They were so wonderful!!! I never actually packaged them, I ate them straight out of the dehydrator.

I now own three dehydrators, one with a paltry 6 trays, another with 12 and the other with 20. I have managed to try just about every herb, fruit and vegetable, and, of course jerky, that I eat. I have made many mistakes and have many successes. Here are some lessons I have learned: (YMMV)

For nearly all the things below, you will want to use a medium or medium low heat. For onions and potatoes, go ahead and crank up the heat a bit, but not like you are making jerky. High heat can harm the texture, resist re-hydrating, alter the flavor (herbs!) as well as reduce nutritional value.

*Potatoes.* (sliced, diced or shredded) Blanch in a mild salt water solution. (I have never tried drying cooked potatoes.) Dry completely.

*Apples, pears, peaches, nectarines, pineapples, mango, kiwi.* These must be immersed briefly in a citric acid (or lemon juice) solution. I always use a fair bit of sugar as well, like 1 cup sugar for 2 cups water. (Sugar is a preservative.) I generally do not peel my fruit. (Mangoes and pineapples always get peeled.) Dried to leathery is good. Crispy will store longer.

*Onions, chives, green onions.* Sliced or diced. No special prep. Dry completely.

*Peas, green beans, carrots, corn.* Blanch in salt water. (I have dried commercially packed frozen veggies with no prep, other than thawing, to make space in the freezer.) Dry completely.

*Celery*, sliced or diced, can be dried with no prep. Dry completely.

*Fresh herbs (basil, thyme, parsley, rosemary, oregano, celery greens, sage, dill)* can be dried with no prep except for washing very well. For best results, they must be completely dessicated, crispy and brittle to the touch. *Tip: *If your dehydrator has removable screens, lay a second screen on top of the herbs to keep them from blowing around when drying.

And the best for last...

*Tomatoes*. Immerse in a mild citric acid (or lemon juice) solution, no sugar. Dry until leathery. Do not over-dry, they will not reabsorb moisture. Consider storing in olive oil, perhaps mixed with some basil.

A vacuum sealer is your friend.

There are many other things to try as well. I plan to experiment with making my own dried eggs and pasta, tomato powder, pumpkin powder...

Okay, I suspect I have already told folks here what they already know. I just *love* my dehydrators.


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## Marilyn (Aug 2, 2006)

You might check out Mary Bell's Complete Dehydrator Cookbook. She has several "leather" recipes in there. Pumpkin leather is on my to-do list for tomorrow. Very yummy.


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## The_rpp (Oct 19, 2013)

Marilyn said:


> You might check out Mary Bell's Complete Dehydrator Cookbook. She has several "leather" recipes in there. Pumpkin leather is on my to-do list for tomorrow. Very yummy.


Oh gosh! I love fruit leathers. I completely forgot about them... 

That is a great book, by the way.


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## redneckswife (May 2, 2013)

Okay this is bad. I dehydrated 15lbs. apples. Problem...I ate a whole 2 bags(3 lbs. each)after they had been dehydrated, they never even made it to the bags:sob:.

I started dehydrating bananas yesterday(for banana chips) and I've been sampling for doneness all morning and have ate a whole tray.

At this rate, none will ever make it to the bags:ashamed:


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## 1shotwade (Jul 9, 2013)

How do you keep things like bananas from sticking to the (plastic) trays?

Wade


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## redneckswife (May 2, 2013)

I prepped them with the lemon juice, but they stuck some anyways. I did find out this morning, the longer I'm leaving them(I'm trying to dry to banana chips), the less stuck to the tray they are.

I'm sure there is probably an insert I could of/should of used but I don't know:ashamed:.

Maybe an experienced dehydrater can tell us:thumb:


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## 1shotwade (Jul 9, 2013)

Thanks,*******!

Wade


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## Homesteader (Jul 13, 2002)

redneckswife said:


> Okay this is bad. I dehydrated 15lbs. apples. Problem...I ate a whole 2 bags(3 lbs. each)after they had been dehydrated, they never even made it to the bags:sob:.
> 
> I started dehydrating bananas yesterday(for banana chips) and I've been sampling for doneness all morning and have ate a whole tray.
> 
> At this rate, none will ever make it to the bags:ashamed:


Be careful! You are taking in a bunch of fiber so you really need to drink a lot of water. You might end up being plugged up!


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## The_rpp (Oct 19, 2013)

1shotwade said:


> How do you keep things like bananas from sticking to the (plastic) trays?
> 
> Wade


As redneckswife pointed out, the drier they are, the less sticky they will be, _for some things._ For other things, especially very sweet things, sugar can become like a glue and dehydrating can be like curing glue. Though stiffer & drier things will break loose more easily.

First, *always* use the removable tray liners / screens.

Additionally, it also depends on your tolerance for oil. If you do not mind the trace flavor, you can use a little butter or vegetable oil on the trays. I do not recommend olive oil for its string flavor. Even then, it does not take much. If you have a sprayer, or you want to use a aerosol, that can work very well.

However, I do not like oil on my dehydrated food as *I think* it can impact shelf life. (Oil can go rancid.)

An oil-free option is to use wax paper on your trays. Depending on your dehydrator, this might inhibit airflow. On the other hand, if your dehydrator has the option of using solid trays for fruit leather, then using wax paper is a viable option.

A third possibility is to use silicon liners, like the kind that line cookie sheets.

The final option is to use nothing except the flexible tray liners that come with your dehydrator. I like this option the least as it can leave quite a mess as well as damage the food.

Personally, I like wax paper for things that end up leaking a good deal or are sticky, like my _*peach candy*_ or banana chips.


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## Vosey (Dec 8, 2012)

redneckswife said:


> Okay this is bad. I dehydrated 15lbs. apples. Problem...I ate a whole 2 bags(3 lbs. each)after they had been dehydrated, they never even made it to the bags:sob:.
> 
> I started dehydrating bananas yesterday(for banana chips) and I've been sampling for doneness all morning and have ate a whole tray.
> 
> At this rate, none will ever make it to the bags:ashamed:


My husband is just as bad! He ate all the peaches in 2 days! Banana's don't last long either. And I had planned on dehydrating fruit for long term storage.....


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## The_rpp (Oct 19, 2013)

Here are some other thoughts about dehydrating I will add.

I prefer citric acid to lemon juice concentrate. Nearly all lemon juice concentrate has sulfate in it (check the ingredients). My wife has a sensitivity and I prefer to avoid additives to begin with.

I prefer low/no heat + longer time (except for jerky). This helps preserve the nutritional content and may use less energy (heating takes more than a fan and low/no heat).

Be careful about what else is in the dehydrator. I made the mistake, ONCE, of dehydrating a large batch of apples and a couple of trays of basil. The apples did not affect the flavor of the basil. but the flavor of the apples..., well, they were pretty curious. I am glad it was not onions or chili peppers.

If I will be storing for a long time, I always try to minimize handling the dried product with bare hands. A box of restaurant-pack food-safe gloves is a cheap and easy precaution for me.

While a vacuum sealer is a great thing to store dried product, the bags can be a problem. Some product can be so hard, like apples, they can make small punctures in the bags. I got a jar adapter and now store my dried product in canning jars. I also add an oxygen absorber to the jar.

Peach or Nectarine candy


Several pounds of peaches or nectarines. Washed, pitted but _*un*peeled_.
Pure filtered water.
Sugar, 1-1/4 cup per cup of water.
1/4 teaspoon of powdered citric acid per cup of water.


Mix sugar and water (ratio 1 1/4 cup sugar to 1 cup water). You will need to heat the water to dissolve sugar.
When water has cooled to tepid or just warm to the touch, add the citric acid. Do not let the water cool as the surgar may come out of solution prematurely.
Slice peaches and add to water. Ensure they are covered.
Refrigerate until quite cool, a couple of hours. Sugar may begin to crystallize on the peaches.
Line dehydrator with wax paper. Put in dehydrator on low heat, < 110. Run until leathery to not quite brittle. (8 - 16 hours depending on ambient humidity.)


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## The_rpp (Oct 19, 2013)

Homesteader said:


> Be careful! You are taking in a bunch of fiber so you really need to drink a lot of water. You might end up being plugged up!


Or, in my case, a bit the other way. :ashamed:


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## The_rpp (Oct 19, 2013)

redneckswife said:


> Okay this is bad. I dehydrated 15lbs. apples. Problem...I ate a whole 2 bags(3 lbs. each)after they had been dehydrated, they never even made it to the bags:sob:.
> 
> I started dehydrating bananas yesterday(for banana chips) and I've been sampling for doneness all morning and have ate a whole tray.
> 
> At this rate, none will ever make it to the bags:ashamed:


This is why, at least for me, I always try to eat a really big meal just before I empty my dehydrator. Otherwise, nothing would make from the dehydrator to the containers. :gaptooth:

Oh, and I have to hide them from the rest of the family for a while. Between me an my wife, we would never get anything put up.


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## Vosey (Dec 8, 2012)

Thanks for all the great tips and recipe The_rpp! Very useful for all us newbies.


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## mpennington (Dec 15, 2012)

redneckswife said:


> Suggestions on dehydrating sweet potatoes?


Redneckswife, I just posted on your thread about sweet potatoes. I haven't tried dehydrating sweet potato peels as I always cook my sweet potatoes first to facilitate peeling and send the peels to the compost. I have dehydrated apple, pear, carrot, potato and onion peels. I use the veggie peels to make broth and powder the fruit peels to add fiber and flavor to quick breads, muffins and smoothies.

Sweet potato peels would definitely dehydrate. Try a few sprinkled with cinnamon, dip some in pear juice then sprinkle with cinnamon and toss some with cinnamon sugar. Then you'll know which you prefer. I don't use sugar much in dehydrated items as the products take longer to dehydrate and tend to be sticky in our climate. Also one of my grandsons is allergic to processed sugar and he loves to snack on anything dehydrated when he visits. I use pineapple and pear juice frequently to sweeten. 

Sent from my BNTV600 using Homesteading Today mobile app


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