Boundary Waters Quetico Forum :: BWCA Food and Recipes :: Basics for Main Meal Dehydrating
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Bronco |
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ripple |
quote trashbag: "you mention putting food in ziplock bag then vacuum seal. wouldnt air be trapped in the ziplock?" The zip lock is kept open- not sealed |
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ripple |
quote trashbag: "quote ripple: "quote trashbag: "you mention putting food in ziplock bag then vacuum seal. wouldnt air be trapped in the ziplock?" Exactly- the little fine crumbles tend to prevent the seal in the vacuum bags. I put the dehydrated food into the bag- then slide it into the sealer bag in with the opening at the bottom. I think any secondary bag would work- zip lock is mainly stated in my description to give a reference for the volumes I tend to seal as a serving size. Lots of us old hippies here! |
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okinaw55 |
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billconner |
quote okinaw55: "Yes it should be a sticky! I've been wondering if the Nesco 600watt would be good enough. This is what I'm referring to. Seems pretty cheap and we'd love to carry in some good food. " That's what I use. Albeit I only crank it up for a few weeks a year just for tripping but worked fine. I line trays with parchment paper for almost everything. Nothing sticks and easy clean. |
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ripple |
If you could have your favorite meal or ingredient dehydrated for your next trip- what would it be? |
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ripple |
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goaljohnbill |
quote NotLight: " then have extra beef jerky, powerbars, etc for people who are still hungry. I suppose, the other alternative is 2/3rd's sized portions if individually packed, and then pack extra portions. I am obviously in charge of food for our group of 4 but I told people they were entirely responsible for their own snacks so they should have some stuff of that sort if they needed it... as long as they dont eat all they brought the 1st day lol. I was going to pack some small baggies of fry breads if people were still hungry we could cook that. I will also have mashed potato flakes along (mostly for thickening over watered stew or stroganoff) if someone were desperate they could whip some of those up also. I know everyone other than me plans on eating some fish as often as possible also. I use ripples 1/2 day soak method so extra portions prepared after the fact seem like they may be a little problematic. As of yet Ive never rehydrated only in a pot over heat, its all been soaked 2+ hours 1st. |
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goaljohnbill |
quote ripple: " Relatedly I have been using this for all of my "non ground" dehydrator meal meats after I found it at walmart this winter. Canned roast It is hunks of various types of roast with nothing added. It shreds easily and tastes fantastic right out of the can. The unopened can is also shelf stable for 5 years according to their data sheet. I use the beef in your guiness stew recipe and my stroganoff and chili. I put the pork with bbq sauce for bbq loose meat sandwiches. I plan on making a turkkey and gravy for ala king/potatoes with it at some point. |
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NotLight |
quote Twins87: "For rice, if we do rice and beans (for chicken soft tacos) would it work better to dehydrate the rice and beans separately or just cook them up, mix together and dehydrate? " For tortillas, (vs, say chili) I would cook and dehydrate the beans separately. Otherwise, the beans kind of invade everything. Rehydrating depends: - I think the best (and most complicated) method is to use 2 pots and one frying pan in camp. In one pot, cook plain rice or minute rice with some lime crystals and dried parsley flakes. In the second pot, rehydrate the beans. In the frying pan, cook the rehydrated chicken and peppers in some olive oil, and bring along a small fresh onion and cut up some larger pieces to cook along with the chicken and peppers. - Simpler method would be to cook/rehydrate the beans and rice together; or, the beans separate and the chicken, peppers, and rice together. - Simplest is to just dump everything in one pot and rehydrate together, or rehydrate everything together in a freezer bag. |
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ripple |
It has been awhile since I posted- but love to hear that the thread was helpful! This is my "stocking" season. I love cooking huge batches of everything and dehydrating for the coming season of outdoors fun This year my daughter begged to "borrow" the dehydrator for her college outdoors club trips. I couldn't get her to bring it home again- so I had to give up and buy another Excaliber! Have a great year of eating well out there! |
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NotLight |
quote Twins87: "Another bump. My dehydrator just arrived. Now what do I do with it?! ;-) The manual that came with my Nesco dehydrator was pretty helpful for learning the basics (link). You might start with something really really simple to dehydrate, to get a feel for how different foods with different outer skins and different thicknesses dehydrate and rehydrate. Then, move on to more advanced stuff. I think the easiest things to start with, as has been suggested, might be a bag of frozen mixed corn-peas-carrots, some apple slices, a can of chili beans (drained/rinsed), or frozen/thawed strawberries. Run some stuff like this, maybe don't worry about the blanching, etc. that is recommended for certain foods, and just see what happens. Then I would try a simple liquid like apple sauce or tomato puree, to see how liquids dehydrate, and how thin you might want to spread them. (it's counter-intuitive, but I can get tomato sauce to dry better if it starts out with more water in it vs less, because the water makes the solids spread out thinner). Then maybe try drying some different types of cooked noodles. At that point I think you'll have the hang of it. From there, you can start looking up recipes or different types of dehydrated snacks on the web - and with that bit of practice under your belt, you'll know if those recipes are something you are interested in. And, you'll have had enough practice with the dehydrator to not put a lot of effort into something and then mess up drying it. I don't trust myself enough to dry any meat or dairy, so I mostly dry vegetables and tomato puree and add them into whatever rice, instant potato, noodle, etc. I've used the foil pack chicken, tuna, salmon too, but I think I want to try freeze dried chicken this year. Some simple things I've made by just combining single dried ingredients together - chicken noodle soup with dried peas, corn, etc.; add dried broccoli to the Bear Creek cheddar potato soup mix; chili bean and minute rice burritos; pizza (dried tomato pureed and peppers plus purchased parmesan cheese and purchased pepperoni packet); spinach/chickpea curry; Buckwheat Tabouli (dried diced tomato, cucumber, green onion), apple chip granola. But better cooks can do much more, or you can combine things into a one pot type of dish like chili or mac and cheese, etc, and dehydrate all at once to make things more convenient. My personal favorite is just a ton of finely chopped/slightly pureed blanched spinach, or spinach or kale cut into quarter sized pieces, blanched, and dried. Just carry a big Ziploc bag of it, and add it to stuff. You can pack a lot of green nutrition into an amazingly small package. Plus the greens will rehydrate really fast. It's kind of a strong flavor, but I really like the red kale flakes mixed in with some couscous. |
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Twins87 |
quote Bronco: "Thanks Twins, I am vacuum sealing them and putting them in the freezer, same thing I am doing with all of the foods I am dehydrating. I have no idea how long they will last since I'm brand new to all of this. Our first trip will be in late June/Early July so we'll be bringing them along then. We tend to push the envelope with fresh food and have never been burned so I am just presuming we'll be fine with these as well. if it is unseasonably warm, I will plan to eat them in the first half of our 8 day trip. But we bring eggs, cheese and breakfast meats along in the middle of summer. Eat them up early in the trip and we've always been fine. I'll just put the yogurt bites in the same location as the other fresh food. Which starts out packed next to our first night frozen meat (pork chops or chicken) I'll definitely post results later this summer. |
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goaljohnbill |
quote Bronco: "Ripple..... thanks for all your posts ... thanks for your insperation" Concur, also for the bumps that brought it back to the top to be noticed by late arrivals. Sure seems like it would be a good sticky though I just saved the link to it. I do the big batches, feed the fam, and put up what is left. We have only had our dehydrator a couple of weeks and have already put up servings of chili, spagetti, and the fantastic Guiness beef stew from the main meals thread. Thinking a curry is next maybe Balti Beef or Rogan Josh Lamb. Cant wait to use them this summer! Thanks again |
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keth0601 |
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Brooklynn07 |
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strom2127 |
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ripple |
My best suggestion for doing a breakfast burrito is how we make my husband's favorite breakfast skillet. I saute up all the yummy stuff he would like with his eggs- peppers (red/green) onions, a baked potato diced up etc... then dehydrate them. When you are in the woods- add water to slightly cover them- then add to your fresh eggs you have scrambled- for my husband's skillet I make eggs over easy. Roll up with cheese in your burrito. You have save some weight with the dehydrated veggies, they will last as long as you need them to before hydration, they are all ready chopped so you have little work to do- best yet they are scent free in your pack. Good luck! |
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billconner |
Sounds good. We do quesadillas with dehydrated peppers and onions, fresh cheese, and foil packed chicken. I plan to try dehydrating the roasted chicken in the grocery store deli department in place of foil pack. And fresh eggs are nice and not to hard to carry and can't be beat for flavor in the woods. |
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strom2127 |
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strom2127 |
thank you for the tips on how to help make the idea work. very invaluable. |
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strom2127 |
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billconner |
quote ripple: "Bumped for Jeff from chat who had dehydrating thoughts!" So where is the recipe and what exactly do dehydrating thoughts taste like? Chicken probably. |
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Jess |
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goaljohnbill |
quote Twins87: "Another bump. My dehydrator just arrived. Now what do I do with it?! ;-) If you only have screen trays do some fruit; halved strawberries, sliced peaches (from frozen is less work), pineapple chunks (precut), sliced apples, banana chips (my favorites are peach slices and pinapple). If you have solid screens (or the willingness to cut parchment) dry some applesauce to make leather. Spread it 1/4 to 1/2 an inch thick >1" from the edge and dry it until it is solid it will peel up cleanly and whole (at least 6-8 hours). |
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trashbag |
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Chicagored |
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ripple |
Why you want to dehydrate!!! DIY Meal Vs. Commercial Freeze Dried Meal |
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shsylvester |
quote KevinL: "I put a piece of paper towel in and it helps and then have one for cleanup. " Yep, I just stumbled across that idea last night. Put stew in a baggie, wrapped 1/3 paper towel around, popped in vacuum bag and sealed. Worked well. |
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shsylvester |
Just picked up a foodsaver and I'm starting to lay up for a long summer trip. My first two dishes, Beef Stew and Hamburger have enough jagged edges that they end up puncturing the foodsaver bag on suction. I see in your pics that you have your chili in snack bags before vacuuming and sealing. Do you find that helps to avoid the problem I'm having? |
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billconner |
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ripple |
quote BillConner01: "I was waiting for Ripple's reply but I find that things with cream or cheese sauce, the sauce seems to break down a little. Still tastes fine, just can get a little granular texture to it." I have made lots of things with this type of sauce- tuna or turkey tetrazzini is a cream sauce, my daughters favorite cheesy potato bake is a cheese and cream sauce- all have turned out well probably because the sauce is all tossed around in noodles and potatos rather than soup consistancy. We make a potato leek soup that is essentially a very thin mashed potato consitancy- it also does well. Though I think that any dairy does add an element of food safety that I worry more about- the fat content makes it harder to completely get rid of moisture so this is one of the meals that I dehydrate- keep in the freezer and use early in the trip. |
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FrogWood |
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ripple |
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OBX2Kayak |
quote Brooklynn07: "I am sitting here thinking about how you would rehydrate a meal for six people with out the boiling water. Any ideas? What container would you use? Haul it with you all day? Or hang with food? We have been trying to come up with new food ideas, and yours sounds great, just trying to make it work for six." Brook -- I found freezer bag cooking while prepping for a twelve day trip with eight people a few years back. Everything was packed in single serving bags. Most evenings we just boiled one large pot of water, added it to each bag, wait fifteen minutes and eat. Some days we added cold water in the morning and dinner was ready immediately after we set camp. These days I only use FBC, even for one night solos. Its just so easy. |
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billconner |
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fitgers1 |
I'm sure my girlfriend (who will be making her first trip in Aug) will ask you a few questions when she comes up with a screen name for the board. Thanks again! |
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ripple |
We are usually a group of 4-6. I have solved the dehydrating volume issue by packaging all the meals in individual serving volumes. Before we go on the trip I have 50-60 small packs of food, labeled and on the dining room table for everyone to paw through and decide what they think they want to eat on the trip. Then when we are in the woods- Everyone is responsible for their own meal and can choose what they want to eat each day... lots of ease and less drama for the meal choices- you know "Ed hates Swedish meatballs, but it is Anna's favorite meal EVER" The food packs everyone choses get packed into the bear vaults. Again the way we often have done this is- at lunch the dinner decisions are made- each person puts the dehydrated food of their choice into their own Ziploc container that I showed earlier in the thread, uses the water filter pump to pump their clean water for the rehydrating process, adds the correct amount of water to the food choice (more for soup, less for stew) and carries the food in the jar for the afternoon. When we are at our site ready to eat dinner, a fire is made or the stove is heated up (really the fire on the BWCA grates works best for a lot of people)Heating the rehydrated food is done with each person dumping their now rehydrated food into their titanium mug, then setting it on the fire or on the MSR stove. The heating process is very quick and does not require tons of fuel like boiling water for all the food would. Clean up now is the Ziploc jar, the titanium mug and the spork- each person does their own clean up. The plastic bag is packed out flat and clean because it was only dried food in it- less stinky garbage in the pack! Freezer bag thoughts... The set up I described is similar and can be adapted to the freezer bag cooking idea- if you seal the food in the FoodSaver bag with enough room to add the hot water. Just make the bag bigger when you do the final seal. You would not want to use boiling water- but warm water. Know ahead of time that it will take quite awhile to rehydrate- sometimes and an hour or more if the food is chunky. Sausage gravy advice... The sausage gravy would likely work perfectly. My suggestion would be to make the gravy very thick before putting on the wax paper over the dehydrator tray. Crumble the dried gravy very small and it should rehydrate nicely. This is the Bob Evans Receipe I have made before (pretty yummy, but I would love to see another one posted) I have never tried to dehydrate 1 pound Bob Evans® Original Recipe Sausage Roll 1/4 cup all-purpose flour 2 cups milk Salt and black pepper to taste 8 prepared biscuits Directions Crumble and cook sausage in large skillet over medium heat until browned. Stir in flour until dissolved. Gradually stir in milk. Cook gravy until thick and bubbly. Season with salt and pepper. Serve hot over biscuits. Refrigerate leftovers. Pack time... When you cook the food originally- you have completely boiled, baked etc, then dehydrated at 145 degrees. You then seal out the air with the Foodsaver- at this point you have already made the food able to last months, likely over a year, per the websites I posted. I put everything in the deep freezer just because I am a little OCD about food. It allows the food to last, with absolute certainty and safety, over a year. So for our dehydration process I cook like crazy in the winter and use the food through our camping season spring-fall of the coming year. Once you pull the food out of the freezer- if the bag is still intact and sealed completely- you are able to keep everything relatively bacteria free for months. Remember it is DRIED and vacuum sealed- NO moisture- so it doesn't "defrost". If we go home with un-opened food and it is still sealed, I put it back in the freezer for the next trip. I tend to throw away whatever food is past the 1 year mark- likely overkill but like I said I am alittle OCD when it comes to food. Plus since I cook a lot- the next batch of chili or Jumbalaya will replenish the supply quickly. Finally the use of the reflector oven with your dehydrated food- If you make the baked ziti receipe I posted, dehydrate- rehydrate, put in a pot with string cheese on top and bake until gooey and crispy- people might hurt each other to eat it! This goes for tons of stuff- the shepards pie with crusty potatoes on top, gooey/crispy mac and cheese, I could go on and on... We are going to try out this new toy for this year.. Bemco Backpacker Oven |
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ripple |
"How safe to eat is dried food? In comparison with foods preserved by other methods, like canning, it is quite safe. Botulism is feared in canning because the bacteria that cause it thrive in a liquid environment. Botulism could only occur with a dried food that had been rehydrated, then left unattended long enough for bacteria to grow. Mold may form on dried food if it was not dehydrated long enough or if the container it was stored in had moisture in it. If you see or smell mold, all the food in that container must be discarded. Remember that the organisms that cause food spoilage, mold, yeast, bacteria-are always present in the air, water, and soil. It is important to observe sanitary precautions at all stages of the drying process. As to the safety of drying meats, the latest word from food-science researchers at the University of Wisconsin in Madison is that microorganisms are effectively killed when the internal temperature of meat reaches 145°F for 45 minutes; or 167°F for 20 minutes; or 200°F for 15 minutes. This means that the internal temperature of the meat must remain steady for the designated amount of time, which is not the same as putting meat in a 200°F oven for 15 minutes. If your food dehydrator does not reach a temperature of 145°F or if its temperature control is inaccurate, then transfer the food to a preheated 200°F oven for a minimum of 20 minutes to eliminate safety concerns. You can also store dried food in the freezer, another form of ensuring its safety." Here is a list of some great websites and info! National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service- Food Dehydration Options Post-Harvest handling of dehydrated chiles Drying Foods (Guide E-322) Drying Food at Home (CFS-146) Drying Food (Circular 1227) Preserving Food: Drying Fruits and Vegetables Drying Fruits How to Dry Foods at Home New Dehydrating Recommendations |
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Brooklynn07 |
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Savage Voyageur |
quote Brooklynn07: "Would one of those blue with white specs. mugs work instead? Haven't ever used a titanium mug before. Do they cook faster? Sounds like a good idea! Thanks so much might just make cooking easier!" I use a Titanium mug and spork. Very lite and strong. For boil and dump meals they just cannot be beat. Very poor heat dissipation, but it cools quickly so you can use it for coffee. |
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Brooklynn07 |
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ripple |
quote Brooklynn07: "Also Ripple you mentioned a snack size bag, but a sandwich for your husband. Does the amount of food in a sandwich bag fit in a mug? Do you know about how much food that is? I know I am asking a lot of questions, hope I am not bugging anyone to much :)." Brooklynn07- Questions are what this forum is great for! The snack sized bags fit in the mug perfectly. My husband, the big eater, his sandwich bag portion doesn't quite fit so he just warms part of the meal- then refills the mug from the Ziploc container when he eats everything from the mug. I think any fireproof mug would work- we just have the titianium mugs and spork- Like Savage Voyager said they are super light weight and easy to clean up. The uneven heating isn't as big a deal in the little mugs- but bigger pots I do notice it more. The biggest drawback to the titanium is how pricey they are- I gave all the kids a mug and spork at Christmas and I had to search like crazy to get the price down to near $50, but most places it would have been a near $100 combo!@ |
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nojobro |
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ripple |
quote nojobro: "Thanks, Ripple...can't wait to have the space at home to get a really good dehydrator! Hopefully we'll be moving in the next year or so..." I know- my "kitchen gadget" disease has really created a storage issue for us too! The dehydrator I have does really take up a lot of room- kind of a big cumbersome box! But I keep it in a big garbage bag inside the original box in the garage- then drag it out when I have cooked big meals. It winds up sitting in the dining room for the couple of days that it takes to complete the project |
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ripple |
quote Amok: "Thanks Ripple. I'm one of those guys who likes the taste of 'real food' but hasn't tried much of dehydrated anything yet. what i have tried has been McYUcky! totally dried, crusty, hard meat or rubbery meat ... not appetizing at all. and I like BEEF. My husband really likes meat in the woods too. Try the Beef Stew recipe that I posted in the main meals- this is one of his favorites. |
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ripple |
- a pain in the neck, literally and figuratively, because they WEIGH A LOT Dehydrated meals make life easier in so many ways: 1) Dehydrated food packs so much more efficiently, especially in the bear vault. 2) With the dehydrated food vacuum packed in individual servings, then carried in the bear vault, there is NO food odor which makes you more bear resistant. 3) After a long day of paddling and portaging- it is time to eat dinner NO ONE wants to wait for a good meal- dehydrated meals are super quick to heat and eat. 4) Cleaning up tons of pots and utensils from trying to create a great meal from scratch- ruins a good time relaxing after eating- dehydrated meals make clean up very easy. 5) Provisioning food for the trip takes lots of time and effort, but pulling premade meals out of storage and packing them is EASY! If you spend any amount of time in the woods it is very worth investing in a good dehydrator. This is what I bought years ago- Excalibur Food Dehydrator The basic format is to make your meal, keep the ingredients small, spread the meal out on the dehydrator trays, dry it out for as many hours as it takes to make it completely dry. You often have to turn the food over and break it up slightly to make it dry completely. Put the dried food in zip lock bags. Use the snack sized zip lock bag for 1 portion or my husband can eat a sandwich sized portion. I like the vacuum sealer next- the bags get REALLY small and all the air is gone. Getting all the air out is important to keeping the food from contamination. Then just to bullet proof the whole thing- I put everything in the deep freezer. Dating and identifying the package helps in knowing what you have. When you are in the woods- to make the meal you can do a couple of things- either boil or soak the dehydrated food to rehydrate. Either way- for soups add enough water to have all of the dried food very well covered and then a good inch above the dried food in the pot. If it is a stew or a pasta dish- just keep the dried food barely covered. It takes a good amount of time to rehydrate if the water is cold- faster if the water is warm. If the water is cold it and it is cold outside- it can take hours to really rehydrate well. If the water is warm or boiling it still can take up to 90 min to fully rehydrate meats. I have found that this wastes a lot of fuel and is a frustrating wait when everyone is hungry. I think it is the reason most people who have tried to dehydrate give up- because the food stays crunchy! The best technique we have developed is to choose our meal in the morning,have the food out and ready to go and at the top of the pack when we head out in the morning, finally somewhere around lunch we put the dehydrated food in this add water and leave it in the pack for the rest of the day. When it's time to make dinner- the stuff barely needs heating and is well hydrated. Then you can eat out of the jar- keeping less to clean up too. |
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Amok |
so... i may try this and see what happens. seems easy enough! and it would lighten my pack quite a bit, i'm the guy who wants to bring ComPLEATS with me. hahahaa. at 10-12 oz. or more per person, it gets heavy! fast! |
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ripple |
quote Pikehunter: "quote ripple: "quote Pikehunter: "Ripple Brilliant! I will do the same. |
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inspector13 |
Thanks ripple! As a frozen lunchtime meal preparer and one who dehydrates veggies, I really appreciate these posts. I will have to try the whole meal dehydrating when I get a better system. In the mean time I am going to try your version of shepherd’s pie. My version has French cut beans as a layer. We’ll see if the coworkers come drooling around my cube at lunch time. : ) |
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deepwood |
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ripple |
quote deepwood: "maybe a stupid question, but is it possible to over-dehydrate your food if its left in at that temp for to long?" The only bad experience I have had is with anything tomato based- spagetti, chili etc... If I leave it too long it has a funny burned taste when I rehydrate. |
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ripple |
quote Pikehunter: "Ripple I would have loved the timer part of the dehydrator that yours has!! But my dehydrator is 5 years old and has no signs of dying- so I will just have to live without the sexy extras... Try dehydrating a main meal you like and you will REALLY love the dehydrator! So easy to do, light weight in the pack, and very yummy in the woods- so many wins! |
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Pikehunter |
quote ripple: "quote Pikehunter: "Ripple I did not get the one with the timer. I am using the timer my wife uses for her Christmas lights and just plug the machine into that. |
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ripple |
quote Pikehunter: "Have been playing with my Excaliber few weekends. Have done various fruits , veggies, made beef jerky last weekend and yesterday some hashbrowns. Careful- it becomes an obsession! Every time I cook I think "This would probably be even yummier in the woods..." |
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Pikehunter |
This thing works so well! Next week I am thinking about beef stew and chili. Pikehunter |
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ripple |
@keth0601- wow I have not gone as far as weighing before to make sure of the rehydration need! Probably would be a very exact way of making it work- but all I do is add enough water to cover the food- then add more if it seems too dry or cook longer if I added too much water. |
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billconner |
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JJ396 |
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ripple |
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billconner |
"control-f" and then "ripple" |
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ripple |
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Goby |
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ripple |
quote Goby: "Moderator, can this thread be thumbtacked on top? Seems to be awfully popular." I think the Jello Mold thread should go up as a thumbtack too. |
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nojobro |
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Twins87 |
Cabin fever plus reading all the dehydrating threads led to my purchase. But I have no idea what to do now... Any suggestions for what I should try first? I'm ready to jump in head first this weekend. Oh if only I didn't have to work tomorrow.... |
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OldFingers57 |
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billconner |
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ripple |
quote Twins87: "Well I've got strawberries, apples, kiwi and canned peaches going tonight. Hoping they turn out!" How did it go? These will pack nicely in a Gorp! |
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Twins87 |
quote ripple: "quote Twins87: "Well I've got strawberries, apples, kiwi and canned peaches going tonight. Hoping they turn out!" Overall not bad ... Kiwi was a little tart and maybe too chewy. Peaches weren't chewy enough . Apples overdone too I think. My teenage son loves them so he's eating them by the handful. Ill do more soon and play with length and pliability. I really want to try main meals... Chili... Pasta... Soup...Etc but don't know how long to do them so I'm not sure when to start... Overnight and check in morning? I'm hoping to bring several full meals on our trip this summer. 8 days for the two of us and I love bringing fresh food but want to cut down on the heavy big food pack. |
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headCase |
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Twins87 |
Yogurt bites and applesauce fruit leather are vacuum sealed and ready for trips. Going to experiment more with flavors/brand of yogurt. So far we like the Yoplait strawberry the best. Has anyone tried flavored applesauces? Hubby doesn't like the plain stuff as much but I think he'd love some of the flavored options. Crockpot turkey chili, two varieties of canned beans (black and chili) are finishing up today while I am at work and we will vacuum seal tonight. Next up? Maybe some fruit... i bought a bunch this weekend and this time around would get it quickly sealed and hidden from the 18 year old ;-) Also going to do some rice, pasta and some veggies (fresh & frozen) I have some extra cooked up ground turkey that I may do separately. Thinking it could be added to spaghetti for the meat lovers in our crew. Then of course I would need to dehydrate some spaghetti sauce. I can feel the obsession growing already and I've only used it three times since it arrived! So far a mix of homemade food and store bought. Once I feel more comfortable with it, I will definitely add in more homemade food. |
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goaljohnbill |
quote Twins87: "Has anyone tried flavored applesauces? Hubby doesn't like the plain stuff as much but I think he'd love some of the flavored options. " Yes, well mostly not the flavored ones themselves though. I food process other fruits and mix them with the applesauce at different ratios. Strawberries, other berry blends, cherries, bananas, peaches, etc. Im lazy so they are all frozen and all I have to do is thaw, dump, grind and mix. I really like cinnamon applesauce with peaches |
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OldFingers57 |
quote goaljohnbill: "quote Twins87: "Has anyone tried flavored applesauces? Hubby doesn't like the plain stuff as much but I think he'd love some of the flavored options. " I used to just add jello to applesauce to make different flavors of fruit leather. |
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Twins87 |
quote Bronco: "Yogurt bites and applesauce fruit leather are vacuum sealed and ready for trips. Going to experiment more with flavors/brand of yogurt. So far we like the Yoplait strawberry the best. We dried three different brands/flavors - Gaymont Lime & Peach and Yoplait Strawberry. All the premixed kinds of yogurt. Dried until pliable and chewy but not sticky to the touch. Roll them up like fruit leather, cut in to 1/2" pieces and then dry another hour to seal up the ends where you cut. They end up really tasty... chewy and concentrated flavor, almost like taffy. I got the idea from the manual that came with my Excalibur. When I read that they end up taffy-like, I jumped on it. We like them. We sealed them up quickly so we wouldn't eat them all. I preferred the texture and flavor of the Yoplait strawberry best. We are going to try vanilla next. We packaged six together. We'll see what we think of that portion size. |
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campcrafter |
WIstoney: "My buddy, our senior "camp cookie" burned up his cheap plastic tray dehydrator after last year's trip. He got a metal one from Cabelas that has a great warranty, several heat settings, and a fan. He's been going crazy with that thing for a couple of months now. Fruits, veggies, beef, and spaghetti sauce (spread out on wax paper). Shepard's pie, spaghetti, and several other casserole type one pot meals are on the menu. We leave in 3 days." How were the meals on your trip? What were they? Favorites? Have been reading through all the dehydrator threads and just ordered a NESCO FD60 off Amazon to give dehydrating a go. Here is a link to a few more recipes some may like. Hippy Homemaker Trail Food Blue Skies! cc |
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goaljohnbill |
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Jaywalker |
goaljohnbill: "Bump for some people asking about dehydrated meals. This guide is fantastic" Good bump. Ripple was really good at this! |
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ripple |
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ripple |
quote shsylvester: "quote KevinL: "I put a piece of paper towel in and it helps and then have one for cleanup. " Absolutely brilliant! I will try the same with my next round of dehydrating! |
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ripple |
Yes fresh eggs will last quite awhile without being refridgerated- the trick is to get real fresh eggs and do not wash them. The shell is naturally bacteriostatic (protected from infection). Unbroken eggs are sterile inside as well. We routinely bring fresh eggs in a cheap plastic protective container- Coleman Egg Carrier . We bring enough for 1-2 days worth of breakfasts. This link is pretty helpful- Info About Fresh Eggs |
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giddyup |
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ripple |
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trashbag |
quote ripple: "quote trashbag: "you mention putting food in ziplock bag then vacuum seal. wouldnt air be trapped in the ziplock?" so the ziplock is used to keep food from getting sucked into sealer? i have used regular sandwich bags before. is there another reason for ziplock bags? like the gd reference |
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nojobro |
Do you rehydrate with cold water? Frankly I worry about letting it sit in water all day; I'm be concered about bacterial growth. Apparently that has not been a problem for you. ;-) Nola |
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Pikehunter |
I just bought the Excaliber 3900 I dried some fruit last weekend. It works soooo much better than the old round dehydrator I had. Jerky this coming weekend or some massive amounts of hashbrown potatoes - not sure which yet. Our food pack will be tremendously lighter this year. Pikehunter still searching for the 50 incher. |
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ripple |
quote nojobro: "Ripple, where did you get those jars? I get the jars at my grocery store (Jewel here in Illinois) but I have seen them at Target, Walmart etc... They are made by ZipLock. We use cold water and have let it sit for up to 4 hours in the pack. Never had a problem in 5 years of dehydrating, rehydrating- all weather etc... Because the hot cooked through food- is dehydrated at 145 degrees, vacuum sealed, and then put in the deep freezer- the bacteria level is pretty low to begin with. When the dehydrated food is opened, it is instantly sealed in the jar with filtered water- not open to the air- again the bacteria level is likely to be low. The pack temps, depending on the time of year, are likely to be relatively cool. It also helps that it is dark. Finally, when you go to eat the food, it is heated all the way through- boiled for nearly the 10 min necessary to make it sterile really. The evidence on food safety is that this is pretty likely to keep bacteria levels way down. I think it is a pretty safe process and I'm kind of a food freak. Though I also believe we have stomach acids for a reason! This link had lots of info regarding dehydration and the lack of bacteria. How to Dehydrate Food This link had good info about rehydrating- Rehydration Chart Finally- I liked this link regarding food safety in the woods. It confirms that you probably don't want to leave the food in the container for longer than 2 hours if you were then going to eat the food without the final cooking part of the process. Food Safety in the Woods |
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giddyup |
I'm assuming after you do the 2 hour water soak then you could finish rehydrating it in a microwave if you have access to one. Seems to me you could pay for the dehydrator pretty quickly using it on road trips instead of eating out. And you have the benefit of your own home cooking. Also, you mentioned eggs don't dehydrate well. What other things are better left alone? |
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billconner |
The adventure eggs are pretty amazing for powdered eggs - especially for baking or mixed with onions and peppers. Consider using summer sausage cut up as a very stable meat. |
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ripple |
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fitgers1 |
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campcook184 |
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SIRT |
Travis |
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billconner |
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mirth |
Its on sale right now, btw, at Amazon for $60 with free shipping. |
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billconner |
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serenityseeker |
I dehydrated black bean soup with ham and homemade stuffing with jimmy dean sausage for our trip. it was yummy. |
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Brooklynn07 |
Thanks for your help! |
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Brooklynn07 |
Thanks so much for any help! |
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bobbwca |
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Pikehunter |
My reflector oven makes awsome biscuits. |
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billconner |
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ripple |
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ripple |
Most of the recipes are pretty easy- though some just take time. Unfortunately having raised a family of 5 children- the recipes are all large volumes! I don't yet know how to cook for less than an army. All of the meals are family favorites- kid and picky eater approved. The main trick to any of the dehydrating is going to be keeping the pieces small and the meats all cooked until they are practically falling apart. Rehydrating is really just allowing the food to absorb the liquid- which can really take longer than you think. Try the trick of putting it in the twist top container and you won't have crunchy food. If anyone is really interested- I can do a photo shoot and post the next time I do my dehydrating. Feel free to email any questions! |
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gutmon |
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ripple |
Spread the food thinly onto the dehydrator sheets Put it in the dehydrator over night Dehydrated Chili!! Snack sized zip lock= about 1 serving Suck out the air in the Food Saver... Label, date, put in the freezer... Take to the BWCA!!!! |
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Savage Voyageur |
quote Pikehunter: "Ripple My back will thank you in June for lightening the load. Oh wait we don't have the food pack do we, the new guys do, haha |
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canoepaddle |
canoepaddle |
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ripple |
quote boonie: "quote ripple: "My 24yo- very experienced light weight back packer- son just came back from a 10 day hike through the Cascades and reports the food I sent was so light weight and tasty- he will never go back to the eating Ramen Noodles for a week!" I am donating a week supply of dinners for 2 for the Fall Wing Night Raffle! Support BWCA.com!!! |
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boonie |
quote ripple: "My 24yo- very experienced light weight back packer- son just came back from a 10 day hike through the Cascades and reports the food I sent was so light weight and tasty- he will never go back to the eating Ramen Noodles for a week!" No doubt, ripple - I won't eat ramen noodles for a day :). I'm sure your food is much better - could you whip me up a supply for my Sept trip? |
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ripple |
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boonie |
quote ripple: "quote boonie: "quote ripple: "My 24yo- very experienced light weight back packer- son just came back from a 10 day hike through the Cascades and reports the food I sent was so light weight and tasty- he will never go back to the eating Ramen Noodles for a week!" Thanks, I wish I could make wing night, but it's too far from WV :). Unfortunately, I'll just miss everyone, as I'll be driving home just before that from my trip. |
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luft |
quote ripple: "quote boonie: "quote ripple: "My 24yo- very experienced light weight back packer- son just came back from a 10 day hike through the Cascades and reports the food I sent was so light weight and tasty- he will never go back to the eating Ramen Noodles for a week!" That is a wonderful donation Ripple! So many people have talked about how fantastic your meals are! |
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billconner |
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ripple |
quote BillConner01: "If this has been covered I apologize but how do you protion this? Is it as simple as dividng food into portion sizes or multiple there of and keeping separate on dehydrator trays? " When I spread the food onto the dehydrator tray- I have an idea of the size of the portion that fits on it. I scoop a serving bowl into the pot of what ever I have made then use it to spread on to the dehydrator try. Now that I have done so very many servings- I know that my trays each hold 2 "average" size portions. |
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ripple |
quote BillConner01: "Just had Ripple's Ziti last Wednesday night on Quetico Lake, given out at the Chicago spring wing night. Wonderful! I do need to learn to read though because I had Jambalaya on my written list. I've got to work on this "craft" over the winter." Dang Bill you're gonna make me blush some more!!! The Baked Ziti is really good in the oven with extra cheese on top too! |
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ripple |
quote Brooklynn07: "Here goes with the questions again!! Another year more trips to plan! So I am wondering why in your recipes you say to dehydrate the noodles and the sauce separately? Last year we make chicken Alfredo mixed it all then dehydrated it. It worked ok, so I was wondering if it is just for some recipes, or if you have had problems in the past. Thanks so much for all the help, it has saved me alot of trouble!" I have an aversion to gooey noodles- by dehydrating the noodles separately they tend to stay firmer in my experience. |
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ripple |
quote shsylvester: "Ripple, It puts a dent in the puncture rate- but it is still an issue for me too. When I finish sealing a batch of food I leave the packets on the counter for a day or so to find the ones that "unseal". I then re seal. Some things are bigger problems- like pastas. For these I actually put the food into a smaller food saver bag- open on one end- then put inside another that is used for sealing. It is likely over kill- but again the best way to prevent any bacteria growth is in the preventing air and moisture from getting to the food. |
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KevinL |
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3Ball |
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fitgers1 |
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removedmember1 |
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Twins87 |
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NotLight |
quote Twins87: If you look at ripple's post at the top of the thread she can do the chili overnight (at 145 degrees because it has meat in it). I'd say experiment - take a can of soup from the cupboard and run it overnight (135 degrees if no meat and I think 145 with meat). See what happens. Ripple, if you use beef or chicken, how thin are you cutting the pieces? Your recipes say 1/2" thick? |
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goaljohnbill |
quote Twins87: " Those textures are up to you. my wife like her banana chips to not be crunchy while I prefer it. They never last long enough at our house to worry about how they will keep! quote Twins87: " It is dependant upon how thick the pieces are and how thick you spread it. I am certain that I leave my main meals on longer than I need to. Other than extra electricty use I cant think of a reason to worry about it. I read somewhere that there is some nutrient degradation from the application of heat. I have no idea how much occurs and how extra drying affects that. We dont go out long enough to worry about actual nutrient content so I dont worry about that. Ive dried some stuff for 2+ days before for various reasons (forgot, schedule problems etc). I havnt noticed negative taste affects from long drys. |
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ripple |
quote Twins87: "quote ripple: "quote Twins87: "Well I've got strawberries, apples, kiwi and canned peaches going tonight. Hoping they turn out!" I do overnight and check in the morning for most of the full meals I do. Again- I like noodles done separately from sauces so they don't get gooey. Most everything I make I put in after dinner is done- then turn and break up just before bed. Sometimes it is still wet underneath if I made too thick a layer- then it still will need more time in the morning. |
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Bronco |
Also any rice cooked in good stock makes a great snack are side dish. I have found you need to reduce your meal a lot to compensate for the added H2O when you bring it back to life for eating. My kids keep these meals in their school lockers for days that lunch is bad. Bump to goaljohnbill I agree with the you can't over dry |
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goaljohnbill |
quote Bronco: " For portioning I use a regular size cereal type bowl and fill it to just full then dump that onto the tray. when it drys I vacuum pack the entire tray together. For all in one (meal by itself) foods like spagetti, strog, chili etc that is one serving/person. For somthing that goes on a tortilla and may have condiments (or other added foods) I have filled the bowl just a little fuller and figured on it being 2 servings. This worked pretty good last year. I will say my normal group are bigger guys and good eaters so you may have to test it. Since it was a long dull winter I weighed each vacuum pack individually (40ish right now) this year to get an idea what bear vaults were going to weigh with 4 people worth of food in them. So I know this method makes the "servings" pretty consistently sized for a given type of food. quote Bronco: " nice to know im not the only one with that approach |
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Bronco |
Also from walmart go to the southern /soul food section and buy a couple cans of hoppin johns and dry them great side dish that holds its flavor And of course Ripples Jumbalaya is a must try |
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NotLight |
quote goaljohnbill: This is a great idea. The worst thing to deal with on a trip is extra uncooked food. I always underplan the portions for cooked food, and then have extra beef jerky, powerbars, etc for people who are still hungry. I suppose, the other alternative is 2/3rd's sized portions if individually packed, and then pack extra portions. |
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Twins87 |
Question about meat... I don't eat beef so all of our meat dishes at home are chicken or turkey, with occasional pork thrown in for variety. I am guessing that ground meats are better in something like chili? We regularly make a black bean chicken chili in the crock pot and freeze the leftovers for lunches. But the next batch I make is going to be dehydrated instead. I usually cut up chicken breast in to chunks about 1" square. But I could make it with either ground chicken or turkey if that would be a better consistency for dehydrating. For rice, if we do rice and beans (for chicken soft tacos) would it work better to dehydrate the rice and beans separately or just cook them up, mix together and dehydrate? |
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openwide |
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Bronco |
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Bronco |
Last winter I cooked a camp meal once a week for our evening meal. this gives you a since of how it will taste... sadly without the camp fire and BWCA view. I even mailed meals to my kids that where out of town and we tweaked the meals to taste over the phone We then used Ripples pick your own meal plan and it worked out well. Plus the fish we ate I think we all gained a few pounds in a week last summer and all was happy. |
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goaljohnbill |
quote openwide: "This may be a stupid question but how do I know how much water to add to rehydrate you food?" If you use the soak method outlined at the begining of the thread, enough to complety cover everything is fine 95% of the time. Test it if you are concerned. I learned that our mexican breakfast hash needs extra water. When I tested it at home i added water 3-4 times and it kept sponging it up. It had obrien potatoes in it I assume they were absorbing the water. If you over water a bit just let the food cook longer to reduce it. |
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ripple |
quote NotLight: "quote Twins87:" Most of the meat gets "shreaded" when it is cooked for ever and then spread out on the tray. It is the most anoying thing about dehydrating because I really love my big chunky meats in chili and beef stew. To be able to safely get all the moisture out though- shreading the meats in all of these whole meals is essential. |
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hooky |
I've been dehydrating meals for a few years now and haven't looked back. I just don't put them in the freezer like ripple does and I keep the dehydrated meats (ground beef, sausage, turkey) and sauces separate from everything else. Everything else for the meal gets packed into a quart freezer bag and then when it's time to eat, each person decides what they want and then adds the sauce and meat choice they want to have with whatever meal they decided upon. We just take the water off the boil, pour it into the bag and stuff it in a coozy for 15 minutes. The coozy can be your stocking cap or a USPS mailer bubble envelope, anything that will provide some insulation to keep it hot. The only cleanup is the spoon if you eat it out of the bag. I just came across 2 meals in the cupboard that were labeled 5/2012. because the meat wasn't mixed in with them, they were fine. I used them on a little weekend jaunt at the end of February. 6 days of food for one person will fit into a bag about the size of a volleyball. |
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Twins87 |
quote Twins87: "quote Bronco: "Thanks Twins, Thought I'd FINALLY reply about the yogurt bites... and also bump up this thread. With spring in the air...and having just sent hubby for a Grand Canyon trip with food from the freezer... I have my dehyrator out again! The yogurt bites DID NOT WORK to store. They were awesome right after I made them. But when we pulled them out of the freezer a couple months later to bring on a trip, they had gotten hard and not tasty at all. I opened a pack of them and tried them before packing. Glad I did. they all went in to the garbage. If i make them again I will do it right before a trip and bring them along freshly made. I made a huge batch of black back lasagna over the weekend. Not sure if that would work to dehydrate but we have so much left, I may cut it up in to smaller pieces and see what happens. Also recently dehydrated a tomato based pasta soup. Turned out great. Love to hear any new tips and tricks from others... |
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ripple |
quote Twins87: "Update on my dehydrating adventures... WOW!! You really do have the bug!! |
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Bronco |
Please tell us more about the yogurt bites. |
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Bronco |
Help me here I've never dried a dairy product. They look and sound awesome. How will you store these do they need refrigeration? |
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Twins87 |
Anyone try anything new this year so far? We now have a fairly stocked freezer full of dehydrated items... so many that I've decided to create a spreadsheet to keep track of them. otherwise I am not sure what's in the buckets! We are in the market for some good soup ideas. We have purchased Bear Creek soup in the past but now I cannot find any of the 4-serving pouches in stores or online. I think they may have discontinued that size. With just three of us going on our trip this year, the larger size is just too much soup at once. I'd prefer homemade soup anyway but have never tried doing that. Anyone have good recipes for soups that can be dehydrated? or recipes that are made from dehydrated individual ingredients? May not have time before this trip to try any out but we are going again in mid August. Having soup and freshly made reflector oven bread on our trip last year was one of our favorite meals and we'd like to bring it along again. |
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ripple |
Dehydrating Meat |
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ripple |
quote housty9: "I know this has been asked all ready but how long will Hamburger last in the bush with out a cooler, if kept out of the sun and in a back pack. " As long as you remove all of the moisture and the air- you are likely fine for the average length of a trip to the BWCA. Hamburger will always have some fats- so being air free is essential. Vacuum sealed is the way to be safest. |
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housty9 |
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billconner |
quote housty9: "I know this has been asked all ready but how long will Hamburger last in the bush with out a cooler, if kept out of the sun and in a back pack. " I wouldn't worry for at least two to three weeks. Kind of feel if its really dry, probably months. |
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nojobro |
We will be doing this method for our upcoming trip, using the variation by hooky, posted 03/18/2015 10:34AM. Time to get cooking and dehydrating! The trip is less than 4 weeks away...yay |
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Rs130754 |
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mirth |
Rs130754: "Thanks for bumping this. I want to get a dehydrator but am not sure about the model/brand or even how to go about dehydrating. I would like to try dehydrating pasta sauce but am not sure if a Nesco Harvest Master would be up to it. I haven't bought one as of yet, I probably should just bite the bullet and get an Excalibur. Now back to reading..." To be honest, any kind of dehydrator with a fan is good to get your feet wet with. If you get bit hard by the dehydrating bug then an Excalibur or one of the pretty decent knock offs is something to aspire to. I'm pretty happy with my 600W round Nesco unit which has a thermostat and top mounted fan. Avoid the passively vented/circulated units which only have a heating element. This thread reminds me, I need to make a batch of chili & rice to dry for our trip in August. Also, fruit's been so cheap lately - especially strawberries - I should make up some leather. |
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WIstoney |
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