Food Dehydrating is the process of removing water from fruits, vegetables or meats to prevent spoilage by bacteria, mold or yeast as water is the necessary ingredient for their survival. Because it eliminates the water, dehydrating food produces a food product that is light weight, safe and easy to store. Many different methods of dehydration have been employed over the years including air drying, smoking, wind drying or sun drying. While these methods are effective, they are not the most efficient. Cooking Granny believes the most efficient way to dehydrate foods is the electric food dehydrator. Let's explore five compelling reasons for dehydrating with a electric food dehydrator.
1. Dehydrating food is a money saver. One of Cooking Granny's favorite dehydrated foods is Greek yogurt. A 4-6 ounce, name brand yogurt is going to cost approximately sixty cents on sale and one dollar or more if it's not on sale. With a food dehydrator Cooking Granny can easily make a 4 ounce cup of yogurt for thirty-five cents. She simply adds the fruit or sweetener of her choice and she has fresh yogurt tailored to her tastes with no additives or preservatives. She uses plain Greek yogurt for her starter culture so her yogurt is a delicious, creamy texture. If you enjoy jerky imagine the money that can be saved by using a dehydrator and making your own. Another favorite is pet treats. Cooking Granny's dogs enjoy chicken or turkey treats that have been dried in the dehydrator after being cooked. For her boyz, Ollie and Buddy, she also dehydrates sweet potatoes or yams and apple slices and offers them as treats, or she makes dog cookies using rice flour, blueberries and oat flour. 2. Dehydrating food is all about the food freshness factor; a food dehydrator increases the food freshness factor considerably. By dehydrating her own food Cooking Granny is able to control everything that goes on her table and provide good food without any preservatives. With a dehydrator she can purchase fruits and vegetables at their peak, dehydrate, and store for months. In the middle of winter when she needs some bell peppers or corn for a stew, she can take them out of the pantry and drop them in the stew and they will rehydrate just like the fresh vegetable. Nutrients are preserved with dehydration and flavors are intensified. Try dehydrating a basket of strawberries; the smell in your house is incredible and the taste is amazing. 3. Dehydrating food encourages healthy eating habits in children. By serving healthy food and offering healthy food choices at a young age children can form healthy eating habits for life. (P. Kendall, Ph.D. and C. Puck, 9/96, Revised 12/06)¹ Small children can experience the fun of making their own fruit roll-ups with their favorite fruit or learning how to make dried banana chips or raisins in a food dehydrator. Of course, there is Cooking Granny's personal favorite, homemade yogurt, with each child adding their favorite fruit to their yogurt. Plus, think of the fun you can have with your children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews or even the neighbor's children as you help them learn a fun and rewarding skill. 4. Dehydrating is great for the abundance of a backyard garden. Cooking Granny can hear some of you out there saying, wait, I don't have a garden. Well not to worry, Cooking Granny is certain that there is a farmers market with extras just waiting to be dehydrated. For those with gardens, the question arises about how to use all of the rewards of our gardening efforts. With a food dehydrator, that question does not even need to come up. There is a long list of fruits and vegetables that can be easily dehydrated. One of Cooking Granny's favorites is tomatoes. They can be dehydrated into tomato leather. It sounds crazy, but it is so tasty and the tomato leather can be blended into a powder for soups, sauces and seasoning. Cooking Granny recommends purchasing a dehydrating recipe book such as "Preserve It Naturally" by Excalibur or "Food Drying with an Attitude" by Mary T. Bell. 5. Lastly, Cooking Granny believes that dehydrated pet treats are a safer treat to feed our pets. She has mentioned dehydrated pet treats previously but now she wants to take the opportunity to further explore the topic. Our pets are such an important part of our lives; what we feed them is as critical to their health and well-being as it is to ours. There are a lot of great recipes available and Cooking Granny recommends that you dehydrate your pet treats even if they are baked first. This will remove the moisture and give a good crunch. Any treats not used in 2 days should be frozen with small batches removed as needed. Treats left out without preservatives will spoil and it is not visibly evident at first. As the old saying goes, better safe than sorry, is so true, especially when it is our pets. In conclusion, if you don't have a food dehydrator there is no time like the present and Cooking Granny believes everyone needs their own dehydrator. Many different sizes and styles are available. One of the great things that Cooking Granny has learned in her food dehydrating activities is that it is a great activity that allows you to learn as you practice. Enjoy your dehydrated vegetables!
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