This is my Dehydrating 101 post on Must Hike Must Eat, some of the tips and tricks I have learned in the 8+ years I have been dehydrating my own food for hiking and backpacking meals and snacks. I hope that by sharing them with you, your own journey into making meals that fit your lifestyle will go smoother!
I remember when I was a kid visiting my grandparents during the summer and I would often see out in the backyard this huge homemade wooden dehydrator (which may have been built from the plans mentioned in the book below). It was usually filled with apple slices from the trees that grew in that yard that we helped harvest every year.
Over the years I have made my own dehydrated apples and jerky, often in the oven, because I didn’t do it enough to warrant buying a dehydrator. When I decided to start dehydrating in earnest so I could eat better on the trail, I was lucky enough to get one from my uncle who had recently upgraded his.
I had a book, Dry It, You’ll Like It, that used to be my grandfather’s and I consulted it to get me started. I have to admit, I was surprised to see they are even available online today.
Drying you own food is SO easy! It is the cheapest way to preserve your food and when done properly is superior to canned food. No electricity for the freezer and it takes up much less space in your pantry. It is a great way to make healthy food perfect for “on-the-go”.
The process of dehydrating removes moisture from food to inhibit the growth of mold and bacteria. It is important to prepare the food as cleanly as possible (wash your hands, wear gloves, and have sterile environment). It also doesn’t eliminate bacteria on the food, so in conjunction with drying your food you need to store it correctly. It is preferable to store your dehydrated food in vacuum sealed containers and keep it in a dark, dry, cool location.
I store my dried food in glass jars in my fridge until I put meals together. Because my backpacking meals do not go without refrigeration for more than a month, I package my meals in freezer bags and other plastic bags. If your food will go longer than that, it is better to invest in a vacuum sealer.
Plant food items last longer than meat and other animal products, one of the reasons I store mine separately until I need it. I can keep plant food items over a year but even in the fridge I toss meat after 6 months, mostly because it starts to taste funny. Any food with oil or fat will not last as long as foods that do not.
Here are a few of the Dehydrating 101 tips I have picked up along the way that you might find helpful:
Dehydrating Prep
- Thinner, smaller pieces dry faster
- Blanching or steaming vegetables for a few minutes before drying helps them rehydrate faster and last longer.
- Spread evenly and don’t overlap
- Don’t overload your trays
- Use gloves, clean hands and sterile environment
- Avoid oil or fat in when dehydrating if you want it to last longer without refrigeration.
While Dehydrating
- Dry strong smelling foods separately
- Place less dry foods on top trays
- Rotate trays for more even drying
- Lower temps (90-100 degrees) for herbs and nuts
- Mid temps (110-130) for fruits and veggies (prevents loss of vitamins)
- Higher temps for meats (145-155)*
- Leaves should crumble
- Fruit should be pliable and leathery
- Meat should be tough but not brittle
- Let your foods cool completely before storing
*Most dehydrators dry meat at 145-155 degrees. However, current food safety recommendations call for meat to reach an internal temperature of 160 and ground meat to 165 degrees for 10 minutes in order to kill foodborne pathogens that may remain in the meat. After drying the meat (particularly ground meat), preheat your oven to 275 degrees, place on a baking sheet and flash heat for 10 minutes to bring the internal temperature of the meat to 165 degrees. You will find different information on the internet, the USDA says to do this step first and the National Center For Home Food Preservation says after is fine. Backcountry Paleo wrote up a whole post on safety steps for jerky here. Recommendations continue to change over time and personally I do not worry about this step as I purchase quality meats and still do things like eat raw eggs in mayonnaise or cookie dough or enjoy a nice steak medium rare. I include this information here so you can make the decision that is best for you. Kind of like that warning at the bottom of restaurant menus: “Consuming raw or undercooked meats, poultry, seafood, shellfish, or eggs may increase your risk of foodborne illness”.
Storage For Your Dehydrated Foods
- Dried foods need to be stored cool, dry and dark
- Place in a paper bag first then
- Store in an airtight container
- Keeping in the freezer until needed is best
- Carry meals in sealed packages
- Best when consumed within 1 year
Rehydrating Your Dehydrated Meals
- Do not add salt or sugar during rehydration
- Most foods take 30 minutes-2 hours to rehydrate. Hot water speeds this time up.
If you are new to dehydrating and need to pick up a dehydrator of your own, it’s pretty easy to do. You can find them at your local Fred Meyer, Target or Walmart. Here is a great post on six popular models in a range of prices: Life Hack. We all know Excaliber is the best, but it’s out of my price range. I have a Nesco American Harvest Snackmaster and I think it works great. I picked up the plastic liners at my local kitchen outlet.
There is a reason this is just a Dehydrating 101 post. I am by no means an expert on dehydrating and I am constantly learning new things. The Backpacking Chef does an excellent job of explaining dehydrating if you are new to dehydrating or would like more in depth information. Plus, he has some great recipes, too. My friend, Sue, over at Backcountry Paleo also writes an excellent description of the dehydrating process.
Do I need a dehydrator to try this out and dehydrate my own food? No! You can use your oven, just follow the temperatures above being careful to monitor that the temperature stays consistent.
Keep track of your drying times as these will vary based on each food, your dehydrator and where you live (humidity). Follow the directions that come with your very own dehydrator.
I am not currently preparing meals that need to last more than a month without refrigeration, so I can keep my meals in freezer bags stored in my fridge until I need them. If you are preparing for a thru hike or want to prepare food that will last longer than a month without refrigeration, especially if you are preparing animal products, I highly recommend a vacuum sealer.
My Eat Your Veggies post on my blog talks about some of the basic foods I dehydrate and you check out some of my recipes to see how I combine them into delicious meals on my page How To Go Backpacking Paleo. Each recipe will talk about modifications depending on your individual backpacking needs.
Thank you so much for stopping by Must Hike Must Eat!
If you need some healthy eating inspiration start here:..
Need some eating out suggestions when friends want to stop after a hike? I have a Pacific Northwest Eating Guide here.
Want to know where Must Hike Must Eat has been last? Check out the latest trip reports:
Find out what’s been happening outside the blog:
The Must Hike Must Eat Newsletter keeps folks up-to-date on events both on and off the blog.
If you have a question you don’t want to post in the comments, you can ask them here: