Food Dehydrator

KetoneKaren

I love my food dehydrator! I have owned it for years and never used it. Then we had some chicken we weren't going to eat before going out of town, so I dehydrated the chicken and refrigerated it for the pet sitter to give the dogs in case they wouldn't eat their dry food while we were gone (they tend to pout). It was a hit! It keeps a long time in the refrigerator.

I made kale chips today and they are awesome...and not burned! Yea! I have also used it on apples, pears, cherries, and cherry tomatoes. I don't care for sundried tomatoes in oil, but these are great! The flavor of the dried tomato is so intense, a little goes a long way. And one or two slices of dried fruit is such a treat, so sweet...I am tickled with my new/old dehydrator!

Does anyone else use a dehydrator? Feel free to share your recipes and experiences, I'm all ears!

Karen in Virginia

PDReader

Where are you in VA? I am in Richmond. I do a lot of raw cuisine and use the dehydrator quite a lot. The last time I fired it up I used all nine trays and made a pile of flaxseed crackers and raw cheeze-its.

Pinkylee77

we dry peppers in the fall and lots of apples too
EDT to add dried strawberries are the bomb

KetoneKaren

PDReader wrote: »

Where are you in VA? I am in Richmond. I do a lot of raw cuisine and use the dehydrator quite a lot. The last time I fired it up I used all nine trays and made a pile of flaxseed crackers and raw cheeze-its.

@PDReader Yep! Richmond suburb! (North Chesterfield) Howdy neighbor!

Would you be willing to share the recipes?

Karen in VIrginia

withoutasaddle

LOVE mine. While I've true lots, the only successful thing I've made are zuccini chips, cauliflower popcorn, and fruits. Maybe I'll get a nice batch going tomorrow!

KetoneKaren

withoutasaddle wrote: »

LOVE mine. While I've true lots, the only successful thing I've made are zuccini chips, cauliflower popcorn, and fruits. Maybe I'll get a nice batch going tomorrow!

How do you do the chips and the popcorn?

Karen in Virginia

mom23mangos

I ADORE my dehydrator. I got a professional grade Cabela dehydrator for Christmas several years ago. I pretty much use mine for jerky only, but I have been thinking about trying some zucchini chips.

Strawblackcat

I have a cheap Nesco, but I still love mine! I make kale chips in it (you're right -- no burnt chips here!), slice-able cashew cheese, kombucha SCOBY fruit leather, beef jerky, and dehydrated fruit in it. I want to get an Excalibur someday, but they're expensive!

KetoneKaren

@Strawblackcat

Recipes or directions, please? Especially the cashew cheese and the kombucha SCOBY fruit leather, thanks!

glassyo

I usually buy Trader Joe's turkey jerky but it's gotten pretty darn expensive. I've been toying with the idea of making my own. Do you think the pre sliced reduced sodium packaged turkey by Columbus they sell would work?

KetoneKaren

glassyo wrote: »

I usually buy Trader Joe's turkey jerky but it's gotten pretty darn expensive. I've been toying with the idea of making my own. Do you think the pre sliced reduced sodium packaged turkey by Columbus they sell would work?

Would like to hear experiences with making jerky, also. The chicken I dry for the dogs is pretty low fat. There must be something in the commercial jerky that makes it pliable. The chicken I dry for dog treats is already cooked, but I know you can use raw meat, right? And the dehydrator "cures" it? Am I mistaken on this? Thanks, everyone.

Sassie_Lassie

We have one. We don't use it that often but I've made dried fruits and my husband has made jerky. We also dried some super hot peppers that we grew and ground them up.

Strawblackcat

KetoneKaren wrote: »

@Strawblackcat

Recipes or directions, please? Especially the cashew cheese and the kombucha SCOBY fruit leather, thanks!

For the SCOBY fruit leather, I just put a few SCOBIES, some fruit (any is fine -- I like strawberries) and whatever spices/extracts/sweeteners that you want to add into a blender and blend it until it's a smooth paste. Then, I lay it out in fruit leather sheets and dehydrate it at 100 degrees (so that's it's technically still "raw") for about 24 hours, or until it's a fruit-leather-like consistency. Then, I peel it off the sheet and slice it with a knife before wrapping the sheets in wax paper. I keep them in the fridge until I'm ready to eat them.

For the cashew cheese wheel, I soak about 100 grams of cashews in warm, salted water for 4-6 hours, and then drain and rinse them off. I then add them to a blender with 2-4 tablespoons of fresh tap water and blend them until they form a smooth paste (add more or less water as needed to achieve a smooth consistency). Then, I take the paste and stir the contents of an opened probiotic capsule into it. Any kind is fine; no need to use an expensive one. You could also use a tablespoon of non-dairy yogurt or kefir. I then gather up the paste and place it into a cheesecloth that I set into a strainer that's propped on top of a bowl. Place a small jar of whatever ontop of the cashew-paste, and let it drain into the bowl for 2-4 days. The probiotics will culture the paste and make it taste tart. After it's drained, stir salt, garlic powder, nutritional yeast (this is what makes it really "cheesey"!), or whatever other seasonings you want. Then, form the thickened paste into a ring mold set on top of a small plate and freeze it until you can cleanly pop the disk of cashew paste out of the ring mold. Place the frozen dish onto a dehydrator rack and dehydrate at 100 degrees for 12-24 hours, or until it has formed a thick "rind". You could also dehydrate it at a higher temperature for a shorter amount of time if you want, but the probiotics would die off.

KetoneKaren

Thanks!

KetoneKaren

bump

KetoneKaren

Drying herbs today. Did peaches and mangoes the other day. All good.

PDReader

OMG! I am in North Chesterfield, too. Where do you live? I can totally share recipes. Maybe we can get together for a raw food meal sometime.

KetoneKaren

PDReader wrote: »

OMG! I am in North Chesterfield, too. Where do you live? I can totally share recipes. Maybe we can get together for a raw food meal sometime.

Bexley West. You?

KetoneKaren

bump

fishshark

i havent used mine in soooo long. like years, but i was on a beef jerky kick for a long time

KetoneKaren

@fishshark was the jerky too crunchy? I want to know how to make it pliable or chewy.

KetoneKaren

@crazyravr how do I make the jerky pliable & leathery? Maybe I am using meat with too low a fat content?

christinecsaucier

I use my dehydrator all the time! It is strawberry season here in New England so will be making a batch of strawberry chips this weekend.

fishshark

KetoneKaren wrote: »

@fishshark was the jerky too crunchy? I want to know how to make it pliable or chewy.

not at all! but i made sure it wasnt to thin of a cut and watched it. I have made jerky that was like glass haha. I think marinading the heck out of it helps.

KetoneKaren

Thanks. I actually mostly make chicken jerky...for my dogs...I am going to experiment with marinades that won't harm a pup and see what I come up with.

KetoneKaren

Marinated and made beef jerky. Sesame oil and soy sauce. Worked great!

KetoTeacher

KetoneKaren wrote: »

I love my food dehydrator! I have owned it for years and never used it. Then we had some chicken we weren't going to eat before going out of town, so I dehydrated the chicken and refrigerated it for the pet sitter to give the dogs in case they wouldn't eat their dry food while we were gone (they tend to pout). It was a hit! It keeps a long time in the refrigerator.

I made kale chips today and they are awesome...and not burned! Yea! I have also used it on apples, pears, cherries, and cherry tomatoes. I don't care for sundried tomatoes in oil, but these are great! The flavor of the dried tomato is so intense, a little goes a long way. And one or two slices of dried fruit is such a treat, so sweet...I am tickled with my new/old dehydrator!

Does anyone else use a dehydrator? Feel free to share your recipes and experiences, I'm all ears!

Karen in Virginia

Karen I also used to do chicken jerky for my dog. It ultimately sent him to vet & had to have surgery because of sharp shards poking and cutting his stomach and intestines.

I would be very careful doing that. We actually quit because we almost lost our dear pet.

KetoneKaren

@TommieCarrol OMG thanks so much for the warning! I watch it carefully and put it in a baggie with the air vacuumed out of it in the refrigerator so it gets leathery but sometimes it gets away from me and gets overdone. I would be devastated if I hurt my babies.

Karen