I recently got a new dehydrator, my old one died after making way too much beef jerky!! That is all I really used it for, beef jerky. I'm wondering if anyone has any good suggestions for other uses? The new model I have works better too than my old one, so now I want to really use it! We have some grapes going right now as an experiment for raisins. Thanks for any tips, recipes or info!!
In the summer we grow basil. I dehydrate it - and use the old McCormick spice container - and it lasts through the year. Haven't bought any basil in 6 years now. If you have the plastic ring, in the fall go apple picking. Cut up the apples and puree them (like an applesauce texture). Place it on the ring and make fruit rollups. Put pretty flowers in there and make potpurri (you will have to add scent to it though).
I have the Cabelas 80 liter commercial model I use for venison jerky. If you do a lot of jerky I highly recommend it. Yes, it's a little pricey, but I can stick in 20 lbs of meat at once.
Apples! We don't use ours very often, but apples are the #1 thing we dry. I give them away at Christmas to friends who don't want candy. My ds loves to snack on them. Two years ago, we made backpacking food for a two-night scout trip. Some things we dried were hamburger, salsa, black beans, peas, green pepper and cans of chicken. Next time we do a car trip, I plan on dehydrating some meals and bringing a camp stove for some quick and easy meals! Won't have to worry about keeping things cold and they'll take up less room.
