Electric Food Dehydrators - Buying Tips

Food drying is among the oldest methods of preserving food for later use. With an electric food dehydrator, drying food is very simple, safe and easy to master.

Dried food is terrific in traditional cooking recipes and can save you a lot of time during meal preparation. Dried foods are also perfect for camping and backpacking because they take up little weight or space and never require refrigeration. Fruit leathers make fantastic snacks, loved by kids for its great taste, and also mums for the nutrition.

Drying removes the moisture from the food so that bacteria, yeasts and also molds are not able to grow and spoil the food. It also decelerates the action of enzymes, but does not inactivate them. Because drying eliminates moisture, the food will become smaller and much lighter. When the food is ready to be used, the water is added back and the food returns to its original shape.

The the best possible temperature for drying food is 140F. When higher temperatures are used, the food will cook instead of drying. When the food cooks on the exterior and the moisture cannot escape, "case hardening" can occur. The food will eventually mold. Thus, the drying process must not be hurried by increasing the drying temperature.

Low humidity will help the drying process. Food contains a lot of water. To dry food, the water has to move from the food into the surrounding air. When the surrounding air is humid, then drying will be slowed down.

Increasing the air current speeds up drying by simply moving the surrounding moist air away from the food. To speed the drying time, increase the airflow. Foods can be dried in the sun, in an oven or in an electric food dehydrator by using the right combination of warm temperatures, low humidity and air current.

Electric Food Dehydrator Tips