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Post by vaporvac on Apr 3, 2013 13:09:01 GMT -5
I thought someone had posted about this, but I couldn't find it so I hope I'm not repeating information. :- Just thought I'd pass along a great way to dry herbs...the Twell. Of course! I had some sage that wasn't getting any fresher so I tried it as an experiment. My Twell is running at 160deg (used to be 175) and apparently 180 is the cut-off where too many volatile oils vaporize, but hot enough for it to retain the most flavor. I don't have the standing oven pilot (yet), so this was my only option. I put it in an aluminum pie plate overnight and it was done. I'm hoping to try this with mint come summer, but now I'm thinking orange rind, limes, lemons....all the things I dry regularly. I love this stove.
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Post by eidos on Apr 4, 2013 18:42:59 GMT -5
huh interesting, good idea, i do a bit of dehydrating myself, this is an excellent idea
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Post by vaporvac on Apr 4, 2013 20:58:33 GMT -5
I'm glad to hear that. I've been wondering about dehydrating other things, ie. tomatoes, zucchini, etc Do you currently use a dehydrator? If so, what temp are they set for or does it vary according to what you dry?. We used to dry a lot outside growing up, but it's too humid here to do that. Sometimes I just leave things in a cooling oven, but I was really impressed with how well the twell worked. I thought of layering the 2xdecker Tbaker with a couple more racks and using some diffuser plates. Brainstorm?
I'm interested in hearing how you do it,
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Post by eidos on Apr 5, 2013 18:46:40 GMT -5
i have a forced air dehydrator, i have the little book that it came with 165ish for jerky and lower for other stuff, a quick google search picks up lists of temps, but as i like to do jerky if i can get my twell to do 165ish consistantly then i could make jerky haha.
Eidos
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Post by vaporvac on Apr 18, 2013 13:01:07 GMT -5
UPDATE!!! The Twell works GREAT as a dehydrator. I put some sliced zucchini on the dbldecker tbake and left it about 12hrs. Those on the top tray were perfect. Those I left on a diffuser on the bottom tray are still going. I think if I put a raised trivet on the lower shelf if would give more air movement and even out the timing. No work at all, and uses the gas I'm already burning for the pilot. I know this belongs in the veggie section, but I'm posting it here until someone fixes that.
2nd Update: worked great with grape tomatoes as well. The zucchini tastes like chips so don't think I'll be rehydrating any! This would be great if one has a garden and a lot of zukes. The tomatoes taste super sweet...delicious as is.
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Post by mach12 on Mar 11, 2020 15:15:28 GMT -5
The zucchini tastes like chips so don't think I'll be rehydrating any! Do you have any tricks for rehydrating? We do a lot of dehydrating and some stuff seems to rehydrate better than others. Like mushrooms. the only way that I know of to do a decent job of rehydrating mushrooms is to simmer them in some water. Otherwise they're kind of rubbery. We have a lot of mushrooms that we dehydrated and then put in vacuum sealed bags so if there's a better way that'd be nice.
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Post by vaporvac on Mar 11, 2020 16:06:06 GMT -5
That's what I do... usually covering with boiling water and covering with a lid. I think the mushrooms are always a bit rubbery, but that's OK for what I use them in as it's in the nature of the recipes. I just put mine in jars. I love them in soups and they do seem to rehydrate naturally there. One thing I've done with the dried mushrooms is grind them in a blender. It's a great way to add instant mushroom goodness to anything. P.S. I also had good luck with drying ginger and pulverizing it or using as is. However, my FAVOURITE discovery this year is drying CRANBERRIES without sugar! I used to buy them this way, but now it's near impossible. I'll give my technique if anyone is interested as it's different to just throwing them in the well! P.S. Rehydrated zucchini is delicious, btw. My mom grew up doing this hanging it outside in the sun; dishes made this way had a certain something, but it could just be that it's nostalgic for me.
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Post by mach12 on Mar 11, 2020 22:00:18 GMT -5
I'd definitely like to hear about drying the cranberries! We have a lot of cranberry bogs along the coast and they sell them at roadside stands over there.
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