new to dehydrating foods

[mattydt20]

My friend who thru-hiked a few years ago is full heartedly suggesting that I start dehydrating foods for my trip. I understand that I can get a cheap machine from walmart for around 40 bucks.
However, I have a few questions before I dive into this.
Am I going to get to camp, open up my food bag, and be disappointed that I'm going to have to rehydrate my food for an hour before I can start to heat it up?
Do I have to vacuum seal the ziplock bag after I dehydrate the food or can I just seal it, freeze it, and forget it?
Any words from experienced hikers is much appreciated!

[orangebug]

Try Big Lots or Tuesday Morning before considering $40 to be cheap. My dehydrator was about $7. I only dry fruit in season, put into ziplocks and freeze. I pop the fruit chips in my mouth and enjoy.

There are those who dehydrate meats and other meals. They can soak stuff in a spare Nalgene during the afternoon, if need be. I rather use my dehydator for snacks, and depend on freeze dried or prepackaged noodle/rice meals, supplemented with commercial dehyrdated jerky and fish.

[Seeker]

i'd hardly call myself an experienced dehydrater, but here is a tale of two foods- one meat, one vegetable. dehydrated, sealed in ziplock bag, but not vacuum packed, and then frozen.

i buy thin strips of meat at the store, all ready to go for drying into jerky. i might have to cut them a little smaller, but even if you don't find that, they'll usually cut it to order for free, once you tell them what you want to do. i then marinate it in something like worchestershire, A-1, teriyaki, or some such sauce, and then hang them in my oven off the racks for a couple hours on the lowest setting with the door partly open. finish in about 2-3 hours, depending on quantity and size of strips... when i think it's done, i take it out and let it cool, check how dry it is, and if it's good, i freeze it in a ziplok bag. no vacuum packing.

i've also made a batch of parched corn, which came out ok, but not great. i will try it again... basically, took a pound of frozen whole kernal corn, spread it on a cookie sheet, and dried in my oven. once done, you roast it on a hot cast iron pan with a little bacon grease until it swells up and looks like a popcorn kernal (not 'pops like popcorn', but swells up to the same size and color as unpopped popcorn. kinda weird, but it works). then i ran it through a blender to make " pinole' ", which old time frontiersman apparently ate a lot of... i mixed it up in water like oatmeal. edible, but not great. sort of a sweetish corn taste, but i may have overcooked it on the grill... i keep it in a ziplock bag, frozen.

[Seeker]

oh. and an old drink mix jar works great for rehydrating stuff while you're walking... just put it in at lunch and it's pretty much done by dinner... if some stuf takes longer, put it in at breakfast...

[Alligator]

My friend who thru-hiked a few years ago is full heartedly suggesting that I start dehydrating foods for my trip. I understand that I can get a cheap machine from walmart for around 40 bucks.
However, I have a few questions before I dive into this.
Am I going to get to camp, open up my food bag, and be disappointed that I'm going to have to rehydrate my food for an hour before I can start to heat it up?I cover mine with water and bring it to a boil. I let it sit for about 10 minutes. I may reheat it some if it is soupy or add a little more water if it looks "tough". 20 minutes tops. I have generally already had my first dinner before my dehydrated one though, so I don't mind the wait. Using a Nalgene works, by pre-soaking, but I find I still have to cook it in camp. I would only use the Nalgene for really "tough" foods, like beans. On the other hand, don't presoak pasta--like from lunch 'til dinner--it gets mushy.

The key here is to cut everything up small so it rehydrates easily. If you have anything with beans, it helps to just coarse mash them, especially chick peas.

Do I have to vacuum seal the ziplock bag after I dehydrate the food or can I just seal it, freeze it, and forget it?!You can seal it, freeze it, and forget it, but it won't last as long. I typically get 4-5 meals out of a batch. I will ziplock 2 and vacuum seal the rest. The ziplocks get eaten first.
Any words from experienced hikers is much appreciated!I recommend a dehydrator with a thermostat. The one I received is too hot and scorches fruit. So I can't do fruit which I would really like to do. I will buy a new one eventually.

[Nightwalker]

There are those who dehydrate meats and other meals. They can soak stuff in a spare Nalgene during the afternoon, if need be.
I duct-taped custom-cut pieces of an old blue foam ground-pad all around a plastic mayo jar, including the lid. Looks funky, but it's kinda like a nalgene cozy that weighs a little less than a nalgene. Put boiling water in with the dehydrato stuff on your last break before supper, and at suppertime you have a warm meal, ready to eat.

Works pretty good.

[fiddlehead]

I like to cook up some black beans at home with lots of hot peppers, don't add too much water and let them get thick. Then spread them out on Saran Wrap on my dehydrator and dry them so that i just add water and heat them up on the trail and have them with rice.
Also, i love to dry brocolli and plum tomatoes to add to my Lipton Dinners. (onion too)
It's easy to do and i just ziplock these things and put them in a cooler in my basement until it's time to hike. They keep a long time (6 months or more)
If i do meat (sometimes i like to dry hamburger to add to these noodle type dinners too) If i do, then i store it in the freezer until it's time to hike. If i'm thru-hiking, i'd have someone send it to me and eat it within a month after it comes out of the freezer. It depends how dry you dry it. I like to not dry things too hard and then they are more tasty on the trail and i never rehydrate these things any more than just cooking them with my noodles or whatever.

[frieden]

Backpack gourmet, by Linda Frederick Yaffe, ISBN 0811726347

I haven't tried it yet, but I have a dehydrator, and plan to dehydrate most of my food. According to the above book, you don't have to pre-soak to rehydrate the meal first. Just put in enough water to cover the food, and "cook". Hopefully, it will work out, because I'm really chemical-sensitive. You can also make a dehydrator with a light bulb. I don't remember if the book has the specs for it, or not. You can find it in magazines like Countryside, etc.

[Alligator]

Backpack gourmet, by Linda Frederick Yaffe, ISBN 0811726347

I haven't tried it yet, but I have a dehydrator, and plan to dehydrate most of my food. According to the above book, you don't have to pre-soak to rehydrate the meal first. Just put in enough water to cover the food, and "cook". Hopefully, it will work out, because I'm really chemical-sensitive. You can also make a dehydrator with a light bulb. I don't remember if the book has the specs for it, or not. You can find it in magazines like Countryside, etc.I dehydrate all my dinners. If you precut all of your food to the right size and cook it to the right consistency before dehydrating presoaking is generally not needed. Getting this right though takes practice, and you're usually stuck with three more entrees if you make a mistake. A presoak can help. Also, there is no need to continue cooking once it gets to a boil. This is a waste of fuel IMO. Just cover and insulate.

There's a thread around here with either a link or instructions for building one from a clay pot.

[sarbar]

Precooked food will always rehydrate easier ;) I do hamburger in huge batches, bag and freeze. Rehydrates in 10 minutes in my meals (adding boiling water, cozy and no other cooking).
As for veggies...if you go this route I recomend you use frozen veggies-they are blanched. If you use fresh, blanch them.
Personally some things are worth it..but for veggies I use Just Tomatoes veggies nowdays. Worth every cent!
Dehydrators...get one with a thermostat :)
And have fun!

[Alligator]

Precooked food will always rehydrate easier ;) Absolutely! This was one of my first mistakes. I had good luck with various veggies (leeks, cabbage, bok choy), but I used some green beans to make my own minestrone soup. They were always tough. And they don't digest well either:D .

[PiperJon]

Gosh, it's been so long since I've been here! I've missed y'all!

At any rate, I went to Food TV and found a very brief explanation of Alton's method for making jerky, which coincidentally seems to have a description of his cool air dehydrator. I'll probably tinker with this, but it DOES say "Difficulty: Expert." To me this means fuuu-uun! YMMV.

Pj


Beef Jerky
Recipe courtesy Alton Brown, 2005
Show: Good Eats
Episode: Urban Preservation II: The Jerky

Recipe Summary
Difficulty: Expert
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Inactive Prep Time: 8 hours
Cook Time: 12 hours
Yield: 10 to 12 ounces


1 1/2 to 2 pounds flank steak
2/3 cup Worcestershire sauce
2/3 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon honey
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons onion powder
1 teaspoon liquid smoke
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Special Equipment: 1 box fan, 4 paper air-conditioning filters, and 2 bungee cords

Trim the flank steak of any excess fat, place in a zip-top bag, and place it in the freezer for 1 to 2 hours in order to firm up.

Remove the steak from the freezer and thinly slice the meat with the grain, into long strips.

Place the strips of meat along with all of the remaining ingredients into a large, 1-gallon plastic zip-top bag and move around to evenly distribute all of the ingredients. Place the bag into the refrigerator for 3 to 6 hours.

Remove the meat from the brine and pat dry. Evenly distribute the strips of meat onto 3 of the air filters, laying them in the grooves and then stacking the filters on top of one another. Top these with 1 empty filter. Next, lay the box fan on its side and lay the filters on top of it. Strap the filters to the fan with 2 bungee cords. Stand the fan upright, plug in and set to medium. Allow the meat dry for 8 to 12 hours. If using a commercial dehydrator, follow the manufacturer's directions.

Once dry, store in a cool dry place, in an airtight container for 2 to 3 months.

[dje97001]

I got one a walmart for 30 bucks (I think). It has a bunch of racks and a fan/heating element on the top (marketed so the sticky mess doesn't land on top of it and make for difficult cleaning). I've had a lot of success with strawberries, apples (covered in brown sugar/cinnamon), pears, and bananas. I also poured apple sauce (and cinnamon) on one of the plastic accessory trays and made a fruit rollup. Tasty stuff. Make sure you soak the fruit in fruit juice or something with a little acidity so that it won't brown.

Right now, I'm making some turkey jerky (but in the oven). Tasty stuff all around.

[Roland]

~~~
Evenly distribute the strips of meat onto 3 of the air filters, laying them in the grooves and then stacking the filters on top of one another. Top these with 1 empty filter. Next, lay the box fan on its side and lay the filters on top of it. Strap the filters to the fan with 2 bungee cords. Stand the fan upright, plug in and set to medium. Allow the meat dry for 8 to 12 hours. ~~~ PJ,

Thanks for this tip. I've never owned a dehydrator, but I do have a box fan and may give this a try.

Will you strap the filter assembly on the intake, or the exhaust side of the fan?

Roland

[sarbar]

PJ,

Thanks for this tip. I've never owned a dehydrator, but I do have a box fan and may give this a try.

Will you strap the filter assembly on the intake, or the exhaust side of the fan?

RolandYou want the air to push thru :) So the filters go on the exhaust side (unless, like me, you have a reversible fan ;)

[Skyline]

Some veggies you have to prep a lot first, and some you have to just cut up to the right consistent size and thickness. The former may involve blanching or cutting away skins...extra steps.

Frankly, I've found that buying store brand frozen veggies on sale works just as well as fresh, it's a lot cheaper and you can eliminate the extra prep work. Just thaw, drain any excess water resulting from melted ice crystals, and spread out on dehydrator trays (or liners in some cases)--then dehydrate until the moisture is gone.

I do a lot of beans--kidney, white, brown, and black-eyed peas. These are typically drained from a can before dehydrating. I like to heavily season mine before drying.

I use an American Harvester Snackmaster I bought at Wally World in the mid-90s. It works as a team well with a vacuum sealer, tho plenty of folks just put the end-product into Ziploc bags. I think vacuum sealing prolongs the life of the food, but it adds cost and time to the adventure.

As far as freezing goes, I've always been leery of ice crystals forming inside the bags--which can happen if left in the freezer for a long time. Seems to me when your dehydrated food defrosts, those ice crystals melting would tend to be bad news unless you're going to use the food right away. Anyone else have a thought on this?

Typically, I just store my dehydrated veggies (I don't dehydrate meats) in a cool, dry, dark place until ready to go backpacking. They hold up well for three or four months on average--and may last even longer, I've just never gone that long.

[TOW]

Dehydrated Foods (http://www.budget101.com/dehydrated_foods.htm) How to dehydrate your own fruits, veggies and meats at home for just pennies.

[Happy Feet]

We splurged and purchased a nice dehydrator (the Excalibur) with a thermostat and fan. 25 year warranty. I LOVE it and have considered it money well spent.

Having said that, you can dehydrate food in your oven, and I did lots of that before getting the dehydrator.

We made all of our dinners for our thru hike. We ate like kings! We even made and dried homemade noodles for our meals. Our trailmates were envious, and liked to be there when we resupplied, just in case we were going to put something in the hiker box!

There is NO NEED to rehydrate things hours before cooking. All we ever do to cook is bring the water to a boil, dump in our packet of food (ziplocked or vacuum sealed - no difference), return it JUST to the boil (no need to cook since it is already cooked), extinguish the alcohol (if I didn't guess right), and then let it set, covered, for 5-10 minutes until rehydrated (peas take the longest since I tend to really dry the crap out of them).

Easy, delicious, no trans fats, hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated poison, and we look forward to our food at the end of the day.

[neo]

Try Big Lots or Tuesday Morning before considering $40 to be cheap. My dehydrator was about $7. I only dry fruit in season, put into ziplocks and freeze. I pop the fruit chips in my mouth and enjoy.

There are those who dehydrate meats and other meals. They can soak stuff in a spare Nalgene during the afternoon, if need be. I rather use my dehydator for snacks, and depend on freeze dried or prepackaged noodle/rice meals, supplemented with commercial dehyrdated jerky and fish.
i have found a lot of great buys at big lots,i bought one there a few years
back for $8.88:cool: neo

[Happy Feet]

I want to share a recipe for EASY Seasoned Black Bean Flakes:

I'd eaten some bean flakes that were seasoned and really tasty compliments of Tangent '01. I loved them, but they are not available around here, even in the health food and bulk food stores. I experimented and finally came up with a really good recipe. You can add a little boiling water for thick beans that you can eat with tortillas, or make it with more water for soup.

Cook a pound of black beans until they are REALLY done. Drain. Put in food processor and puree. Put in large bowl. Add some GOOD salsa, some extra cumin (a teaspoon or so), a pinch of garlic powder, and a teaspoon or so of chili powder. Add some hot pepper flakes or powder if you like it hot. Mix all together and put in dehydrator on the leather making sheet or foil sprayed with Pam. Dehydrate until dry. Empty sheets into large bowl and crumble if necessary. Package in ziplocks or vacuum seal and store in freezer until needed. YUM!

Rehydrates instantly when added to boiling water.

And ditto on dehydrating frozen veggies. I fully cook all my food before dehydrating.

Your favorite casserole can be dehydrated too. Just plop it in the dehydrator and go.