To save weight, can you dehydrate shelf stable meals such as Hormel Completes or MRE's and then rehydrate when you're ready to eat them?

Probably.

I'd try it at home first to see if you like it. I don't see why this wouldn't work. I started dehydrating my own food to avoid high sodium in the commercial camping foods. So I assume there is pretty high sodium in Hormel Completes and MRE's.

Thanks.

My grandkids only like Kraft Mac & Cheese. For our trip this last summer I made a few batches and dehydrated them. Turned out perfectly.

We also have dehydrated some of our favorite take out pad thai- another hit.

Anything that can be spread thinly seems to be dehydratable!

Good idea on the take-out. I've never thought about that one.

I don't have a dehydrator and I'm trying to convince my husband that I need one for Christmas. I don't want to invest a bunch because I don't know how much I'll use it. I know Excaliber brand is supposed to be the best but I'm wondering about their low end model, the four tray economy model for $129.

Does anyone have experience with the four tray model?

quote giddyup: "Good idea on the take-out. I've never thought about that one.


I don't have a dehydrator and I'm trying to convince my husband that I need one for Christmas. I don't want to invest a bunch because I don't know how much I'll use it. I know Excaliber brand is supposed to be the best but I'm wondering about their low end model, the four tray economy model for $129.


Does anyone have experience with the four tray model? "

I think the 4 trays is more than most people would ever need for dehydrating. The most important part of the dehydrator is really the constant low temperature and the right amount of air to circulate to allow for drying. I love my Excaliber and got one for my daughter because she kept borrowing mine- hers is the 4 tray and she loves it!

I have the four tray Excalibur and have used it a lot. It is great. The temperature control is awesome. The only thing you don't get with the four tray (besides fewer trays) is a timer. I have not found it strictly necessary, but sure, it would be nice.

To get around the timer, I will adjust the temperature lower. For example, if I think what I'm dehydrating will take another four hours, but it's bedtime, I'll set the temperature lower so it does not get too dried out overnight...and then I just go to sleep and check when I get up. That is for fruits and veg...I would be hesitant to do that with meat, unless it was mostly done already.

I have wanted more than four trays before, but that has only been when I'm dehydrating a lot of something that I've picked out of my garden. (that said, I haven't used it much for BW meals.)

Get a LEM 10-tray dehydrator. I got one on Amazon for $150 and couldn't be happier. All the same features as excalibur, but costs less.

I have a Nesco dehydrator, I love it, it is a workhorse & I have never had a problem with it. I process venison into jerky for myself and several friends. I also make my own meals for backpacking & canoe trips. Mine is 1000w & has 8 trays, you can expand it by buying more trays, but 8 is enough for my needs. The base model snack master starts you off with 4 trays, it's on amazon for $60.

My dehydrator doesn't have a timer, I plug it into a lamp style timer and set the time that way. Works perfectly.

Youtube has lots of great tutorials..check out Tinny from minibulldesigns, I bought a few used dehydrating books and watched a few videos and I was on my way to making great meals & jerky.

Other than jerky, I'm curious about whether people dehydrate just for camping or do you find other uses for dehydrated meals?

I also have the Nesco Snackmaster Pro. It was like $60. I probably paid another $15 for the fruit leather trays. I think it works fine. Sometimes I have to rotate the trays bottom-to-top to get even dehydrating, but it's not a big deal. I don't use a timer, just dry overnight. I thought about getting the Excalibur, but I didn't want to store something that big.
For camping, I usually dehydrate individual ingredients and mix them later, as opposed to making an entire dish ahead of time and dehydrating the whole thing together. For example, I'll dehydrate peas or broccoli, and then add them to a bear creek soup mix or a hobo stew type of thing. Or, I'll dehydrate a can of tomato puree and use that to make a spaghetti sauce or pizza sauce. Or, I'll dehydrate chili beans for burritos. I've never done fruit because it's so easy to find dried fruit in the store.
For non-camping, I use the dehydrator about once a year to dry spices from the garden. If you have apple trees you can also make apple chips. I've dried chopped Kale and kept that around to add to whole grain pilafs. So, it's useful if you garden. I thought about drying celery slices to keep around for soups, because I seem to have trouble keeping celery in the fridge, but I've never gotten around to it.

I am thinking about making a couple of batches of this corned beef hash for a 2 week trip this summer. Do you think you still need to rinse this before dehydrating? Any other special prep suggestions?

Corned Beef Hash

I also have the economy 4 tray the only time Ive wished I had the bigger one is when dehydrating apple slices. I have one of those "push through" corer/slicer things and it makes slices big enough that I can only use 2 trays instead of 4.

Sometimes I wish I had a timer but I havnt ruined anything yet so that hasnt been a real problem.

Dried fruit that is in sight at our house is gone nearly as fast as it can be made (especialy banana chips). I am soso about nana chips but i really like chunk pineapple, buy it already cut for way less work. Fruit leather is a great day trip snack and is easy if you buy some liners.

I may have to try mac and cheese for my 4yo next year. The last time we went the adults had dehydrated hamburger spagetti and he had a warmed up hot dog...

quote linkster: "I am thinking about making a couple of batches of this corned beef hash for a 2 week trip this summer. Do you think you still need to rinse this before dehydrating? Any other special prep suggestions?


Corned Beef Hash "

I think this hash would dehydrate just fine, I wouldn't rinse it, spread it thin on your sheets and dry until crunchy. If you feel it is a bit greasy after it is dried, maybe blot with a paper towel before you seal it up.

quote giddyup: "Other than jerky, I'm curious about whether people dehydrate just for camping or do you find other uses for dehydrated meals? "

I usually take leftovers from a meal, portion them and dehydrate them for camping. If I make a large batch of a recipe instead of freezing it when everyone is done having it, I'll dehydrate it, vacuum seal it and put it in my freezer. It will stay a year like that, ready for home use or camping.

I started out making a few snacks & drying stuff from my garden, fresh fruit & veggies & fruit from cans. If you like fruit roll ups, applesauce spread on oiled sheets comes out really good & you can flavor them however you want or buy flavored applesauce- or use homemade. I also dried fruit yogurt topped with granola..that was pretty good too. After the initial novelty wore off, I no longer run my machine for snacks just for the household, only for camping. After processing the enormous amount of venison I receive each year into jerky, to run the machine constantly makes my electric bill go up. If I can buy already dried fruit, I'll do that sometimes instead of running the machine. It just makes "cents" sometimes.