Friday, March 23, 2012

Easiest of the Easy

For you newbies to dehydrating, here is a list of the easiest things to dehydrate. All you have to do is wash, slice, toss onto the racks and go. By morning, Voila! Perfection.
Apple Slices

A few starter tips:

  • Even slices mean even drying. Try to cut ...your slices thin and even.
  • Use a mandolin slicer if you have one. Makes the job a lot easier.
  • If you wash your veggies first, you might want to use your salad spinner get rid of excess moisture.
  • Fruits with high sugar content - spray your fruit leather trays first to keep from sticking.
  • Drippy things or things that will fall through the slots when dried because of shrinkage - put a fruit leather tray or cut piece of wax paper on the bottom rack. 
  • The foods listed below do not need cooking, blanching, or treating before dehydrating.   
Slice And Go:

  • Celery
  • Onions - NOT Vidalias, the high sugar content will caramelize... they become rubbery but so impart the good flavor; I just didn't like the "chewiness" in my soups
  • Bell peppers
  • Cucumbers
  • Zucchini
  • Apples / pears - peel and core first
  • Garlic
  • herbs
  • Greens - turnips, collards, spinach, beet, kale - wash & stem, salad spin, spread out whole on racks. Takes a bit of room, but well worth the effort
  • Cabbage, definitely cabbage! Chopped, diced, shredded. Cabbage can be cooked first. Just make sure you don’t use any fats or oils in the cooking.

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