BEFORE YOU SEAL THAT FOOD!

WARNING:

IF YOU DO NOT ALLOW YOUR FOOD TO BECOME COMPLETELY COOL BEFORE BAGGING, IT WILL SPOIL.

Hi Folks,   I set up this document because we are getting too many people who are making a simple but dangerous and costly mistake. We have so many new-comers to dehydrating, that I'm thinking they are missing some important information.    

After you finish dehydrating your food, you must make ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN that it is COMPLETELY COOLED before you seal it into a bag or container of some sort.

Whether or not you vacuum pack it, or simply put it in a jar in the cabinet, it must be completely cooled first. You can use whatever method works for you.   Sometimes, if I have finished dehydrating an item and don't need to start something else right away, I simply leave it in the machine until the next day.   But usually, I dump the food from the dehydrator racks into a large cupcake carrier.

• It has a lid on it. I usually leave the lid open a little and set it on a safe place in the kitchen so it doesn't get spilled. 
• Several times over the next two or three hours, depending on how often I think of it, I will stir the contents to make sure all of it is exposed to the air and cooled.  I check with my hand to make sure it's cooled.  
• Once I am CERTAIN it's completely cooled, I will then bag it.
•  Or if I'm too tired to mess with it, I clamp the lid down on the box and take care of it the next day. 

Caution:

If you live in a humid climate, or if the weather is rainy, there is a fine line between allowing it to cool and allowing it to rehydrate a bit before packaging it.   Sometimes, certain foods will begin to absorb moisture from the air, so in that case you want to bag it soon after it's completely cool.