tips for home cooked dehydrated meals

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rlown
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Re: tips for home cooked dehydrated meals

Post by rlown »

seems we're off topic and into caloric requirements for hiking.. Unless Sparky, that's what you were after..
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longri
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Re: tips for home cooked dehydrated meals

Post by longri »

Yes, Dave, I calculated 48% fat (by Calories) for that trip -- I normally eat a lot less fat at home but I think it's okay to deviate from ideal dietary track for a week or three.

Back on topic: I never buy freeze dried meals as they are almost all nasty, oversalted, and somewhat expensive. Too much packaging as well. If I had a lyophilizer I would freeze dry meals, not because they taste better than dehydrated (they don't) but because they generally rehydrate more quickly.

Three things: (1) The meal has to taste good fresh! (2) It needs to dehydrate reasonably well, and (3) It has to rehydrate properly. It's that last one that often makes/breaks a dehydrated meal. Some foods simply do not come back as well or in a reasonable amount of time. You need to experiment.

There are websites devoted to dehydrated meals, but you can just start with simple things. It's amazing what works as long as you aren't planning to keep it at room temperature for a year.
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Re: tips for home cooked dehydrated meals

Post by snowpatch »

I am known as the dehydrator queen by my family and friends. So you know what advise I will give you. Come April or May my dehydrator starts to run almost non-stop. I dehydrate almost everything for my backpack meals with the exception of asparagus which I buy freeze dried. It does not rehydrate very well. I sometimes buy some freeze dried broccoli or cauliflower for salad lunches, but will use dehydrated in suppers.

Except for a few meals ( Indian Dahl and Veggie Moroccan stew) I dehydrate ingredients separately and then mix together when packing the individual meals.

What I dehydrate: green beans (frozen works well), frozen corn, carrots, tomatoes, zucchini, butternut squash, cabbage, onion, peppers(sweet and hot), yams, broccoli for dinners, spinach, canned artichokes hearts, cooked pasta,cooked brown rice, cooked quinoa, canned beans (black beans, chick peas, kidney beans...) cooked ground beef, cooked ground chicken, tuna (ends up a bit crunchy), cooked sausage (fat rinsed off well), olives, feta cheese, cottage cheese, yogurt (freeze then put in blender) tomato paste,and most fruits. I am sure there is more that I can't think of right now. You can try most anything. Oh, I almost forgot to say, I never have had luck rehydrating plain tofu, but the tofu chicken that you can buy rehydrates well. As well, I make some tofu "meatballs" that rehydrate fine.

I store the meats in the freezer and the rest in the basement where it is cool. Food is good for entire summer. If I have veggies left over in the fall, I throw them in the freezer for the next season and use up first. The grains and beans I will use at home. Can't tell the difference.

The most indispensable thing in my pack is my pot cozy from antigravity gear. To cook supper, I boil water in my pot. Add dehydrated meal, and put the whole pot in the pot cozy to sit. 20 minutes later I have a rehydrated steaming hot dinner.

For lunch salads, I pour boiling water in the bag of ingredients in the morning. Double bag, and let it sit in the top of my pack until lunchtime.
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sparky
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Re: tips for home cooked dehydrated meals

Post by sparky »

Thanks for the replies everyone, I am soaking it all in. I am going to buy a dehydrator today!

So it seems that it is better to dehydrate ingredients by themselves, then actually mix together during the rehydration process? Or is it just fine to prepare the meal, then dehydrate the meal?
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Re: tips for home cooked dehydrated meals

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You can do either; dehydrate prepared meals or dehydrate individual ingredients. I do a mixture of both. I dry produce as it comes in season, and a few prepared meals. If dehydrating prepared meals, make sure to have items cut in a small uniform size. I prefer my rice and pasta if dehydrated separately.
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Re: tips for home cooked dehydrated meals

Post by gary c. »

Sparky,
Just a couple of links that might help get you started.

http://www.netwoods.com/cooking/drying2.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://www.trailcooking.com/dehydrating101" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://www.backpackingchef.com/dehydrating-food.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://www.onepanwonders.com/index.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
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dave54
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Re: tips for home cooked dehydrated meals

Post by dave54 »

longri wrote:Yes, Dave, I calculated 48% fat (by Calories) for that trip -- I normally eat a lot less fat at home but I think it's okay to deviate from ideal dietary track for a week or three...
Agree. If you otherwise eat right at home, going off the wagon for a couple weeks is OK. The military has done extensive research on nutrition and human performance in harsh environments, and they basically say lay off the junk food and keep your calories up. No significant changes to the normal dietary recommendations due to extreme heat, cold, or altitude.

I looked at freeze drying machines for home.
They are not an appliance for a corner of your countertop. Very large, and most are 220V (they are a combination freezer unit and vacuum pump). I located a 110V model, but it looked so cheap and flimsy I passed. If anyone has seen a model practical for home use and reasonably priced post it here.
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longri
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Re: tips for home cooked dehydrated meals

Post by longri »

Snowpatch:
Thank you for that great post. I was just thinking about asparagus as they are in season. I have never tried dehydrating asparagus and was thinking about (skeptically) giving it a shot.

Dave:
Can you point me to where you found that flimsy freeze-drying unit? I found serious models to be way too expensive and building my own not a trivial DIY project.
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Re: tips for home cooked dehydrated meals

Post by sciaticnve »

Gary C,
Could you offer a good recommendation on the dehydrated refined beans?

Thanks
Elliott
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gary c.
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Re: tips for home cooked dehydrated meals

Post by gary c. »

sciaticnve wrote:Gary C,
Could you offer a good recommendation on the dehydrated refined beans?

Thanks
Elliott
We have a local market here in Lancaster called WinCo Foods that some bulk foods and they have great dehydrated refies that are flaovered with garlic and other things. This year I bought a #10 can of refries from Honeyville and they rehydrate well but are just beans. I've been adding a little garlic powder and chili powder to spice them up.

http://store.honeyvillegrain.com/refrie ... gecan.aspx" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
"On this proud and beautiful mountain we have lived hours of fraternal, warm and exalting nobility. Here for a few days we have ceased to be slaves and have really been men. It is hard to return to servitude."
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