Guest guest Posted November 21, 2005 Report Share Posted November 21, 2005 I just got a dehydrator, I have to wait a while before I can order some special trays that will allow me to make fruit leather or other things that are too liquid to place on the regular screen. My question is, is there something I could use to say line the screens with to allow me to dry liquidy stuff until I get the trays? no fear, only faith; no guilt, only grace; no pride, only praise; no claim, only Christ --------------------------------- Find your next car at Canada Autos Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 18, 2005 Report Share Posted December 18, 2005 The recipe that I have for making jerky is for 110 degrees to begin with, and then turn it down a little. , you need to be able to control the temperature. Can you take that one back? My Excaliber dehydrator goes from 80-145 degrees. You can find them on line. JoAnn On 12/18/05, Lana Gibbons <lana.m.gibbons@...> wrote: > > It is definately overkill for herbs, nuts and more delicate items. > However, 145-165 is normal dehydrator temp for jerky as far as I know. > > -Lana > > On 12/18/05, Siemens <mandamom2many@...> wrote: > > I have a nesco dehydrator, it only has an on and off no temp control. > I > > thought it felt aweful hot so I stuck an instant read meat thermometer > in > > it > > and it said 150* F. Is this cooking the food? I love my jerky and > crispy > > nuts and what not but am I defeating the purpose? Wouldn't enzymes be > > killed > > at that temperature? Or are they tough enough to be ok? HELP!!! If this > is > > cooking my food I am going to be very angry, very angry indeed (doing > my > > marvin the martian impersonation LOL). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 19, 2005 Report Share Posted December 19, 2005 Great, NOW what do I do? My oven doesn't go any lower than 200F and I can't afford another dehydrator. I love my crispy nuts ::WAHH!!!!: On 12/18/05, Lana Gibbons <lana.m.gibbons@...> wrote: > > It is definately overkill for herbs, nuts and more delicate items. > However, 145-165 is normal dehydrator temp for jerky as far as I know. > > -Lana -- Mrs. () Siemens Mommy to Zack and Liddy...so far no fear, only faith; no guilt, only grace; no pride, only praise; no claim, only Christ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 19, 2005 Report Share Posted December 19, 2005 No I can't take it back, I no longer have the reciept and even if I could that would just leave me with nothing, I was only able to get THIS one because is was only $20 CAN and we found it in a store so there was no shipping. I would LOVE an excaliber that is the one I REALLY wanted but it will be a looooooong time before I'll be able to afford it. I could try using toothpicks or something to prop the trays open a bit to let some heat escape? Would that help you think? On 12/19/05, JoAnn SkyWatcher <joann.skywatcher@...> wrote: > > , you need to be able to control the > temperature. Can > you take that one back? My Excaliber dehydrator goes from 80-145 degrees. > You > can find them on line. -- Mrs. () Siemens Mommy to Zack and Liddy...so far no fear, only faith; no guilt, only grace; no pride, only praise; no claim, only Christ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 19, 2005 Report Share Posted December 19, 2005 I found a giant harvestmaid dehydrator that goes from 90-145 for only like $7 at a thrift store. This thing has 4 trays and is over 2.5ft wide! You can still make crispy nuts with the dehydrator, but they will be enzymeless. - > > > I have a nesco dehydrator, it only has an on and off no temp control. > > I > > > thought it felt aweful hot so I stuck an instant read meat thermometer > > in > > > it > > > and it said 150* F. Is this cooking the food? I love my jerky and > > crispy > > > nuts and what not but am I defeating the purpose? Wouldn't enzymes be > > > killed > > > at that temperature? Or are they tough enough to be ok? HELP!!! If this > > is > > > cooking my food I am going to be very angry, very angry indeed (doing > > my > > > marvin the martian impersonation LOL). > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 19, 2005 Report Share Posted December 19, 2005 Siemens wrote: >Great, NOW what do I do? My oven doesn't go any lower than 200F and I can't >afford another dehydrator. I love my crispy nuts ::WAHH!!!!: > > > I do my nuts at 145 in my dehydrator. There was a discussion here a while back that there is a risk of mold if you dry the nuts at too low a temp. Sally says to do them at 150 in NT. Steph Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 19, 2005 Report Share Posted December 19, 2005 I have never found one at a thrift store, but I always keep my eyes open. Not that I have any money, I had to add all my spending money to the grocery budget to afford switching back to NT eating (I want to scream when I see a pound of butter for $4.00 next to a 4 pound bucket of margarine for $2!!), but christmas is comming up, maybe I'll get some spending money then. I think I will try propping open the trays to let some heat out. I think I'll be experimenting today LOL. On 12/19/05, gdawson6 <gdawson6@...> wrote: > > I found a giant harvestmaid dehydrator that goes from 90-145 for only > like $7 at a thrift store. This thing has 4 trays and is over 2.5ft > wide! > > You can still make crispy nuts with the dehydrator, but they will be > enzymeless. > > - -- Mrs. () Siemens Mommy to Zack and Liddy...so far no fear, only faith; no guilt, only grace; no pride, only praise; no claim, only Christ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 19, 2005 Report Share Posted December 19, 2005 > I do my nuts at 145 in my dehydrator. There was a discussion here a > while back that there is a risk of mold if you dry the nuts at too low a > temp. Sally says to do them at 150 in NT. Mrs. Siemens, Try taking a thermometer reading when thedehydrator is loaded with wet, soaked nuts and see what it says. I'm betting it will read lower than 150. B. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 19, 2005 Report Share Posted December 19, 2005 You know what, there's not much point getting worked up over this LOL. I'll just keep doing what I'm doing and get the Excaliber when I've saved up enough brownie points with Dh hee hee. Mrs. () Siemens Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 19, 2005 Report Share Posted December 19, 2005 , Where do you live? Do you heat your home? You could possibly put your nuts above a heat source (wood or gas heating stove)--on a couple of trivits. You could keep the oven door open with a wooden spoon, and see what temperature that is... Do you have a pilot light in your oven--you could check and see what temperature that is... Maybe you just make your crispy nuts the way that you did before and enjoy them. A dehydrator like I was talking about is around $110. You might be able to find a used dehydrator with a temperature regulator on ebay... We live off the grid (we make our own electricity, and so the dehydrator takes too much of our electricity to use until we have an abundance of electricity like today. We have had a lot of rain, and our hydro is making lots of surplus electrcity. I've got my jerky soaking in kefir, and will be drying it tomorrow. However, I haven't been able to use it for a couple of weeks. It will be a late Christmas gift. JoAnn www.wayhealthy.blogspot.com On 12/19/05, Siemens <mandamom2many@...> wrote: > > Great, NOW what do I do? My oven doesn't go any lower than 200F and I > can't > afford another dehydrator. I love my crispy nuts ::WAHH!!!!: > > On 12/18/05, Lana Gibbons <lana.m.gibbons@...> wrote: > > > > It is definately overkill for herbs, nuts and more delicate items. > > However, 145-165 is normal dehydrator temp for jerky as far as I know. > > > > -Lana Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 19, 2005 Report Share Posted December 19, 2005 Ontario Canada. And we have electric heat (still begging hubby for that wood cook stove) and nothing would stay near a heater with my 2 year old LOL!! And our stove is electric and the lightbulb doesn't warm the oven up much at all. I think I can prop the trays open a bit and that should work. I'll keep my eyes on the thrift store. dh doesn't trust ebay even though many of our friends and family use it and endorse it ::sigh:: On 12/19/05, JoAnn SkyWatcher <joann.skywatcher@...> wrote: > > , > > Where do you live? Do you heat your home? You could possibly put your nuts > above a heat source (wood or gas heating stove)--on a couple of trivits. You > could keep the oven door open with a wooden spoon, and see what temperature > that is... Do you have a pilot light in your oven--you could check and see > what temperature that is... Maybe you just make your crispy nuts the way > that you did before and enjoy them. A dehydrator like I was talking about is > around $110. You might be able to find a used dehydrator with a temperature > regulator on ebay... -- Mrs. () Siemens Mommy to Zack and Liddy...so far no fear, only faith; no guilt, only grace; no pride, only praise; no claim, only Christ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 19, 2005 Report Share Posted December 19, 2005 , I guess the thrift store looks like a good option or garage sales. It would be a good time of year to get one--summer is when most people use them. JoAnn On 12/19/05, Siemens <mandamom2many@...> wrote: > > Ontario Canada. And we have electric heat (still begging hubby for that > wood > cook stove) and nothing would stay near a heater with my 2 year old LOL!! > And our stove is electric and the lightbulb doesn't warm the oven up much > at > all. I think I can prop the trays open a bit and that should work. I'll > keep my eyes on the thrift store. dh doesn't trust ebay even though many > of > our friends and family use it and endorse it ::sigh:: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 20, 2005 Report Share Posted December 20, 2005 Oh. Well. Prepare to be angry. Yes, it is too hot for SOME foods. If all you're doing is jerky? It should be find. You need the meat to reach an internal temp of 160 for long-term storage, etc. Anything below that, you're risking trouble. Any other foods such as fruit, veggies, etc., you need to stay under 145 the first couple of hours, and then down to 120. Enzymes, through research done by Excalibur shows that enzymes were preserved even at 145, but anything over that were killed off. I can try to dig up the research at Excalibur, whenI have more time later today. Or you can run over to their site and do some digging. Or dig on Onibasu for some posts I made to the DiscussingNT list sometime this past year. I'm thrilled with my Excalibur. You might want to consider a trade, or adding another one. Keep yours for jerky? Another for enzyme-packed foods? HTH Sharon, NH On 12/18/05, Siemens <mandamom2many@...> wrote: > > I have a nesco dehydrator, it only has an on and off no temp control. I > thought it felt aweful hot so I stuck an instant read meat thermometer in > it > and it said 150* F. Is this cooking the food? I love my jerky and crispy > nuts and what not but am I defeating the purpose? Wouldn't enzymes be > killed > at that temperature? Or are they tough enough to be ok? HELP!!! If this is > cooking my food I am going to be very angry, very angry indeed (doing my > marvin the martian impersonation LOL). > > -- > Mrs. () Siemens > > > > > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 20, 2005 Report Share Posted December 20, 2005 > > You know what, there's not much point getting worked up over this LOL. I'll > just keep doing what I'm doing and get the Excaliber when I've saved up > enough brownie points with Dh hee hee. > > Mrs. () Siemens Are there any other reputable dehydrators besides the Excaliber? They have some on ebay but I am not sure about the brand names. They do have the dreaded nesco one.> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 20, 2005 Report Share Posted December 20, 2005 What's so dreaded about Nesco? Other than its plastic, I love my Nesco FD-60. It was $25 at walmart. It has a temp dial (90-165, but runs a little hotter than the dial in the summer) and does a lovely job of everything I've put in it. Yeah, I know plastic is bad, but I'm still battling to get worse out of the house... I just threw out my last Aluminum pot yesterday - the teflon ones are next. Plastic will probably be one of the last to go since most of it will be replaced with glass. But I love my crispy nuts and jerky so I just grin and bear it until I can afford a nice metal one. -Lana > Are there any other reputable dehydrators besides the Excaliber? They > have some on ebay but I am not sure about the brand names. They do > have the dreaded nesco one.> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 20, 2005 Report Share Posted December 20, 2005 I also have the nesco with temperature control and am very happy with it. There are ways around dehydrating directly on the plastic trays. I have 3 plastic " fruit rollup trays " [optional accessory came with one] for very wet ingredients but use parchment paper for the other three trays when I dehydrate a bunch of food at once. The parchment paper does a fine job. Or you could purchase the teflon sheets by excaliber at I believe $8/ each and cut them down to fit the nesco trays. My nesco has temp controls from 110-155 or so, bought it at Walmart.com for $40. I use mine to dehydrate sprouted soaked nuts, seeds and grains, eliminates the need to soak before baking/ eating. , if you put matchsticks between the trays of your non-temp control nesco it would probably lower the temp below 145. Christa > > What's so dreaded about Nesco? > > Other than its plastic, I love my Nesco FD-60. It was $25 at walmart. > It has a temp dial (90-165, but runs a little hotter than the dial in > the summer) and does a lovely job of everything I've put in it. > > Yeah, I know plastic is bad, but I'm still battling to get worse out > of the house... I just threw out my last Aluminum pot yesterday - the > teflon ones are next. Plastic will probably be one of the last to go > since most of it will be replaced with glass. But I love my crispy > nuts and jerky so I just grin and bear it until I can afford a nice > metal one. > > -Lana > > > Are there any other reputable dehydrators besides the Excaliber? They > > have some on ebay but I am not sure about the brand names. They do > > have the dreaded nesco one.> > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 20, 2005 Report Share Posted December 20, 2005 Not all plastic is that bad. I don't know what plastic the Nesco is made out of but I have a harvestmaid one that is the same design and plastic. I think it may be #2 HDPE. As long you keep the temps under 120F, I can't see any issue whatsoever. The only plastics that should cause major concern right now are PVC(#3), Polystyrene (styrofoam, #6), and PolyCarbonate(#7) I'm fairly certain using teflon sheets instead would actually be more dangerous. Ideally, a stainless steel dehydrator would be the best, but I am very picky about what let my food come in contact with and I have no problem at all drying nuts in my plastic dehydrator. I might get a little more paranoid if I was drying something such as meat though. - > > > > What's so dreaded about Nesco? > > > > Other than its plastic, I love my Nesco FD-60. It was $25 at > walmart. > > It has a temp dial (90-165, but runs a little hotter than the dial > in > > the summer) and does a lovely job of everything I've put in it. > > > > Yeah, I know plastic is bad, but I'm still battling to get worse out > > of the house... I just threw out my last Aluminum pot yesterday - > the > > teflon ones are next. Plastic will probably be one of the last to > go > > since most of it will be replaced with glass. But I love my crispy > > nuts and jerky so I just grin and bear it until I can afford a nice > > metal one. > > > > -Lana > > > > > Are there any other reputable dehydrators besides the Excaliber? > They > > > have some on ebay but I am not sure about the brand names. They > do > > > have the dreaded nesco one.> > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 20, 2005 Report Share Posted December 20, 2005 > Are there any other reputable dehydrators besides the Excaliber? They > have some on ebay but I am not sure about the brand names. They do > have the dreaded nesco one.> I have three Excaliburs. Two are the small, black model with four trays. I don't care for them much because they seem flimsy but they do get the job done. The one I've used most is cracking in two places on the housing and a chunk fell off the bottom last week. I told you I was hardcore. B. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 20, 2005 Report Share Posted December 20, 2005 I have the nesco gardenmaster and LOVE it. It is huge and has a great temperature control. It goes down to 95 degrees. I use it atleast once a week. I got mine at a thrift store for $10. Are there any other reputable dehydrators besides the Excaliber? They have some on ebay but I am not sure about the brand names. They do have the dreaded nesco one.> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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