Cucumber candy flavored with cherry. . . when I make up a batch of granola I like to add in dried "fruits" along with all the other goodies & its a good way of using up the excess.
I've seen dehydrating vids . Doesn't look to hard. What's the hardest part? Is it preparation of the food? I have been talking to wife about getting a dehydrating unit. What would I look for?
I've seen dehydrating vids . Doesn't look to hard. What's the hardest part? Is it preparation of the food? I have been talking to wife about getting a dehydrating unit. What would I look for?
Prep is the most difficult part but not really difficult. It just takes a bit of time. I've had a nesco from walmart and have 2 of the 5 tray excaluburs. The nesco didn't last very long but worked pretty well.
I dehydrated celery tops, I'm not sure what I will do with them, but they should be good for some kind of seasoning, perhaps a soup, or add a little sea salt, and make them into celery salt, and then pour the V8 juice, Tabasco, a dash of vodka, a little Worcester... or is that a dash of Worcester and a little vodka, and a little more for taste....
Prep is the most difficult part but not really difficult. It just takes a bit of time. I've had a nesco from walmart and have 2 of the 5 tray excaluburs. The nesco didn't last very long but worked pretty well.
Ok thanks, Is it similar to canning, as far as the preparation goes. I have seen how much work goes Into that as my wife started to do canning 2 years ago.
I like to dry vegetables because I find them easier to carry and less bulkier than mason jars and easier than the canning process ,I make my own soup mixes with carrots ,green beans and tomatoes and a chicken cube or a piece of dry meat(jerky) ,I like sweet dry ginger also, it has been used to help digestion, reduce nausea and helps to fight the flu and common cold, to name a few, I like it as candy or in tea .
I haven`t dry much lately since my vacuum machine broke so I keep what I got in the freezer for now ,but is a great way to keep food for an emergency .
Ok thanks, Is it similar to canning, as far as the preparation goes. I have seen how much work goes Into that as my wife started to do canning 2 years ago.
It depends on what your drying. I use a food processor to slice most veggies. Bell peppers, onions, strawberries, bananas and such. I slice tomatoes but they are too soft for the food processor (don't slice them thin though). Garlic cloves I use a board scraper to crush. Blue berries have thick skins so I freeze them first because it cracks the skin so they can dry faster. I us Mason jars with a desiccant pack to store and vacuum seal them. I'm still using onions from 2013. I just crush or grind before using.
Today I am doing spaghetti squash. . . have I ever? nope, but figured what the heck. I pierced them with a fork and boiling n water for about 25 minutes whole. Then cut & scrap out seeds. Take fork to get spaghetti out and lay on dehydrating racks. I have a NESCO too, which so far has worked great. Had it for many years now. The second one I have is a Waring with no temp controls. . . takes forever, but eventually gets the job done. Both of these were given to me and beggars cant be Choosey.
I've seen dehydrating vids . Doesn't look to hard. What's the hardest part? Is it preparation of the food? I have been talking to wife about getting a dehydrating unit. What would I look for?
I've seen dehydrating vids . Doesn't look to hard. What's the hardest part? Is it preparation of the food? I have been talking to wife about getting a dehydrating unit. What would I look for?
well I just got another dehydrator -9 now- and and today I'm dehydrating mixed choped greens to add to my diy soup starter should have enough in the end to add with what i got allready to fill 24 quarts and will vaccume all that in the jars
I'm dehydrating more tomatoes & then some spaghetti squash. With some of my dried tomatoes, I boiled equal parts of vinegar & water then poured over till they get softened. Drain. I only did about a 1/2 pint jars worth at a time. Put these in the jar with a garlic clove and cover with olive oil. Now let them sit in the fridge for at least 24 hours, but a week is better. Use them any recipe that calls for the high dollar sun dried tomatoes you would buy at the store. Our store sells them for $11.99 a lb so this is a cheap alternative if you like using them in recipes and have an abundance of tomatoes. Book says that these will last a month in fridge but they will stay good longer. Normally we have used them up before the two month mark.
I found some qtr pound bags of sundried tomatoes at Dollar Tree of all places. I bought a bunch.
I did get a bunch of Meyer's lemons, sliced them into 8ths, salted them heavily with kosher salt, added water, and I keep them in a jar in the fridge. Great for fish, just rinse before using. I don't like dehydrated lemons. They are brown and yuck looking. Bought a #10 can of mushrooms, and getting ready to put those in the dehydrator.
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