It is a machine for drying food, dehydrating fresh vegetables and fruits, or whatever you like. Generally, the way we dry the food is directly dry in the open environment, but it is very unsanitary, and the weather is very important.
It is very simple. It can’t dry the food on rainy days. If you put the dry food in the oven, you have to look frequently, otherwise, it will be easy to burn.
The food dehydrator actually replaces the sun with hot air, evaporates the water in the food to achieve a dry result, and turns the fresh food into dry food, but does not affect the nutrition of the food.
Not only concentrates the taste of the food, but it also makes the food taste more, increases the storage time. It can also preserve the enzymes and nutrients in food, making it easier to digest and absorb.
Many chefs use dried food to make the taste more. This is similar to the principle of Chinese-made salted fish. Nowadays, the household food dehydrator uses low temperatures to dry the food and uses the convective hot air to take away the food moisture. The dried food will not be hard to chew, and the taste will not be lost but also become more concentrated.
In addition to the general fruit, you can make dried meat, dried vegetables, dried shrimps, dried squid, and more. You can even use as snacks for pets, such as dried chicken, dried fish, etc. It can be used widely.
The most important thing is that the price is not expensive. It is the way to dry the food which is both hygienic and doesn’t have to look at it all the time.
If you love dried apple, sometimes you can eat a few packs, thanks to the food dehydrator, you can make it at home and save a lot of money. In the past, it is bulky and expensive. People are not willing to spend so much.
However, recently, there are some appliance brands that have introduced medium and low-end food dehydrators. The size is suitable for any family, and the price is much cheaper. It is exciting. The most exciting is the dried food, both people and pets can be safe to eat.
Eating dried food has another taste. Nowadays, many people like to eat dried vegetables, dried fruits, etc., indicating that dry food is very popular among current friends.
If the food sent by friends is too much, it can’t be finished. If you don’t want to waste it, you can use the food dehydrator again so that your food can be turned into dried food quickly, hygienically and conveniently. You can eat at any time. It will not deteriorate and the nutrition will not lose.
In recent years, many people like to make healthy snacks. A food dehydrator is an ideal tool for many women. Sliced pears, apples, oranges, and other fruit slices. And dry it which becomes a convenient snack.
However, some nutritionists reminded me that the dried fruit fructose is concentrated because the snacks are small. Take 100 grams of raisins as an example, the calories are more than three times that of the fresh ones.
If there are babies or pets in the family, many people have tried to make dried foods for snacks to the baby at home. Therefore, a food dehydrator is very popular in recent years because everyone is very sensitive to the trend of the diet.
The Pros Of Food Dehydrator
Save Space And Money
Although the size is a little bit big, it can greatly reduce the volume of food, so that a few kilograms of fresh fruits and vegetables occupying a large area can be saved in a small bottle, which is also very conducive to preservation. You can save money that spends on unhealthy snacks because you can make it at any time.
Multi-function
It can be used to dry fruits, vegetables, and herbs. And these dried foods, you have a variety of different ways of eating. You can eat, or eat with other foods.
Simple To Use
Unlike other kitchen equipment that requires different techniques to cook good food. The operation of the food dehydrator is very simple. It is a good partner to start the kitchen journey. There is basically no way to make mistakes about how to make dried food.
Healthier
Whether in the supermarket or in the farmer’s market, sweet potato, dried bananas, dried meat, … all look beautiful and tempting, but these products that have been in the market for many years, it is difficult to have no preservatives, sweeteners, pigment so eating is not very healthy and it is easy to fat.
Some of these sugars and fats are high even without these additives. Don’t underestimate the additives and sugar content of snacks. Many children who like to eat snacks become fat.
With this unit, you can control the amount of oil, salt, sugar. You can let snacks turn into the healthy snack
Cut fresh bananas, kiwi, apple, strawberry, diced, pineapple, and other fruits, or sweet potatoes, pumpkins, etc. into pieces and put them in this food dehydrator… After a few hours, everyone can enjoy healthy and safe delicious snacks.
Easy To Carry
When you are having a picnic or a trip outside, it may not be so convenient to bring fresh fruits and vegetables. At this time, you can bring the dried fruits and vegetables you make (remember to drink more water).
Not Sticky Anymore
Don’t worry about the hand sticking to the food during the eating process.
Eat Conveniently
No need to do peeling, cleaning and other pre-treatment actions
Extend The Preservation
Don’t worry about the deterioration of fruit after it has been placed for many days.
The Cons Of Food Dehydrator
Smell
Because the principle is to constantly exchange the air in the machine. When it works, the smell of the food in the dryer will run out. For example, if you dry the apple, there may be apple smell in the air, but if you dry the onion, there will be an onion taste in the air.
High Fat
Because the food dehydrator is mainly to dry the food, it is difficult to dry some high-fat but low-water food.
How To Use
- Pre-treatment of fruits and vegetables, including washing, peeling and cutting into 1-2cm thickness.
- Put the food in a tray. Be careful not to overlap to avoid affecting the effect.
- Set the drying temperature and time. The average fruit takes about 7-15 hours. The dried vegetables are relatively short that takes about 3-4 hours.
- When putting fruits and vegetables inside, do not open the lid often, otherwise, it will affect the drying result.
- If there are foods that are not completely dry at the end of drying, place them in the same tray and continue to dry.
Drying time
Depending on the material, the amount of food, the thickness, and the water contained in the food to determine the length of time.
Drying temperature
- Food, fruit rolls, and vegetables are set at approximately 55-60 °C. (Because this temperature can reduce the loss of vitamins A and C), it is set at 60 °C in the first few hours when drying begins.
- The actual food drying temperature can be lower than the set temperature of 6-8 °C.
- Meat and fish can be set to high temperature because it does not contain vitamins C and A. The temperature can be adjusted to a high quality without affecting its quality, but it can reduce bacteria.
- Nuts and seeds are rich in oil. If a high temperature is used, there will be a smelly smell. The set temperature is 30-40 °C.
- Herbs, spice seasonings, dry flowers are aromatic, rich in aromatic oil, set at 30-40 °C.
- Herbs can be dried in 1-2 hours, set at low temperatures to maintain its color and aroma.
Dryness
- Be careful to check the degree of dryness at the end of drying. After a little cool, take out a piece to feel its dryness. It will feel very supple and strong. It can be torn in half. Check the location for moisture. If there is no moisture, it means dryness. Excessive drying will lose its nutrition, quality, and taste.
- The fruit roll will also feel like skin without sticking.
- The meat will be hard but not cracked.
- Dry fish will also be hard, but if the fish is rich in fat, it will feel wet.
- Vegetables will also be hard or crunchy.
Tips
- The height of the shelf can affect the speed of air drying, the more the airflow is circulated, and the faster the air-drying speed.
- Fruits with more moisture, longer drying time, placed on the lower level and the average is the trick.
- When placing food, do not cover the air circulation.
- The thickness of the food will affect the drying time, the thinner the taste, the more brittle it.
Store
- After the food is dry, put it in a tight storage bag or a dry bottle.
- Write down the food name, drying time and temperature, date of manufacture and quantity in the label posted on the outside.
- Please put it in a dry, dark, cool place or refrigerator to extend the life of the food.
- The ideal storage temperature is approximately 15 °C.
If the dried fruits and vegetables are placed in a vacuum bottle or a fresh-keeping bag and placed in a refrigerator, they can be stored for about one month.
In addition to fruits and vegetables, you can also make dried meat, make beef jerky, etc., put it in the refrigerator, can be stored for one week.
Dried nuts, such as dried peach, flaxseed cake, etc., can be stored for about a month
You can also make baby food, such as rice paste, juice sugar and so on. In addition to dried food, it can be used for other purposes, such as making crafts, dried flowers, and how to use air-dried photos.
Who Can Eat
- Children and growing adolescents who need to add snacks after school or after lunch
- People who want to eat fruit when they go out to work or travel
- Busy people who go out for a busy meal
- Meal replacement for people with weight loss
Pet food - The climber because it’s lightweight and easy to carry
Precautions
- Clean it with a mild mild dishwashing detergent.
- Do not use products such as vegetable oil on the surface.
- Do not use foods that contain alcohol.
- When using the dryer, there are some small gaps between the tray. It is normal and no adjustment is needed. It does not affect the baking effect.
- Make sure there are no messy things around the unit because the dryer is used to remove the moisture from the food by constantly circulating air.
- Do not stack food together, otherwise it may dry unevenly.
- Don’t put the sweet and salty things together and dry them, because the taste may mix together.
- Use high-quality foods, don’t dry out foods that are not so good, because even if you dry up the foods that are rotten, broken, and bad will still be there.
- Rotate the tray if need.
- When you dry things like grapes and berries, it’s best to cut them in half (when you can do these things yourself, you won’t want to buy them again).
Conclusion
If you want something to replace the store-bought snack, I think healthy dried food should be the first choice. The cost is low. The making time is fast. You can do it at any time.
In my opinion, the most important thing is there is no additives and preservative which must be healthier.
If you want to choose one for your family, please read 15 Best Home Food Dehydrators. I think it should be able to help you to make the right decision.
Do you have a food dehydrator at home? How often you make the dried food for your family? What brand you are using now?
Please share your thought and any opinion with us. We will love to hear that.
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