Since it.'s apple season I'm dehydrating apples. Got a nifty Apple peeler/ corer/ slicer so all the slices are the same thickness. My problem is they stuck to the dehydrator trays. They are tearing into small pieces when I try to take them off the trays. Some are stuck so hard I will have to soak and scrape them off, making them unusable. Any idea why this happened? How can I prevent this next time?

What kind of trays are you using? I've never had this problem with my trays, but if I did I suppose I would just hit the trays with a bit of cooking spray before dehydrating, or lay them out on silicone/teflon/waxed/parchment paper (whatever you have).

If mine get on the over Dry side they act the same way. No problem though. Just let them sit uncovered overnight or maybe a bit more and they will absorb some moisture from the air and become flexible again

Have you tried sprinkling them with a sugar and cinnamon mixture before dehydrating. Apples and cinnamon are a great combination.

The peeler/slicer device you are using may create apple slices that are too thin. I had the same problem and now I use my meat slicer and make each slice a bit thicker. That took care of my problem. It takes a little longer to dehydrate but they do not stick to my plastic trays. A little sugar and cinnamon is great. My grandson thinks they are better than candy.

I use a peeler slicer all of the time for my apples and have never had a problem with them sticking to the trays. I soak mine in water with lemon juice in it and then place them on the trays and dust them with cinnamon. I use Granny Smith apples and leave the skin on too. Try turning the heat down on them and go longer with dehydrating them. I also flip mine 3/4 of the way thru.

Thanks everyone, I will try another batch today. I thought thin slices would be good- quicker de and re- hydrating. And I forgot to flip them. Didn't know that overdoing would glue them to the tray. Live and learn.

I did not cinnamon and sugar this batch. I was just going to add them when rehydrating ( in case I add too much water) .

Saltdog- how do you core them when you use a meat slicer?

I also use the peeler, slicer, corer and haven't found them too thin. Seems just about right. My dehydrator has the square holes in the racks about a 1/2" square. Even using this tool it takes me about two hours to get mine loaded ( about 40 apples ).

My sticking problem comes after I have vacume sealed them. Imagine 20 apples sliced and squeezed down to a 2" by 10" roll. This year I'm not letting the sealer draw the air out till it stops. I'm stopping the vacume about 1/2 way through.

Not sure why this is happening. Like Oldfingers we dip them in diluted lemon juice and just put them on the tray. About 3-4 hours in, I'll shake each of the trays instead of turning them. Sometimes I forget, but even then they still have never stuck to the tray beyond the occasional 2 or 3.

I use the flexible screens when doing sticky stuff like apples or bananas. Really makes it easier getting them off.

I just took 3 trays off last night, they all came right off even with a honey & cinnamon glaze.

Slightly off topic but if you dehydrate apples now, do you simply store them in the freezer (or not?) till next years trip, or are these for winter use?

quote billconner: "Slightly off topic but if you dehydrate apples now, do you simply store them in the freezer (or not?) till next years trip, or are these for winter use?"

We just keep ours in the pantry in gallon ziplock bags. They're used over the winter and through the next year. We've never had spoilage issues, so we've never felt the need to freeze or vac pack them.

I throw mine in the freezer just out of habit. They're typically gone within a few weeks.

quote mirth: "I throw mine in the freezer just out of habit. They're typically gone within a few weeks."

With a honey cinnamon glaze, I can certainly understand why they wouldn't last very long.

Yeah, they're pretty awesome. The glaze does a decent job of sealing out the air, too, so I don't usually use lemon juice.

quote billconner: "Slightly off topic but if you dehydrate apples now, do you simply store them in the freezer (or not?) till next years trip, or are these for winter use?"

I store all of my dehydrated stuff in the freezer as it extends the shelf life of it.

If it's the same apple peeler as mine, it has a thicker turn screws available. Mine has a red and green turn crank for two sizes of Apple slices.