Drying food

[dingdong]

This question has probably been asked before, but I would like to be able to dehydrate some things and wondered how everyone else goes about it. I am reluctant to use the oven because it seems like a costly way to go. Does anyone use a dehydrator?

[wulf]

A hot windowsill worked for my dandelion roots. I washed them off and left them there with the intention of drying them in the oven next time I used it and then grinding them up to make "dandelion coffee". However, they dehydrated pretty well with the weather we had earlier this summer and I discovered that they make great "chew sticks" (to be honest, much nicer than the "coffee" I've managed to make before).

Wulf

[Carltonian Man]

I've got a cabinet type dehydrator, it's great if you fill it but it does cost up to 8p per hour to run. I find that most of the time the air humidity (not often below 60% here) means higher drying temperatures are needed to keep the times reasonable.
Smaller amounts of food dehydrate far more economically if they're placed on the parcel shelf of the car on a sunny day.

[Thomzo]

I have a dehydrator and it's great. I've no idea how much it costs to run but I've just dried some plums and they taste fantastic. Not all sweet and sickly like bought prunes but sharp and tart and full of flavour.

If you use the oven then you have to be careful about the temperature. The number of times I've burnt stuff in the oven made the buying the dehydrator worth while.

Zoe

[battybird]

I have successfully dried chillies in the top oven of my cooker when the bottom oven was in use for bread / dinner / cakes. I just put them on a glass plate on the floor of the top oven. Does that make sense to anyone If I could draw apicture it might be better!!

[Thomzo]

Battybird, that makes perfect sense to me, I just don't have a top or bottom oven. Mine are side by side and they don't heat up enough when the other one is on.

On a sunny day I do dry stuff in the conservatory. I just have to remember to grab it out of there as soon as the sun starts to set or it just gets damp again due to condensation. It helps if you can keep it dark though otherwise things like chillies lose their colour. But then again, Chillies can just be hung up to dry anywhere.

Chive flowers are really worth drying. They make a great substitute for onion/garlic when you've run out of both. Just crumble one flower into your soup/casserole in place of one onion and one clove of garlic. Plus they look lovely in a jar.

[dingdong]

Thanks for the info everyone. Zoe can I ask you which dehydrator you have? I have been looking at various models, like you I haven't had great success with the oven.

[Thomzo]

It's a Laser 2000, I bought it off a website that was recommended on here a year or so ago (but I'm afraid I can't remember which one).

It's only got one heat setting but that isn't a problem for me. It's a bit noisy but I can pop it out of the way in the laundry room and shut the door. It has several drying trays so it's got quite a bit capacity. Plenty big enough for the produce of a domestic garden.

Zoe

[dingdong]

hi Zoe, thanks for the info. I've got my eye on one that sounds very similar, as you say just right for a domestic gardens worth.

[hmk]

Hi,
I got an Excalibur for Christmas last year (joint present from several relatives- they're not cheap...) and I love it.

I've dried plums, apricots, tomatoes, mushrooms, strawberries, sweetcorn, nettles, comfrey, pineapple, apple rings (having to hide them from the children), made various fruit leathers (see previous comment plus DH), tomato pasta sauce for camping and loads more, including my own Marigold-type stock powder.

It's cheaper to run than the oven (and I burnt food doing that too). I love it- highly recommended!

HMK