Cheapest foods to dehydrate?

[hobojoe]

What are some of the most cost effective foods to dehydrate? I can never seem to make it work for me.

[warraghiyagey]

Ramen noodles.http://www.freesmileys.org/smileys/laughing021.gif

[hobojoe]

Has anyone ever tried dehydrating water??

[envirodiver]

I dehydrate leftovers like chili and Veg. beef soup, beans, etc. Also, I make my own jerky (which is very coist effective when you look at what it costs. I buy fruit when it is on sale, dehydrate it and put in freezer to increase the shelf life. I also dehydrate canned vegetables: beans, corn, peas.

My friends make fun of me that I'll try to dehydrate anything, which is true. Some work some don't. I tried to dehydrate some frozen berries over the weekend. Didn't work out too well.

I figure that if I can figure out how to dehydrate beer I'll be rich.

[warraghiyagey]

Never try to dehydrate the family pet.
;)

[envirodiver]

That dog'll bite chue!!!

[budforester]

What are some of the most cost effective foods to dehydrate? I can never seem to make it work for me.
Beans, rice, pasta. And those are also easy... no peeling and chopping. Also try some searches on Whiteblaze; do a Google- search; here are a couple of links: Sarbar's (http://www.freezerbagcooking.com/dehydrating.htm) and another I had marked (http://www.agen.ufl.edu/~foodsaf/gadry.html).

[Newb]

I dehdrated some jerky. It turned in to powdered beef. I added water and some electricity and re-created a cow. Then I milked it. Then I dehydrated the milk.

Actually, that's a lie. I've never dehydrated anything in my life except myself.

[Christopher Robin]

All of the above and I have taken; Salsa, Rice & Nolldels mixtures for dinners, cooked Totellini, lots of different vegis, meat, samon, fruit roll-ups, and fruit. Audrey

[Mercy]

I've been dehydrating bunches of different stuff the last couple of months.

1) Canned english peas dehydrate to the size of BB's.
2) Canned tomatoes do real well, too.
3) Canned chicken dehydrates/rehydrates great! You can buy huge (like for cafeteria) cans from Sam's and wholesale stores.
4) I eat a lot of protein from beef and pork jerky. (I cook the pork first.)
5) Apples, stawberries, bananas, pears (whatever I can find on sale.)
6) Applesauce makes good fruit roll ups.

Its easy to eat carbs (rice/potatoes/couscouse) but, you can add a lot of vitamins/proteins by adding dehydrated food to the mix.

Keep up with what a portion actually dehydrates to.

I vacuum seal the serving size I want, (maybe half a can of peas, half a can of tomatoes, a serving of chicken) and then throw it in hot water and let it soak for 20 minutes before I'm ready to cook. Then I boil my water with the meat/veggies in it, and add my couscous, ramen noodles, rice, whatever. (I'm using a Jetboil) Cover it up, let it soak, and eat cheap.

For my short hikes and practicing, I was just wrapping up my portions in saran wrap, and stick a bunch of meals in a quart ziplock bag.

I've realized that I pretty well forget how long I'm supposed to cook stuff, so I started writing simple directions on the ziplock, which covers all of the meals of that type in the bag.

I'm also on an insulin pump, and the amount of insulin I take depends on the carbs I'm eating, so I also write the carbs for the meal on the bag.

My bag ends up with directions like: Couscous: Boil 2 cps water +veggies. (rehyrdated stuff) Add mix. Soak 5 minutes. 54g (I don't write the details like stir, cover, etc. directions, I remember to do that. I do however, forget the water amounts and boil times)

Jerky and fruit I use to munch on while hiking.

It would take tons of planning/dehyrating to fix all the meals, and put them in boxes for mail drops, and a good support team, preferably keeping your packages in the freezer while waiting months to send it. Would it be worth it? I dunno.

I've stored a bunch of dehydrated meals in the freezer, and pull them out for my shorter hikes.

[Pennsylvania Rose]

When frozen veggies or fruits are on sale, I stock up and dehydrate (thaw & drain first). I stock up and dehydrate fresh fruit when it's on sale, too (last summer was a bonanza of blueberries; bought 10 lbs of cheap pears today). I also make leather out of clearance over-ripe bananas (15-25 cents/lb.).

Has anyone ever tried watermelon?

[envirodiver]

I have not tried watermelon, but would imagine that since it is almost all water that it would dehydrate down to almost nothing.

Fresh pineapple is awesome. It is like pineapple candy. Even canned pineapple chunks are great.

[budforester]

Yes, what they said. And visit the Town Commons next Saturday, the farmers are thinking about making room for spring crops. Shopping is going to be key if the economic aspect is your interest. Local produce may be cheaper, sales of overstocks and products nearing the end of shelf- life, buying in bulk, after- prime- time sales (I always buy watermellon on July 5 for my "watermellon jerky". You could also add "planned- overs" into your regular meals and dehydrate whatever is left in the pots.

[whitelightning]

It seems jerky and fruit are the most cost effective foods to dehydrate. I've been trying some jerky recipes from Mary Bell's "Just Jerky" book. There are just so many more options you can make yourself than what you can buy.

The cost of buying some types of dried fruits is crazy compared to just buying fresh fruit and drying it yourself. Although it does take some practice in some cases. I haven't tried dehydrating frozen fruit yet. I might try that this week. Usually fruit that's been frozen is good quality and doesn't need to be blanched. I have done frozen vegtables successfully. Rehydrating them seems to be better when mixed with other foods such as rice or pasta.

[budforester]

When frozen veggies or fruits are on sale, I stock up and dehydrate (thaw & drain first). I stock up and dehydrate fresh fruit when it's on sale, too (last summer was a bonanza of blueberries; bought 10 lbs of cheap pears today). I also make leather out of clearance over-ripe bananas (15-25 cents/lb.).

Has anyone ever tried watermelon?

I was typing a reply... and was just mentioning that I make "watermellon jerky" on July 5. It comes out a little sticky, but I can have watermelon all year; great trail snack. I might try dusting it with something... cornstarch might work... I'll have to study on that.

[sarbar]

When canned beans go on sale cheap stock up and dry them. Drain, rinse and dry. Cheap and filling and good for you.
When bags of frozen veggies go on sale stock up. Dice up and dry.
Leftover rice at dinner? Dry it. Same with most leftovers.

By not wasting leftovers you save money!

[The Weasel]

Hamburger. Easy, quick (don't need dehydrator), adds great flavor to trail meals, lasts months.

I've posted the recipe a bunch in the past, if anyone is interested let me know and I'll find it and repost.

Also works for soy meat/crumbles.

TW

[hobojoe]

You all ROCK! thanks for the suggestions. Didn't realize I could do cooked food.

[littlelaurel59]

Fruits- apples and peaches are my favorite. Watermelon takes a while, but ends up tasting like candy.
Vegetables- green beans (I use frozen), peas & carrots, black beans, kidney beans, canned tomatoes.
Sauces- spaghetti sauce, etc.
Meats- hamburger (the leaner the better), canned chicken, jerky.

I tend to do one-pot meals and mix things together- meat, veg, pasta, sauce. The possibilities are many. Experiment.

[bredler]

Has anyone ever tried dehydrating water??

Oh yeah! It's the best! It virtually disappears when you dehydrate it and it's so easy to reconstitute...Just add...er...um...water?:-?

[vonfrick]

I figure that if I can figure out how to dehydrate beer I'll be rich.[/quote]


not if i figure it out first! back to the lab!

[mweinstone]

i live on top of a fruit store owned by my friends. i have access to cases of over ripe stuff perfect for drying in my oven on low with a wood spoon in the door to let out moist and on keep warm. jerky takes the longest at 16 hours. pears do fine in about 9 hours. ive dryed more crap than you wanna know. this bottle of garlic represents a foolish mistake in judgement. for days and weeks i was garliced. its actually 6 , dollar bags each containing 5 heads . alot of stink in here right now just from opening it to photograph! i dryed lemmons once. no good. all pulp no juice. should have dryed the juice. the mafia wants to know if i wanna dehydrate bodys for them. wonder what thats all about?

[Feral Bill]

I figure that if I can figure out how to dehydrate beer I'll be rich.

Its called whisky