Food Dehydrating

Discussion in 'Crops & Gardens' started by John Brunner, Aug 31, 2020.

  1. Mary Stetler

    Mary Stetler Veteran Member
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    It is one of my 'weeds'. I am eating more of the 'weeds' than my actual vegetables in the garden. They grow without planting are ready to eat sooner.:rolleyes:
     
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  2. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    I dehydrated some kiwi a few days ago and left the peel on. I don't like them but I'll eat them. I don't know if I got a flavorless batch or if the peel is giving it a funny flavor. I bought a second container of kiwi (you can't buy bulk anymore) and will peel these before dehydrating, as I've done before. I hate to do it because of the nutrient loss (I never peel my potatoes), but...

    I dehydrated oranges for the first time yesterday. They are OK, but are more tart than I expected. The peel is still on, so that might add some bitterness...but I expected the sugars to concentrate more. Maybe I'll melt some Ghirardelli dark chocolate in the double boiler and dip them.

    There's a watermelon on the counter waiting for the dehydrator to free up (it's in line behind the bell peppers), and I just threw in some strawberries this morning (I finally got a chance to use that OXO huller I bought 10 years ago.) Their smell has replaced apples as my favorite.
     
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  3. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    It's amazing how much water makes up the volume of food.

    Peppers dehydrated.jpg
     
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  4. Yvonne Smith

    Yvonne Smith Senior Staff
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    This book, called edible wild plants in North America, is 99 cents on Amazon today in the kindle version.

    https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09M75JGPL?tag=bg-u00-20
     
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  5. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    I made my first (and last) batch of dehydrated watermelon. It did not agree with me at all. OMG. What a horrible night I had. I'm still not right.

    I know the watermelon itself was good because I ate several slices with no ill effects as I was prepping it for the dehydrator. Most fruits take almost a full day in the dehydrator until the last piece is finished. The high water content of the watermelon stretched out the process even further. I noticed that an early sample "disagreed with me." The last bits finished late last night and I had another small piece. Big mistake.

    I really don't think there was anything else I ate that could account for my reaction. The internet says that the high sugar and water content of watermelon can sometimes affect people like that. Obviously, the water had been removed, but it sure did taste sweet. The sugar was almost crystallized on the surface.

    I will not be doing that again.
     
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  6. Mary Stetler

    Mary Stetler Veteran Member
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    :(
     
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  7. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    For what went on last night, I deserve tears. Thank goodness I always keep an unexpired bottle of the pink stuff on hand.

    But for all the things I've dehydrated, it's the only real "Fail" I've had, except for some hippie-endorsed kiwi/spinach/chia leather.
     
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  8. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    The other day I read one of the dehydrating sites and they were talking about cooking pasta and then dehydrating it. It sounds silly, but apparently it takes less water (and less time) to rehydrate pasta that's been cooked & dehydrated than it does to make it from scratch. This advice was mainly for campers & hikers.

    Interesting, huh?

    Now that I type this, I wish I had posted a question regarding cooking the pasta in sauce and then dehydrating it. Would those flavors come through when you rehydrate it in the field?
     
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  9. Beth Gallagher

    Beth Gallagher Supreme Member
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    Good grief. Just get some of this to go with the stash...

    upload_2022-7-18_12-56-30.png
     
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  10. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    Can I get that on Prime?
     
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  11. Kate Ellery

    Kate Ellery Supreme Member
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    I didn’t like Dried water melon at all ….. 06BC76F6-F477-4276-AF45-A448F8739048.gif nor do I like fresh WM , I can’t really eat any melons they make me feel like I’ve eaten a 6 course meal ..bloated / horrible @John Brunner

    I’m missing from today ..heading to Queensland for a month see ya all in a week or so….trip is about
    2200 km each way
     
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  12. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    Have a safe trip,@Kate Ellery ! That's a very very long drive.
     
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  13. Beth Gallagher

    Beth Gallagher Supreme Member
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    #223
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  14. Kate Ellery

    Kate Ellery Supreme Member
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    I’ve dried celery quite successfully John I use it in the winter months for stews / casseroles and find it handy if I’ve decided to make a stew / soup what ever and I don’t want to drive into town just to get celery
     
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  15. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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