[pct-l] Food Dehydrator Tips or Recipes?

[Steven dvsteven]

Hi Lisa,
 
Just a couple of heads-up words of advice on your dehydrator.  If you use recipe books for backpacking food/dehydrator camping watch the salt content, I've tried tons of them and at least 70% have the salt content at a level I could not eat.  The second regarding a vacumn sealer, anytime you have anything with noodles, especially small pieces, they tend to poke through the bags creating pinholes when sealed, it doesn't happen with the commercial quality machines (better bags) but those start at around $1500.  Also you can purchase the small desicant packets to throw in that helps alot, just be sure to take them out before adding water since they are really chewy......
 
Steven (Flying Tortoise)
 
--Forwarded Message Attachment--
From: rainorshinecamper at yahoo.com
To: pct-l at backcountry.net
Date: Mon, 6 Dec 2010 09:29:06 -0800
Subject: [pct-l] Food Dehydrator Tips or Recipes?

Hi!
 
I received a food dehydrator as a gift last week and just put in my first trays 
of apple, pineapple and bananas to see how this thing works. Are there any 
favorite dehydrator recipes that you love or tips that I could play with as I 
get to know my new machine?
 
I was planning on looking up online if it is possible for me to dehydrate home 
made chili or soups. Has anybody had experience with this?
 
The instruction book indicates dried foods may be stored for approx. a week on 
counter, a month in fridge and many months in a freezer. I had planned on 
dehydrating this winter to send over the summer months but am concerned by the 
storage time table I read. Did I misunderstand or are they perhaps being overly 
cautious? Should I be freezing my dried foods now and have my support person add 
to my boxes last minute? What have you all done as I know I have read of many 
accounts of dehydrators running all winter long to prepare for the summer 
months. I was thinking about getting a vacuum sealer for storage.
 
Thanks!
 Lisa 
 
 
"Keep close to Nature's heart... and break clear away, once in awhile, and climb 
a mountain or spend a week in the woods. Wash your spirit clean."
~ John Muir