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Drying food

Woodlander

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Hi all,
Im considering drying my own fruit veg and funghi, maybe even some jerky for camp. I have no idea apart from making jerky over a fire or in the oven. So I need some advice on what to do and I also have a couple of specific questions.......

Are those electric food dehydrators on auction sites any good?

Can I just dry as is or do I need some kind of preservative? (Want to avoid anything that isnt a natural preservative if I can, a lot of dry products say they contain E numbers and sulphites etc)

Any and all advice appreciated
 
The dehydrators are brilliant. I do individual fruit/veg/mushrooms and also meals and other bits and bobs. Either vacc seal them or put them in airtight containers like Kilner jars but airtight (and dark) help. If its really long term you can put in oxygen absorbers but I've never bothered. Loads of stuff on youtube to get you started mate.
 
Salt sugar and honey are all desiccants and are natural but I think the main thing to speed up drying is to get whatever it is that you're drying sliced very finely and evenly spread out so there are gaps between each piece.
In the past I've used the Rayburn for drying but it was a little unpredictable compared to the dedicated dehydrators...the best bit is that they're cheap to run.
 
Yes, they work very well.
This will get you up and running for the price of 7 pints

There are loads of videos on youtube, lots of recipe ideas online too.

I'll kick off ideas for you. I was given this tip a few years ago and it works well, unless you grow your own veg then use frozen veg. Sounds daft but think about it, frozen veg (fruit) is peeled, sliced and blanched. Off the shelf 'fresh' veg in supermarkets have been sitting on a shelf for days and have lost a lot of vitamin content, the frozen veg is generally prepared and frozen quickly so often has retained more vits than 'fresh' You can get a bag (usually 900gm) for a quid from Iceland stores ect. I have very successfully dried the following frozen veg:

Peas
Sliced green beans
Carrots sliced or julienne
Peppers
Cauliflower
White rice
Leekes
Green cabbage
Onions

A good fresh meat option is 'Hamburger Rocks'

Fry fresh minced beef in a pan on a low heat, don't add oil. Fry until the fat is removed from the meat. Rinse the meat in boiling water to remove any fat then dry the 'rocks.' These make a great base for spag bol/stew/curry.

When you get addicted to drying (you will) you'll end up buying a vacuum sealer but to get you up and running try this method

Have fun.
 
Yes, they work very well.
This will get you up and running for the price of 7 pints

There are loads of videos on youtube, lots of recipe ideas online too.

I'll kick off ideas for you. I was given this tip a few years ago and it works well, unless you grow your own veg then use frozen veg. Sounds daft but think about it, frozen veg (fruit) is peeled, sliced and blanched. Off the shelf 'fresh' veg in supermarkets have been sitting on a shelf for days and have lost a lot of vitamin content, the frozen veg is generally prepared and frozen quickly so often has retained more vits than 'fresh' You can get a bag (usually 900gm) for a quid from Iceland stores ect. I have very successfully dried the following frozen veg:

Peas
Sliced green beans
Carrots sliced or julienne
Peppers
Cauliflower
White rice
Leekes
Green cabbage
Onions

A good fresh meat option is 'Hamburger Rocks'

Fry fresh minced beef in a pan on a low heat, don't add oil. Fry until the fat is removed from the meat. Rinse the meat in boiling water to remove any fat then dry the 'rocks.' These make a great base for spag bol/stew/curry.

When you get addicted to drying (you will) you'll end up buying a vacuum sealer but to get you up and running try this method

Have fun.

Great post Harry and aye, I find it quite addictive/therapeutic, an alternative to mince is the Quorn mince. I've tried the chicken bits and they turn into bullets. Brambling sent me up some other stuff to try, she does all sorts, now where is she when we need her. :lol:

Oh, well done on the cauliflowers, I've not tried them but broccoli was a bit of a failure for me.
 
Quorn mince is a step nearer the Dark Side AKA vegetarianism l;)

Cauli and broccoli is not really ideal for drying you need to break the florets down into small pieces. I missed out frozen diced swede.

Word of warning, don't dry curry indoors, it really stinks the place out and its not easy getting the smell out of the dryer. That said at a little over £20 you could get a spare dehydrator for making your curry 'leathers'
 
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Good point ref the smell, I had mine set up in the garage, onion and garlic reek too. Having to move it out to the shed, need to plumb the lecky in still but its simple enough, I've got an outdoor connector to run the pond pump and filter which has a spare socket, just need to drag my lazy ass off the sofa to get it done.
 
I can't recommend dehydrating enough. I started off with a very basic 'on/off one, a Westfalia I think, but I now have an excalibur. I've been dehdrating frozen veg for some years, my latest successes have been frozen cabbage and sliced carrot from the freezer section. If you bulk cook dried beans you can also dehydrate them to make 'quick cook' beans.
Like any preservation method it works better with some foods than others, so it can be a bit trial and error.
If you are dehydrating fresh veg it's advisable to blanch first.
Some of us also dehydrate camping meals. Bam is the king of the dehydrated ready meal😄
 
As for the jerky, slice thinly and marinade in concoction of choice loads of videos on the tube, I use a mixture of salt pepper soy sauce lea and perins tobasco sauce chili flakes, marinade over night, dab off excess moisture and place in the dehydrator until desired dryness is achieved.
 
I can't recommend dehydrating enough. I started off with a very basic 'on/off one, a Westfalia I think, but I now have an excalibur. I've been dehdrating frozen veg for some years, my latest successes have been frozen cabbage and sliced carrot from the freezer section. If you bulk cook dried beans you can also dehydrate them to make 'quick cook' beans.
Like any preservation method it works better with some foods than others, so it can be a bit trial and error.
If you are dehydrating fresh veg it's advisable to blanch first.
Some of us also dehydrate camping meals. Bam is the king of the dehydrated ready meal😄

I'm good at what I know but I need to expand my repertoire, man cannot live on Quorn mince based/veggie curry meals for ever. Mar has hidden the supplies you sent me so 'out of sight, out of mind' and we're in a bit of a state of flux at the moment, the old 'fortress of solitude' is empty now and scattered round the house and shed(s).

IMG_20190706_115207.jpg


Sad times, can't find loads of things. Sorry for going off piste. Need to get the lecky plumbed in to the new (and not improved :() Fortress.
 
Quorn mince is a step nearer the Dark Side AKA vegetarianism l;)
Oi Im vegetarian! ( at least one day a week anyhow 😂) that Excelvan one was the one i was thinking about, been in my ebay basket for the past week with me uming and ahhing. Definitely getting one.
 
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Was more thinking along the lines of drying ingredients rather that meals, fruit veg meats, bacon, sausage, chorizo, precooked beans and pulses etc. Purely for camping meals. Make life cheaper and easier plus if I do my own then I know whats in it? Gone a bit health conscious of late.
 
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Oi Im vegetarian! ( at least one day a week anyhow 😂) that Excelvan one was the one i was thinking about, been in my ebay basket for the past week with me uming and ahhing. Definitely getting one.
Was more thinking along the lines of drying ingredients rather that meals, fruit veg meats, bacon, sausage, chorizo, precooked beans and pulses etc. Purely for camping meals. Make life cheaper and easier plus if I do my own then I know whats in it? Gone a bit health conscious of late.

I take loads of individual stuff away in wee bags, they can really make a difference to packet pastas/noodles etc, especially the dried chilli and garlic or spices etc. I started off doing individual fruit and veg, moved onto dried meat (I've still got dried coo that must be 4 years old and you need a LOT of spit to soften it). Then tried doing meals which were surprisingly easy, for things like bolognese just make sure you cut all the ingredients up small so that they dry more evenly. If you haven't tried it give the Quorn mince a go, I've dried and vacc sealed meals that have lasted a couple years and cost a fraction of the commercial stuff and as you say, you know what's in it, you can also make it to your taste so if you like nippy scran then make it nippy.

Good luck, enjoy the whole process.
 
Youtube is your friend when it comes to this sort of thing. I tend to make up meals from ingredients. As you say, Woodie, you have complete control over the ingredients and quality and price is minimal
 
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This is something I’m wanting to try.....watched a few vids on YouTube and it looks relatively simple...and would work out well in this house as there’s always leftovers. However the brakes are on at the mo....but it’s on the list
 
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Was more thinking along the lines of drying ingredients rather that meals, fruit veg meats, bacon, sausage, chorizo, precooked beans and pulses etc. Purely for camping meals. Make life cheaper and easier plus if I do my own then I know whats in it? Gone a bit health conscious of late.

Bacon, sausage and chorizo... pretty high fat content so personally I'd not dry them as they will spoil much faster than lean meat such as chicken breast/lean beef/lean boiled ham. Chorizo will last a good while without refrigeration as so meats like salami. Non oily fish like cod and pollock will dry well and are good in fish stews. Note Non oily, fatty, two things that hamper dehydrating food.

Bean and rice dry well.

I prefer to take ingredients and mix at camp rather than take 'meals' Don't overly worry about 'E' numbers as the vast majority are there to help you and the food and not harm you. Guess who the biggest consumers of food with E numbers in Europe is? Germany, Germans want long shelf lives on food.
 
A bit off topic but I find Pepperami is a good 'council house' substitute for chorizo etc, it last well past its BB date and is already sealed, if you chop it thin you don't need much for the flavour to infuse with meals and you can make one last a couple days worth of meals.
 
Pepperami is fine, Chorizo lasts an age without chilling too and you get that lovely paprika flavored fat after you fry it:)

If you can get 'dry' kabanos sausage go for it, the dry version lasts a good time.
 
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