Try drying dry fried, puff ball mushrooms and you will never complain again about sprouts. When I dry stuff it is CRISPY when done. It does not matter, vegetable or fruit. Even tomatoes. I slice thin! I put it in airtight bags, suck the air out. They only lose their crispness, sometimes, when opened. I have some very old Mountain house #10 cans which I don't open until ready to use in relatively short order. They are nitrogen packed and DECADES old. I think O2 absorbers are needed for fat/oil containing items. I just opened a can of cheese omlette. I mix it with water and put in the microwave, stir, put in again. It tastes fine but everyone wants fresh eggs over these for consistency. Absorbing the oxygen keeps things from going rancid and, like I said, these were from the eighties. (19 not 18 : ) Minerals remain. Vitamins will expire eventually. I let a friend taste some home dried winter squash chips. She loved them. They were sweet and crisp from last year. She asked how much sugar I used and I told her none. If the items are flavorful, the flavor just intensifies.
I know that blanching this stuff killed the enzymes (that's the point of blanching.) The stuff I read re: O2 absorbers is all over the place. I just read a website on the use of Mylar bags. They make no mention of desiccants, they use O2 absorbers for everything, and generally admonish against storing anything that has a fat content to it. Yet I'm been on forums where they use desiccants for everything and claim "I've never sealed anything that needs an O2 absorber." I find the same confusion regarding whether not not to blanch fruits. My Excalibur guide says "No," while some websites say to blanch apples, bananas and a few other things. I'll just dip them in the sodium bisulfate solution so as to keep the enzymes alive. Maybe there is no wrong way to do this stuff. Regarding my current stuff: I've been pulling out the broccoli and the sprouts as they dry--as you say---to a crisp. My stuff is never finished anywhere near the time tables. It's been over 17 hours and there are still pieces in there that were supposed to be done in 10-12 hours...and I have a nice Excalibur. I got a batch of asparagus--and then some fruit--waiting for the stinky stuff to get done before I put them in.
Aren't your desiccants to keep things dry to keep mold from forming? I never had anything that dried to a crisp through and through mold. When exposed to air, some becomes pliable but never moldy. But maybe some places are so humid as to have it be of concern.?
Yes, you are correct. Some sites say to never use both because the o2 absorbers need the moisture in the air to activate, and the desiccant [obviously] disrupts the humidity. Other sites say to put the o2 absorber at one end of the package and the desiccant at the other, as though the physical distance will allow both to do their jobs. I'll likely use the o2 absorbers in everything but sugar & flour (and maybe powdered milk), as I read that those products clump if the oxygen is removed. Oh, and Don Alaska said to not use them in the seeds I use to make sprouts with. I'm probably worrying about nothing, since I'll not be storing stuff beyond a year or two.
@John Brunner we have never used Mylar bags, desiccants or O2 absorbers with our own produce. I think the O2 absorbers reduce oxidation and kill anything living in the stuff you are bagging, so it is really good for grains and things like that, which may have dormant critters awaiting a meal. Our own stuff that we dry is just sealed tightly in a freezer bag or other ziplock type of bag after it is dried. I sometimes use the desiccants to keep seeds that I am storing dry, and it will allow me to freeze the seeds after they have been stored in the dry environment for a while. The O2 absorbers will kill the seeds just like it will kill weevils and such, so, while the seeds will still be edible, the will not germinate if they have been stored long anaerobically. As far as blanching goes, blanch all veggies except peppers, as peppers do not contain the "breakdown enzyme". With fruit, we dip most fruits, such as apples, in a vitamin C solution, citric acid solution, or dilute lemon juice to reduce surface oxidation before drying, but we do not blanch them, as that can make them mushy and more difficult to dry. Anything that is properly dried can them be frozen to extend the life of the product even longer. That is how we do things, but there may be other ways that work just as well.
Thanks, Don. I think maybe I'm confusing myself because so many sites are either (a) copy/paste machines with value-detract, or (b) geared towards 10+ years of storage. The Excalubur guide does not go down the rabbit hole of advanced storage techniques...they only recommend canning jars & ziploc bags, making no mention of mylar bags, desiccants and O2 absorbers. The guide states that pre-treatment is not essential, although "it will help preserve color, nutrients and texture. " When I first got my machine, I did a batch of fruits and dipped them in a diluted lemon juice bath and they came out fine, but I did not store them long. I was surprised to see people recommend blanching fruits for the very reason you cite...it seems like a lot of structure would be lost. The Excalibur guide only recommends blanching for crazing tough-skinned fruits and veggies. I dehydrated grapes when I first got my dehydrator, and I did not craze them. The dehydrating process took several days...but they were good. I steam-blanched the broccoli, brussel sprouts and asparagus I just did and put sodium bisulfate in the water. Excalibur recommends sodium bisulfate as a dip treatment for fruits, and only as a steam-blanching additive for veggies. I'm not sure if I'll use the s.b. or lemon juice for the fruits I'm going to dehydrate. And I may do some more green veggies. I'm not even gonna taste-test them first...I just want to have the nutrients (and calories) on hand.
I bought an Excalibur 9 tray dehydrator when COVID hit and I was in an Appliance Acquisition mode. I played with it a little bit, and dehydrated a bunch of fruits (pineapple, apple, kiwi, banana, etc.) I bought other ingredients (M&Ms, nuts, sunflower seeds, etc) and made trail mix. It was very good and--like all homemade food--tasted way fresher than store bought. I've been asking for help on long-term storage of dehydrated in non-related threads, so though I'd start a dedicated one. The first few comments may lack a context, since they've been moved from other threads. Thanks for the help, @Yvonne Smith
I've been trying to figure this out myself, and I'm not sure exactly how to do the math. But since I already own the dehydrator, I've just been dehydrating my own. Comments on Amazon regarding the ingredients and lack of quality of store-bought have also driven me to just do my own (and you can taste the difference.) Also, keep in mind that dried fruits are still pliable and soft, while dehydrating removes all moisture for long-term storage. I guess you could stop at whatever stage of dryness suits you, but I've not played with it that much.
I just came across an old post of mine. This is 2 years old, but here is the result of a dehydrated whole pineapple that cost me $2 back then:
Wife and I have been talking about trying to dehydrate using the Nuwave if my memory holes correct it can take up to 17 hours, I don't know if we can part with it for that long we use it a lot, example we're going to cook a steak in it tonight I like using it because of the meat thermometer that comes with it, just plug it into the steak and it turns the machine off when it reaches predetermined temperature a nice function. We were wondering at what stage of ripeness do you dehydrate a banana. Can you dehydrate soft and blackened bananas?
I would not dehydrate spoiled fruit. I can't imagine the intensified flavor of an over-ripe banana. 90% of the web says not too...they will not dry out & will remain sticky, meaning they will not last. I guess if you like the flavor, and plan to eat them soon, there's no reason why not. But it does not sound like they will be shelf-stable for very long. Your mention of that NuWave reminds me of when you first joined. I think that was one of the first conversations we had. You know, you can use your conventional oven to dehydrate. I've seen instructions for setting a low temp and putting stuff on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. The two sites I just looked at said to leave the oven door propped open 2"-4" (probably to let the humidity escape) for the 8-10 hours they say it will take...but everyone says to use ripe bananas. They also recommend setting a fan by the door to circulate the air. Here's one of those sites. Link I saw search results that explained how to dehydrate bananas in air fryers,too.
Thanks I'll check it out, the Nuwave has an air fryer setting so I think I'm set I'm going to check out the website you recommended.
That reminds me. Food grade diatomaceous earth tossed like in a salad, keeps bugs from becoming a problem. Just a little goes a long way. When I put up my first winter wheat, I did not know about this. I opened a can a couple years later and found a slimy gelatinous mass of generations of bugs. And no, did not make soup with it.
I am sorry! I am falling behind on SOC. Must say, your dehydrator is impressive. I think mine were used Ron Popeil models. they look like a round, clear plastic box with with many shelves, with slides to increase/decrease air flow. Then there is, what looks like, a bent metal clothes hanger around the bottom that is the heat element. Heats to about an old 60 watt bulb heat.
Here's the stuff I just dehydrated. I wish I had weighed it after I trimmed it. I steam-blanched these with sodium bisulphite in the water. Asparagus Started out with 4# (64 oz.) Ended up 2.4 oz. dried Much of the weight was lost when I snapped off the ends. A trimmed raw weight might be 45 oz. Estimated weight loss: 95% Broccoli (inc'l stalks) Started out with 3.5# (56 oz.) Ended up 4.1 oz. dried Some was lost during pre-dehydrating trimming, but not all that much....maybe 4 oz. Estimated weight loss: 92% Brussel Sprouts Started out with 2# (32 oz.) Ended up 4.5 oz.dried Only the very ends of the bases were trimmed before dehydrating. Estimated weight loss: 85% By way of reference, 50%-60% of our body weight is water.