Anybody who has a home garden recognizes the value of freshly picked vegetables if these were grown at home. It will also be expected that you would want to store these produce in order for you to benefit from them all year round. Generally, food preservation choices would include freezing, canning and drying. It is necessary to take out a good amount of water from the food in drying to make it possible to store it for a longer period of time at the same time keeping a good amount of its vitamins and minerals. A food dehydrator is normally used for this method.
But it is not that easy to select an appropriate food dehydrator. Numerous brands of the device are available with numerous features in them. Even as brand comparisons and recommendations are not the focus of this article, you will have an idea on the things to keep an eye on when evaluating the numerous food dehydrators in the market. You can also read more about choosing the right dehydrator for your needs and budget.
Flow of Air
Food dehydrators function by shifting warm air across the food to be dried. Water from the food is removed as air shifts across the food. Two techniques are utilized in making this possible. The first technique utilizes a fan which, together with a source of heat, draws or shoves the warm air inside the dehydrator and across the food to be dehydrated.
The second technique involves convection. The air inside the dehydrator is heated using a heating device. As the heated air goes up, the colder air will go down. A natural flow of air is generated when the air near the source of heat goes up and the air far from the heat source becomes colder forcing it to go down and letting the air flow back to the source of the heat which would raise its temperature again. If the source of heat is in the middle of the drying compartment, the air in the middle of the compartment will go up as the air near the rim will go down.
Consequently, which one is more appropriate for you? Even as lesser electricity is needed for dehydrators that use convection and does not make that much noise, the drying period will be longer for this device, resulting the reduction of the flavour and shelf life of the food. However, a number of supporters of the convection process highlight the absence of air that come from the exterior reducing the possibility of dust being sucked into the device. Food dehydrators which utilize fans are faster and are moderately uncontaminated if it is used in a hygienic location, however a good amount of electricity will be used and will not be as quiet as convection dehydrators.
Position of the Fan
Another essential factor to take into account for dehydrators that utilize fans is the position of the fan itself. In a good number of dehydrators, the fan is placed at the base of the device or at the side or rear portion of the compartment. The air is thrust to the top of the device if the fan is located at the base. This kind of dehydrator will have the trays piled up on each other above the fan allowing it to have an adaptable set of trays and will occupy a smaller area on the countertop. But the dehydration of the food will not be consistent since a number of the trays will be near or far from the fan. So it will be necessary to reposition the trays frequently to make the drying more evenly done.
If the fan is located near the rear portion of the device, the flow of the air will be more consistent across the trays. But the number of trays that can be used is not flexible. The number of trays that can be used is only up to the limitation of the device.
Space
A number of dehydrators have a variable space for drying trays which can be inserted or removed from its compartment. Even if this is useful when dehydrating a greater or lesser volume of food, it will be necessary to keep in mind that the effectiveness of the device will decrease as the number of trays increases, which also requires you to reposition a bigger number of trays. In addition, it will be necessary to utilize trays that have holes in the middle to facilitate the movement of air. Even though this will not be much of an issue, the efficiency will suffer if items which are bigger than the trays are dehydrated.
Dehydrators with compartments whose dimensions cannot be adjusted will forgo adaptability for bigger sized drying trays which do not have unwieldy spaces for aeration. This is an essential factor particularly if flowers are being dried or fruit leathers are being made or for any articles which may not be suitable for circular trays with holes in the middle. Four-sided trays effectively utilize the space inside the dehydrator and can be used to dehydrate a bigger number of food items at the same time. These devices are manufactured with fans which maximize the available space and optimize the flow of air since the available space is already limited.
Tray Alternatives
A variety of requirements are met using a number of different drying trays. In order for air to go through the trays, they are designed with a web-like or net-like pattern. The air will easily go through the tray if the spaces in the net are bigger, however this will also restrict the food items to be dehydrated in terms of size. If the space is big, a good number of herbs will definitely slip through, but slices of fruits will not have the same problem.
A good number of versions of food dehydrators have numerous kinds of trays added into the device allowing you to have a choice of trays to use for any food item that you wish to dry. But this should not indicate that you should purchase extra trays in order for you to dehydrate a good number of a single food item at one time. There are some units that have a single size for the trays which normally have bigger spaces in the net and sell a sheet without gaps to allow the dehydration of smaller-sized article or fruit leathers.
Add-ons
A recipe book is normally included in a good number of food dehydrators to give you the knowledge of the dehydration time for specific articles, but these dehydration times are estimates since the humidity of your location, thickness of the food item, uniformity of the cuts, water retention level and many other factors play a role in the process.
A number of models will have variable temperature regulators that will be essential in the dehydration of a variety of food items. Some will also have procedures or gears in producing meat jerky.
Which Food Dehydrator to Choose?
You will have responsibility of selecting the food dehydrator which is appropriate for your requirements. A dehydrator that has a base-mounted fan with trays that pile up will be advisable if you are inexperienced in drying or do not have a big space in the kitchen. It will not take up a lot of space and are adaptable aside from having numerous assorted trays included in the kit. This model will be a good way to start as you are still getting the hang of using the device. These units are relatively cheap and if you come to a decision that you are not into dehydrating, you will not feel bad for spending the money for the device.
A dehydrator with a fan that is found on the side and has a bigger drying area is recommended if you are a veteran in drying, frequently dry food items or would dry a good volume of food items at one time. At this point you have a good amount of knowledge on the alternatives that are essential for your needs and know how to choose the trays that you require.
Food dehydrating can be a pleasant and cost-effective activity. You will be able to set aside some funds for any potential financial difficulties in the future if you purchase seasonal food items in large quantities which you can dehydrate and stock up. It will be essential to select the most appropriate devices however it should not be a difficult thing to do. Having a little knowledge about the things to be aware of will facilitate everything.
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