Topic: dehydrator

[ACE]

We have just got one and are playing with it using strawberries, banana, pineapple and tomatoes. Any tips?  Does the stuff go crispy or should it still have a bit of bend in it like our bananas? How thick do you slice things? All advice will be welcome, Oh, and how about storage?

[gwynleg]

HI Ace am sort of bumping this in hope you get a response or two. I haven't got a dehydrator but am quite interested in one so hope someone who does will reply!

[okra]

We got one last year and have so far dried strawberries, pineapple, bananas, yacon and apple. We cut produce to about 1/4 inch thick and dry till crispy which allows for longer storage. We found that the sheets that go onto the trays are very useful to stop produce sticking to the wiremesh. For storage we bought the mason type jars with the seal and clip which were quite cheap at Wilkos. Nothing we have dehydrated has yet lasted over 6 months as we have eaten it all. We have had a bumper strawberry crop this year and have so far filled two jars so they should last for quite some time and have even made some into fruit leathers by pureeing and spreading thinly over the sheet to dry. Once dried the leather can be rolled up and cut into chunks - delicious. We might try the leathers with combinations of fruits. We are also going to attempt to make our own bouillion once the allotment produce is ready to harvest. Another idea is soup mixes.

[ACE]

Still playing with ours. Banana, pineapple, apples and strawberries were perfect and they get chucked in the granola each morning. Tomatoes iffy but they got used in a chillie. apricot and grapes went mouldy after a few days. She now has a vacuum storage appliance which will be used soon to see if the stuff stores a bit longer. On the subject of vaccum storage it really saves a lot of space in the freezer. Bags are pricey but can be re-used if careful. It is one of those cheapies you get from Lidl.

The very first early spuds were vacuum packed and frozen to be used with our xmas dinner.

[Digeroo]

I have heard that dried courgettes are nice, either to add to soups and stews or just to eat as a snack.  I do love dried mango.  We have loads of apples on the way.

How long does it take? 

Can you recommend a product?

[jennym]

I used to use a dryer for plum tomatoes, cut lengthways and scraped out the pips with my thumb. Dried them until just before they got hard, they still had a bit of give in them. Then I froze them. I mostly used them to make a version of "sun-dried" tomatoes, using a dressing oil, vinegar, garlic herbs and pepper, you can mess about till you get a dressing you like the taste of. I never kept it very long, it got eaten. A lot, lot cheaper than buying sun dried tomatoes in dressing in the supermarket.

[sparrow]

Dried courgettes are brilliant. I have an Andrew James model and it's been fine. I slice the courgettes 2mm thick, sprinkle with lemon salt & pepper and leave till they are crispy. Stored in a kilner jar they are a perfect snack with some garlicky tzatziki. I don't freeze anything I have dehydrated - it gets stored in jars.

[Jayb]

I'm still learning what to do with mine. I've not tried drying courgettes yet, but will use Sparrows method later on, thanks  . I've got the oblong Andrew James model, I find it great for drying tomatoes, the large ones need to be cut not too thickly otherwise they take too long to dry. Once they are done I freeze them in batches in bags, they don't take up much space and it's easy to grab some to use in bread, soups, casseroles etc.

We had loads of field mushrooms last year and they worked really well in the dehydrator, I've still got some left to use in a large preserving jar.