What a difference a day makes!

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Moorland Prepper
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Joined: Fri Nov 06, 2020 8:43 am
Location: On the edge of the Pennines

What a difference a day makes!

Post by Moorland Prepper »

We have been experimenting with dehydration and rehydration.

A few days ago we rehydrated some mixed veg. but forget about them and left them soaking in water for over 24 hours. I was amazed at how they had taken on their former shape - not 100%, but almost in some cases. Previously we had just left things for a few hours.

Here in the moorlands we have a light covering of snow this morning.
jansman
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Joined: Thu Dec 30, 2010 7:16 pm

Re: What a difference a day makes!

Post by jansman »

Moorland Prepper wrote: Sat Mar 27, 2021 8:14 am We have been experimenting with dehydration and rehydration.

A few days ago we rehydrated some mixed veg. but forget about them and left them soaking in water for over 24 hours. I was amazed at how they had taken on their former shape - not 100%, but almost in some cases. Previously we had just left things for a few hours.

Here in the moorlands we have a light covering of snow this morning.
Thanks for that. My efforts at dehydration are usually dropped into dishes that simmer,and we never really see the results as such. I have some sliced mushrooms I can rehydrate,just to see the outcome. :D
In three words I can sum up everything I have learned about life: It goes on.

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Covid 19: After that level of weirdness ,any situation is certainly possible.

Me.
Jerseyspud
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Re: What a difference a day makes!

Post by Jerseyspud »

Do you guys use a dehydrator or the oven? I would like to start dehydrating food but don't know whether to buy a dehydrator or use my oven
when it comes to catastrophic events, we never know when the day before is the day before. So we prepare for tomorrow

Prepping on a small island
jansman
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Joined: Thu Dec 30, 2010 7:16 pm

Re: What a difference a day makes!

Post by jansman »

Jerseyspud wrote: Sat Mar 27, 2021 5:48 pm Do you guys use a dehydrator or the oven? I would like to start dehydrating food but don't know whether to buy a dehydrator or use my oven
Mine is a cheap £30 job. Does the business.
In three words I can sum up everything I have learned about life: It goes on.

Robert Frost.

Covid 19: After that level of weirdness ,any situation is certainly possible.

Me.
jennyjj01
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Joined: Sun Jun 04, 2017 11:09 pm

Re: What a difference a day makes!

Post by jennyjj01 »

Jerseyspud wrote: Sat Mar 27, 2021 5:48 pm Do you guys use a dehydrator or the oven? I would like to start dehydrating food but don't know whether to buy a dehydrator or use my oven
Mine's a hendi sous vide 9 tray one. Good value but not cheap. I particularly like the metal shelves as I'd expect plastic ones to soon break. Never tried the oven, but would imagine maintaining 55 degrees would be tricky with oven.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07514132T/ ... asin_2_img

The 6 tray is much cheaper now and just as useful as you won't always fill it.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/SousVideTools- ... B07514132T

Brilliant way to shrink fresh fruit and veg down for low volume long term, no energy, storage. E.g 2Kg of carrots would shrink to about a cupful.
Don't expect veg to rehydrate to same size or texture. Think of them as mostly pre-cooked ingredients perfect to use in sauces. Dried mushrooms, onions, carrots, garlic, peppers and tomatoes work brilliantly. Dry them when they are cheap or plentiful. fruit chunks become moreish flavour packed treats.

It's addictive, but you need to adapt to using what you dried. Well, actually, stuff lasts so long you hardly need to rotate stock.
I reckon dehydrating food is a pretty hard-core food prep, ideally paired to vacuum sealing mason jars.
Graceful Degradation! Prepping's objective summed up in two words. Turning Disaster into Mild Inconvenience by the power of fore-thought

Not Feeling Optimistic. Let me be wrong
GillyBee
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Re: What a difference a day makes!

Post by GillyBee »

I started with air drying in the height of summer heatwave and then tried oven drying - which would be OK if you have an Aga but seemed a waste of fuel on electricity. I now have a £35 plastic dehydrator which does nicely although I dont expect it to last forever.
As Jenny said - the results are good for soup and stew and homemade stock powder. Fruit makes tasty snacks but hopeless for storage as it lasts 24 hours once the family realise I am drying it.
Moorland Prepper
Posts: 102
Joined: Fri Nov 06, 2020 8:43 am
Location: On the edge of the Pennines

Re: What a difference a day makes!

Post by Moorland Prepper »

Jerseyspud wrote: Sat Mar 27, 2021 5:48 pm Do you guys use a dehydrator or the oven? I would like to start dehydrating food but don't know whether to buy a dehydrator or use my oven
I got one of these, about £140 on Amazon:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/265049555720 ... XnEALw_wcB

Works very well
jennyjj01
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Re: What a difference a day makes!

Post by jennyjj01 »

GillyBee wrote: Sun Mar 28, 2021 9:56 amFruit makes tasty snacks but hopeless for storage as it lasts 24 hours once the family realise I am drying it.
LOL. So true. A big bag of neglected fruit, once dehydrated gives you your 25 a day. The concentrated flavour is more moreish than Opal fruits.
I did a little rehydration experiment with a slice of apple, a slice of mushroom, a chunk of pineapple, a carrot stick, some chunks of swede and a strip of bell pepper.
Though they mostly went back to original size overnight, they were all left pretty soggy. The carrot was closest to original texture. Mushroom and carrot were perfect for cooking after the first hour.
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Graceful Degradation! Prepping's objective summed up in two words. Turning Disaster into Mild Inconvenience by the power of fore-thought

Not Feeling Optimistic. Let me be wrong
jennyjj01
Posts: 3430
Joined: Sun Jun 04, 2017 11:09 pm

Re: What a difference a day makes!

Post by jennyjj01 »

and after 12 hours...
after.jpg
Graceful Degradation! Prepping's objective summed up in two words. Turning Disaster into Mild Inconvenience by the power of fore-thought

Not Feeling Optimistic. Let me be wrong
pseudonym
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Location: East Midlands

Re: What a difference a day makes!

Post by pseudonym »

Thanks for experimenting and showing the results. :)
Two is one and one is none, but three is even better.