The Beginner's Guide to Preserving Food at Home - Janet Chadwick [19]
Keep containers in a cool, dark, dry place.
tips Dried foods can make lovely gifts. Fill small baby food jars with dried herbs or herb mixtures. Paste pretty labels on the jars and include a few recipes on decorative file cards. Or package a mixed variety of fruit leather strips in plastic wrap and tie with a big ribbon.
There will be times when the weather is humid, or your dehydrator is overloaded, or it just isn’t convenient to dry foods at harvest time. Apples, pears, onions, celery, squash, pumpkins, and carrots can be stored in a cool, dry storage room for a few weeks, until you are ready to dry them. Green peppers, corn, peaches, and strawberries can be stored in the freezer until a more convenient time. Blanch corn and peaches as you would for freezer storage, but the other fruit and vegetables need no pretreatment. For fruit leathers, purée the fruit in a blender, pour into a container, and freeze. When you are ready to make the leathers, just thaw and spread the purée on drying trays.
DRYING FOODS IN A DEHYDRATOR: Seven Steps
You will get the most consistent results with a dehydrator. And, dehydrator drying is so trouble-free you can leave the dehydrator operating overnight or while you’re away from home. Consider loading the dehydrator in the morning before you leave for work and letting it run all day. If a dryer load is almost dry at bedtime, just reduce the heat to 105°F to 110°F and go to bed. By morning, the food will be ready to store.
Clean your work surface and assemble your tools. You will need knives, peelers, a cutting board, measuring cups and spoons and a bowl (if you are pretreating), a colander, and a towel. Dehydrators come complete with their own trays.
Select young, fresh vegetables that are just table-ready or slightly immature. Select firm, ripe fruit. Wash, and drain on towels.
Preheat the dehydrator to the desired temperature.
Recommended temperatures are 115°F for uncooked fruits, 120°F for vegetables and some cooked fruits, and 110°F for leafy herbs.
Peel, slice, dice, chop, julienne, halve, or leave whole, depending on the recommendations for the specific fruit, vegetable, or herb. Pretreat or blanch according to the recommendations for each food.
Spread the prepared foods evenly over the dehydrator trays in thin layers. Different foods can be dried at the same time, but very moist foods should not be dried with almost-dry foods, nor should you combine foods with strong odors or flavors.
Dry according to the times specified for each food. Test for dryness according to the recommendations on pages 43 to 44. Rotate the trays front to back, side to side, and top to bottom at least once during the drying process. Also stir the food or turn it.
Package dried foods in airtight bottles, jars, or plastic bags. Store in a cool, dark place.
DRYING FOOD IN A CONVENTIONAL OVEN: Seven Steps
Drying food in an oven is sometimes better than sun drying, because it is possible to have controlled, even temperatures, but it has the disadvantage of poor air circulation, and air movement is necessary for even drying. Air circulation can be improved by leaving the oven door ajar a few inches and placing an electric fan in front of the door, positioning it to blow away moist air as it accumulates.
Although commercial drying trays are available for use in an oven, homemade trays can be made of wooden frames and nylon screening. For air circulation, allow 1 inch of space on each side, 3 inches on top and bottom, and 2½ inches between trays.
Clean your work surface and assemble your tools. You will need knives, peelers, a cutting board, measuring cups and spoons and a bowl (if you are pretreating), a colander, a towel,