Topic: food dehydrator

[littlebabybird]

any one use one?  i use the oven

which ones best (hubby loves gagets)


lbb

[Baccy Man]

You can make your own food dehydrator for a fraction of the cost of buying one.
Mine is based on these plans which are simple but effective:
http://www.alpharubicon.com/prepinfo/dehydratorstryder.htm

Here are a couple of other designs:
http://www.k-clements.fsnet.co.uk/dehydrator.html
http://www.backwoodshome.com/articles/hooker41.html

[PurpleHeather]

I read and re-read this and all I could think of was salmonella.

 

[littlebabybird]

I read and re-read this and all I could think of was salmonella.

 

PurpleHeather would you feel better about these?
http://www.juiceland.co.uk/cat--Food-Dehydrators--Dehydrators.html

lbb

[artichoke]

I looked at all those plans last year, then realised that they boiled down to an electric fan oven set very low. Which I have.

So I have masses of apple rings dried over night in the fan oven. This year, I will dehydrate more things, as the apples were so successful. We have one of those gadgets that show how much electricity you are using, and the fan oven, set to fan only, or minimum heat, is very economical.

[littlebabybird]

so i stick with the oven then?

lbb

[PurpleHeather]

I have looked at it and don't think I will bother investing.

I do have a fan assisted oven and may consider trying home made prunes if the plums meet with the promise of the blossom on the trees. Dried tomatoes sounds an interesting idea too.

You never know, a conversion may happen but I would rather try something some one else has made before I would venture into drying meat or fish myself. 

[Sparkly]

So I have masses of apple rings dried over night in the fan oven.

Would bramleys work like this? Just cut the rings and put on a tray on the lowest setting overnight?

[littlebabybird]

So I have masses of apple rings dried over night in the fan oven.

Would bramleys work like this? Just cut the rings and put on a tray on the lowest setting overnight?

i dunk mine in wartered lemon juice first and suspend them on a wooden dowel in the oven
lbb

[Tinkie_Bear]

Hubby got the hump with me having the oven on forever so brought me a dehydrator

http://www1.westfalia.net/suche/index.php?vbSESSID=3a6288b06850be6dd9f90691f9a10a32&suche=suche_hauptseite&suchstring=dehydrator

I haven't used it yet (only got it a couple of months ago) but it uses very little electric and was by far the best price, £26 ish.

He did try to build me a cardboard box invention that went inside the summerhouse, total failure!

Enjoy

Helen x