As many of you know, I bought Evan a dehydrator for his birthday back in December. We consider the dehydrator ours, just like we consider my birthday present, a Vita-Mix
We use each appliance all the time, but if I honestly had to recommend a choice between the two, it’d be the dehydrator. Don’t get me wrong, I’m obsessed with our Vita-Mix and use it multiple times per day, but it’s more of a luxury than a necessity. We used a regular blender for a long time and did just fine between it, and a cheap (but awesome) food processor
While the actions of a dehydrator can be replicated in an oven with the door propped open, the process is not efficient or as effective. If you can afford a dehydrator, it’s going to save you money over heating an entire oven for multiple hours.
The particular model we own is the Excalibur 9-Tray Food Dehydrator (Model: 3926T).
Our particular model has an added 26 hour on/off timer (this model is not available in my Amazon store, but the cheaper, 9-Tray model is available if you’d like to save some money).
Why use a dehydrator? If you’re looking for a cost-effective way to preserve the nutrients in food, like in dried fruit or veggies, a dehydrator can help you do that. If you’re looking into consuming more raw foods – where the food is not cooked over 118 degrees so the enzymes that help with digestion and health are not killed – a dehydrator will provide you with more flexibility and creativity in your diet. It’s not an absolute necessity, but I highly recommend it. I would buy an Excalibur just to make raw macaroons and cheezy nacho kale chips!
Those are the details about our particular dehydrator and usage, but I also got a question about how a dehydrator works exactly. Basically, a dehydrator takes the moisture out of food at low temperatures for varying periods of time (depending on the food, up to 72 hours). This helps preserve the food since mold and bacteria cannot grow without moisture, but also gives you the flexibility to make crackers and breads out of normally moist food mixtures. Dehydrators also provide temperatures that are typically lower than the average oven will go. For example, my dehydrator has a temperature range of 95-155 degrees (Fahrenheit).
We absolutely love our dehydrator and it was worth every penny. It’s REALLY easy to use, highly forgiving (i.e. you can’t really screw it up), and is a valuable asset to the way we eat.
If you have any questions or comments about dehydrating, I’d love to hear them!
{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
um can you bring some of those macaroons with you when we go shopping tomorrow? yes?
caitlin´s last blog ..Brooks ID Program and Thoughts on Walk/Runs
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Ryan @ Greens for Good Reply:
March 2nd, 2010 at 6:29 pm
Hmmm, good thinking. I will make some tonight
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Thanks for the review, I’ve been wondering whether it’s worth it or not
Heather @ Side of Sneakers´s last blog ..Perfect Oats & DYKT #5
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Ryan @ Greens for Good Reply:
March 2nd, 2010 at 6:34 pm
Totally worth it!
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You are killing me! I already want a dehydrator sooo bad and this post makes me want one even more!
Also, I LOVE your blog! It’s definitely one of my favorites and get excited everytime I see a new post.
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Ryan @ Greens for Good Reply:
March 2nd, 2010 at 6:33 pm
Gahhh, sorry Jen!
Thank you so much for your sweet words! Hope you’re enjoying the more frequent posting now!
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Jen O Reply:
March 2nd, 2010 at 9:39 pm
I am!
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Thanks so much for this informative post! I really had no. clue. about dehydrators and now I get it. Maybe it would be a valuable purchase for me in the future.
Julie @ Wearing Mascara´s last blog ..Here’s the real truth
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I totally agree that making raw macaroons and kale chips are the best part about owning a dehydrator. I have the smaller (5 tray) version and love it so much!
Brittany´s last blog ..Ethiopian Feast
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Do you find that you spend a lot of time prepping food before you dehydrate it? I understand the drying part could take a long time, but what about ‘hands on’ time?
Also, does it get warm or does steam come out of it? Just thinking about a good location for one in my kitchen.
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Ryan @ Greens for Good Reply:
March 3rd, 2010 at 7:54 am
It depends what I’m making as far as prep time. Usually it’s very quick to blend, process or hand-mix something because you aren’t cooking it first. Depending on what I make, putting it on the dehydrator can be the time consuming part. Kale chips are very quick, but macaroons take some time to scoop all out (there were 42 in this batch). It’s meditative though! I think of it like a slow-cooker. Put time into it up front and you don’t have to do anything after but wait for it to be finished!
The unit is double-walled so it does not get warm to the touch. The general area of the dehydrator may be slightly warm because the front door of it does not seal closed (I assume to keep a good air-flow), but it’s not hot since the dehydrator is only at 100ish degrees itself. As for steam or any leaking moisture: Nope, I’ve never seen any!
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I bought a dehydrator a few months ago but have only used it once. I was thinking of using it to make some of Mama Pea’s Juice Pulp crackers, but am still nervous about it! I would love to find a recipe for those macaroons, too!
I can’t remember the brand I have, but it was fairly cheap (like, under $100 … way under). Would it still work the same as the Excalibur? I know with my model you just hit ‘Start’ – there’s nowhere to set a specific temp.
I’ll have to use it more often! Of course, that’ll please my husband since he always complains about me buying appliances and never using them! LOL!
K
Kristilyn (My 29th Year)´s last blog ..Fuel for the Sick
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Ryan @ Greens for Good Reply:
March 3rd, 2010 at 4:39 pm
I honestly can’t vouch for a different dehydrator since I’ve only ever used an Excalibur. Without temperature control you can’t control whether it remains “raw” or not. It’s worth a shot though!
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