[Newt]

I got a dehydrator awhile back and did some playing with fruit. Now I want to make a veggie soup. My recipies calls for almost powdering the veggies in order to rehydrate. Not what I want. Gimmie chunks please. Any ideas on how to prepare for drying (size) and then cooking (times)? I want spuds, carrots, onions and the whole ball of wax. er enchalada that is. Thanks, NN

[Allison]

I borrowed Kim's dehydrator last summer and had pretty marginal results with it myself....a book you might take a look at is "Backcountry Cooking" by Dorcas Miller, Mountaineers Press, 1998. She talks about the dehydrator (did you know you can dehydrate ground beef) as well as giving some great ideas for a wide variety of yummy things to cook and eat on the trail. Now would be a good time to play around with your dehydrator, make stuff in little teeny batches and try them at home before subjecting yourself to your experiements in the backcountry where you can't make yourself a sandwich if that dehydrated chili isn't so yummy.

[salish]

Newt, There is a ton of information on dehydrating foods on the net. Just run a search. The Lightweight Backacker often has very good threads in the food section. About two years ago a relative brought over an unopened, unused cheapie dehydrator for a garage sale, but I kept it instead. It's a really cheap one without a fan, but it works. I often use it to make venison or beef jerky, and also use it for drying bananas, pears, apples, and other fruits. I especially like dehydrating green/red/yellow bell peppers and onion slices for inclusion into soups and noodles. For peppers and onions, and most fruits, I generally let it run for five or six hours. If there is a really high water content, like in tomatos, I sometimes let it run all night and it's done when I get up in the morning. Figuring out the drying times and experimenting around is kind of fun. Good luck. Salish

[pianodirt]

Catching up on old threads for a newbie here... I've played around with my dehydrator quite a bit and have come up with some very tasty meals. I don't use the dehydrator for everything, some things are just easier to buy. I recommend a book called "Lipsmackin Backpackin", some tasty recipes in there, it's also one of the easier books to use and all the recipes are from real people, not just the author. BTW, the author is a great lady and she's soon coming out with a vegetarian version of the book, which includes some of my own recipes. I'll see if I can dig those up, but for now, some ideas: *canned marinara sauce (I like trader joes) dries into a leather. Tear into smaller pieces, if you want. 1/3 jar or 1/3 a dried leather (I can fit a whole jar onto one tray on my dryer) makes a hearty portion of sauce. Just add hot water, insulate and let sit for 10 mins. It rehydrates excellently, one of my favorite flavored meals. *Just Veggies sells all sorts of dried fruits and veggies. I especially like their dried carrots, they're diced, something I'm not inclined to do myself. Diced is a perfect size for rehydration. *use parchment paper (not waxed) to line your dryer racks with, look for it in the baking section of the store. It is silicone coated paper and I can usually reuse it a few times. Stuff slides off like a dream and the paper doesn't rip/stick to leathers. Don't bother with those annoying fruit leather drying inserts than came with your dryer, they're a pain unless you spray them with Pam or something. *canned meats like chicken and tuna dry and rehydrate pretty well. Same goes for canned beans, if you're a veggie person. A key to a tasty rehydrated meal on the trail is either to simmer for 5-6 minutes and wait another 5-6 mins. Or, what I do is (less fuel) is add hot water, insulate, stir after 5 mins and wait another 5-10 mins. You can have chunks in your food, just make sure they're not too thick or large. 1/4" thick and 1/4" width will do well (before drying).

[Allison]

Carrots, either sliced thin or shredded.