What brands of Dehydrators has everyone had good luck with?
Features to look for when shopping for one?
Features to look for when shopping for one?
Dehydrator
- Thread starter JEM
- Start date
Mine is made by Mr.Coffee. (Sams had them a couple of years ago) It has multiple stack trays with a insert that lets you dehydrating liquids. Salsa or tomato sauce mainly is what I use that for.
Get one with a fan to circulate the air and if you want to get fancy a temp control, I don't have temp control on mine and the fan has just one setting .... RUN.
Plug it and go.
I have dried just about everything with it and it does a good job. Strawberries or peaches sure make the place smell good. Plus they aren't bad reconstituted and cooked in some pancakes in the morning when out camping. Or just used as a snck when paddling.
Chuck.
Get one with a fan to circulate the air and if you want to get fancy a temp control, I don't have temp control on mine and the fan has just one setting .... RUN.
Plug it and go.
I have dried just about everything with it and it does a good job. Strawberries or peaches sure make the place smell good. Plus they aren't bad reconstituted and cooked in some pancakes in the morning when out camping. Or just used as a snck when paddling.
Chuck.
Disregard brand (Popiel makes darned near all of'em anyway) and go for features. As Chuckie sez, get one with a fan.
My best one has trays that the fan blows the air across from one end. It also has a thermostat. Cheaper ones stack and have the air flow from bottom to top. Large price jump form stacked vertically to a flat air-flow lay out.
Follow their directions for a while, then experiment. Look at it this way: primitive men and women dried food successfully on sticks over a smudgy fire. The low heat and air flow are the two main ingredients. Smoke was a necessary by-product that actually had benefits - kept flies away, tasted good, and added a preservative.
Some modern folks are goosey about smoke on food, possible carcinogens etc. I look at it this way, our ancestors developed and thrived on the stuff. It's been field tested for maybe 50,000 years. I give that more credence than I do some tofu-eating lab rat. You make your own decisions for our own body.
Things you can dehydrate include: mushrooms, tomato slices, tomato sauce (pizza sauce, ketchup, etc), fruits (apple, peach, cherries, etc.), vegetables (squash, peas, green beans, kernel corn, carrots, etc.), meats, & breads. Lesse, I think that takes in all the food groups except fats.
I get winter squash & nuke it. Let it cool and use a grapefruit spoon to remove the meat. Spread it out on plastic wrap & dry to a leather. Peel it off & dry the backside too. Cut into small pieces so it reconstitutes easily with hot water in a Ziploc bag. It comes back to regular squash.
I dry pineapple rings and give'em to Kati. Actually, "give" is a misnomer. try to keep her from gobbling them all down at once is more accurate.
My best one has trays that the fan blows the air across from one end. It also has a thermostat. Cheaper ones stack and have the air flow from bottom to top. Large price jump form stacked vertically to a flat air-flow lay out.
Follow their directions for a while, then experiment. Look at it this way: primitive men and women dried food successfully on sticks over a smudgy fire. The low heat and air flow are the two main ingredients. Smoke was a necessary by-product that actually had benefits - kept flies away, tasted good, and added a preservative.
Some modern folks are goosey about smoke on food, possible carcinogens etc. I look at it this way, our ancestors developed and thrived on the stuff. It's been field tested for maybe 50,000 years. I give that more credence than I do some tofu-eating lab rat. You make your own decisions for our own body.
Things you can dehydrate include: mushrooms, tomato slices, tomato sauce (pizza sauce, ketchup, etc), fruits (apple, peach, cherries, etc.), vegetables (squash, peas, green beans, kernel corn, carrots, etc.), meats, & breads. Lesse, I think that takes in all the food groups except fats.
I get winter squash & nuke it. Let it cool and use a grapefruit spoon to remove the meat. Spread it out on plastic wrap & dry to a leather. Peel it off & dry the backside too. Cut into small pieces so it reconstitutes easily with hot water in a Ziploc bag. It comes back to regular squash.
I dry pineapple rings and give'em to Kati. Actually, "give" is a misnomer. try to keep her from gobbling them all down at once is more accurate.
As some of us age to a point where we are considered by others to be "dried out old farts" the practice of dehydrating food becomes more attractive. Notice who responded to this post.....in the order they responded.... :lol:
I love my dehydrator..........boiled potatoes in slices......raw celery.....slices of onions.....all the stuff you need to make stew on the trail. Really easy to use and saves canning little bits of stuff.
Mine is round, blower, on-off switch....4 trays...cleans up easy and has made a ton of jerky from all sorts of stuff that had hair on it in life. If it had feathers, I don't dry it. I think mine cost $59 about ten years ago, saved that much in vegitables easy.
Jack, every tried the dehydrated Scotch? Send me a bottle of that Loch Inverness you have squirreled away and I'll dry it for you.
Piper
I love my dehydrator..........boiled potatoes in slices......raw celery.....slices of onions.....all the stuff you need to make stew on the trail. Really easy to use and saves canning little bits of stuff.
Mine is round, blower, on-off switch....4 trays...cleans up easy and has made a ton of jerky from all sorts of stuff that had hair on it in life. If it had feathers, I don't dry it. I think mine cost $59 about ten years ago, saved that much in vegitables easy.
Jack, every tried the dehydrated Scotch? Send me a bottle of that Loch Inverness you have squirreled away and I'll dry it for you.
Piper
Here in southern Michigan, Piper-san, is a small town named Hell. In the winter it freezes over. and ... you STILL ain't gonna get my bottle of Scotch - except form my cold, dead fingers. (But you do get a point for sneakiness.)islandpiper said:
We've got the stacking kind, fan on the bottom. Does a decent job. My favorite thing is dehydrated watermelon. :shock: Yep, I said that right. If you cut 1" cubes you end up with a gummy piece about 1/4" high, but it's sweet as can be. We also grow a lot of herbs in the garden. Every couple years we plant a large batch of basil, then dry it as whole leaf and store it in ziplocs. As long as you don't crush it, it retains its aromatic properties practically forever. Similarly with rosemary, oregano, etc. Also grow and dry catnip for the kitties. Oh yeah, when drying apple rings, add a little cinnamon powder over the top. Really adds a lot (wife's idea).
Plus all the usual things the guys said above. Considering the collected age up there, I'm surprised no one mentioned prunes. :lol: :lol:
Plus all the usual things the guys said above. Considering the collected age up there, I'm surprised no one mentioned prunes. :lol: :lol:
jcubero said:
Thought someone said something about Jack? :lol:
BY ......... the way Piper ... I noticed that the gentlemen answered before the rest of the troops. NOT by age ... I am only 29
and do occasionally lie about things , but not all the time about my age. :roll: There are a lot of items in the grocery store already dried for our use. Onions , Garlic , spices , beans , rice and you know the rest , just go shopping.
I like Hopping John when I am camping so besides the rice , beans and onions it calls for I add some spices , dried bell pepper and celery.
I put some of the mix in a Nalgene 32 oz bottle , add the water , cap it off , and then toss it down in the canoe while I paddle during the day. Letting it roll around while paddling .
At camp in the evening everything is rehydrated and ready to go into a pot , a small can (tuna size ) of ham is added , everything is heated and supper is ready.
Chuck.
Uncle Jack, away up in da UP dere's a town named Paradise.....and it freezes over in the summer!! The cosmos is still in balance !!
If it came to me to pry the bottle of Scotch from your cold, dead fingers it would be to share it around at your wake. I'd not take a drop till it had been around one full turn. You'd do the same for me.
Piper
If it came to me to pry the bottle of Scotch from your cold, dead fingers it would be to share it around at your wake. I'd not take a drop till it had been around one full turn. You'd do the same for me.
Piper
I use a stack-able, fan on top model. Works pretty good.
Has anyone else tried dehydrating sour cream? It works but it takes a LONG time....
Has anyone else tried dehydrating sour cream? It works but it takes a LONG time....
Haven't tried the sour cream. Will throw some into the next batch. Blueberries take forever if you don't slightly crush them to break the skin.
I sliced some Roma tomatoes and dried them. Thrown into tomato sauce, they thicken it nicely. Samo-samo for in chili.
I have a peeler-corer-slicer for apples. Brings them out like a long, vegetable slinky, then you cut down the center of the stack to have a gaggle of crescents. Put them into a solution of Fruit Fresh to deter browning, and sprinkle on some cinnamon & dry them. Best for me is Granny Smiths or Mutsus, both green apples.
You can dry canned stuff too, just like fresh. Dried niblet corn is good to chew on like peanuts. So are dried peas. Add dried peas, corn, carrots, onions, etc. to water and toss in diced jerky - VOILA' vegetable beef zoup!
Add dried bell peppers and dried onions to corn bread and steam bake it. Double easy.
Tex-Mex Cornbread
1 cup yellow corn meal
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
½ Tsp salt
2 Tbsp oil
1 tsp sugar
1 egg, beaten (or equivalent made of powdered egg)
1 can (8 oz) cream style corn
½ cup milk (½ cup water + 3 Tbsp powdered milk USE ONLY 1/3 cup water if steam baking}
4 oz (1 cup) shredded cheese
1 small onion chopped
2-3 Tbsp jalapenos or peeled green chilies
8" SQR pan greased, 450F 20-30 minutes; or steam 35-40 minutes
I sliced some Roma tomatoes and dried them. Thrown into tomato sauce, they thicken it nicely. Samo-samo for in chili.
I have a peeler-corer-slicer for apples. Brings them out like a long, vegetable slinky, then you cut down the center of the stack to have a gaggle of crescents. Put them into a solution of Fruit Fresh to deter browning, and sprinkle on some cinnamon & dry them. Best for me is Granny Smiths or Mutsus, both green apples.
You can dry canned stuff too, just like fresh. Dried niblet corn is good to chew on like peanuts. So are dried peas. Add dried peas, corn, carrots, onions, etc. to water and toss in diced jerky - VOILA' vegetable beef zoup!
Add dried bell peppers and dried onions to corn bread and steam bake it. Double easy.
Tex-Mex Cornbread
1 cup yellow corn meal
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
½ Tsp salt
2 Tbsp oil
1 tsp sugar
1 egg, beaten (or equivalent made of powdered egg)
1 can (8 oz) cream style corn
½ cup milk (½ cup water + 3 Tbsp powdered milk USE ONLY 1/3 cup water if steam baking}
4 oz (1 cup) shredded cheese
1 small onion chopped
2-3 Tbsp jalapenos or peeled green chilies
8" SQR pan greased, 450F 20-30 minutes; or steam 35-40 minutes
When I do corn I use some bridal vial cut to fit the tray. This way when the corn dries it does not fall thru the openings in the tray and is a lot easier to bag up when it is on that bridal vial. Works good with green peas also.
Some pieces do want to stick to it but nothing like not using it.
Chuck.
Some pieces do want to stick to it but nothing like not using it.
Chuck.
I just got a pretty nice one off of e-bay. 500w with the fan on top.
I figured I saved about $30 off of retail even with shipping.
I'll try some fresh fruit first, then get into drying meats.
I figured I saved about $30 off of retail even with shipping.
I'll try some fresh fruit first, then get into drying meats.
Matt,
With a dehydrator, a smoker, and a vac-bagger (food saver) you can make & store your own camp foods.
Another option - might be tastier and smarter - is to ask Mz Jean to box'em up for you. HER stuff works every time. Mine ... doesn't quite have that record. But, I have fun diddling around with it.
With a dehydrator, a smoker, and a vac-bagger (food saver) you can make & store your own camp foods.
Another option - might be tastier and smarter - is to ask Mz Jean to box'em up for you. HER stuff works every time. Mine ... doesn't quite have that record. But, I have fun diddling around with it.
Hi guys, please excuse my ignorance, but I have never heard of one of these things. Can sombody post a link or a piccie please.
Can sombody post a link or a piccie please.Here is just one of them. Rectangle style.
http://www.excaliburdehydrator.com/
A round stackable one.
http://shopping.msn.com/prices/shp/?itemId=75874052
Chuck.
http://www.excaliburdehydrator.com/
A round stackable one.
http://shopping.msn.com/prices/shp/?itemId=75874052
Chuck.
Thanks for the replies fellers. A big help.
Jack, Traditional aboriginal bush tucker does not include preserving food. They had no need to be that advanced. Our aboriginies consisted mostly of small, isolated, nomadic family groups that loosely tied together to form tribes in times of war or for ceramonial activiies.
There was an abundance of food readily available all year. We don't have the harsh winters so prevalant in the northern hemisphere. They would move on to another area before depleting the supply too much.
I
Jack, Traditional aboriginal bush tucker does not include preserving food. They had no need to be that advanced. Our aboriginies consisted mostly of small, isolated, nomadic family groups that loosely tied together to form tribes in times of war or for ceramonial activiies.
There was an abundance of food readily available all year. We don't have the harsh winters so prevalant in the northern hemisphere. They would move on to another area before depleting the supply too much.
I
I'll be danged! I thought most primitive societies did food drying. I learned something - day wasn't wasted.
You can jerk (dry) any non-fatty meat. Fish, chicken, turkey, pheasant, etc, deer, squirrel, buffalo, beef, etc. If you don't have a smoker, get a bottle of liquid smoke and cheat a bit.
Dried food has been used for tens of thousands of years. Helluva lot of field data. Fruit leathers are really good. Crush berries with some sugar into a gooey mess. Spread it on plastic wrap in the dryer. Dry a few hours & peel off the wrap & turn it over to dry back side. Cut into handy strips & wrap.
You can jerk (dry) any non-fatty meat. Fish, chicken, turkey, pheasant, etc, deer, squirrel, buffalo, beef, etc. If you don't have a smoker, get a bottle of liquid smoke and cheat a bit.
Dried food has been used for tens of thousands of years. Helluva lot of field data. Fruit leathers are really good. Crush berries with some sugar into a gooey mess. Spread it on plastic wrap in the dryer. Dry a few hours & peel off the wrap & turn it over to dry back side. Cut into handy strips & wrap.
That fella from Marquette, Michigan can probably vouch for this. In Iron County, further inland and drier than Marquette it was really COLD IN THE WINTER.....AND ZERO PERCENT HUMIDITY. you could cook beans or stew or whatever and spread it out on a cookie sheet and put it in the sun at minus 25 degrees F..and it would freeze dry.
Dry your blueberries or cranberries by blanching them in boiling water very quickly, removes the wax coating and they dry better.
Piper
Dry your blueberries or cranberries by blanching them in boiling water very quickly, removes the wax coating and they dry better.
Piper
Thanks. Reckon that dip in hot water would speed up drying goobers? Or, would muriatic acid work better? ;-}}islandpiper said:
(Your turn, Piper-san. "With five rounds, load and lock!")