Or should I say pack life...

I dehydrate hamburger, Italian sausage... and considering using freeze-dried chicken. If traveling for weeks on end I usually have at least one resupply. But if I decide to just pack it all in, is there a way to determine if something like that is unsafe to eat. I worry more that I'm using the Italian sausage more than anything. Pork kind of scares me as well as poultry. Also I've been taking the pre cooked bacon. Anyone precook their own bacon and take in? how does that do?

Just go vegetarian Ben . . . :)

You might find some information at USDA site.

Just personal experience to work with. Most online resources deal with commercial dried food shelf-life.
Usually do 1 to 2 pounds at a time of each type of meat. Hand cut, coarse ground, fine ground, or run thru a food processor, beef, venison, or seasoned pork. I dry in an electric oven to hard "Grape Nut" consistency, I do not rinse in hot water, put in baggies and then vacuum bags, then freezer. Have kept frozen for as much as a year. Trip prep involves repackaging amounts needed,the use on a trip. Longest period out of the freezer has exceeded 3 weeks. No noticed degradation or spoilage, beef or pork.
Just sharing what I have done and make no food safety recommendations on that basis.

butthead

PS: Bacon! Yes pre-cook my own. I pre-cook to a stiff not crispy condition. Freeze it as other dried meats. Have used over 7 day period, but no longer. If I want it longer into a trip it would go as slab un-cooked. Like was done in old days prior to refrigeration. bh

quote butthead: "Just personal experience to work with. Most online resources deal with commercial dried food shelf-life.
Usually do 1 to 2 pounds at a time of each type of meat. Hand cut, coarse ground, fine ground, or run thru a food processor, beef, venison, or seasoned pork. I dry in an electric oven to hard "Grape Nut" consistency, I do not rinse in hot water, put in baggies and then vacuum bags, then freezer. Have kept frozen for as much as a year. Trip prep involves repackaging amounts needed,the use on a trip. Longest period out of the freezer has exceeded 3 weeks. No noticed degradation or spoilage, beef or pork.
Just sharing what I have done and make no food safety recommendations on that basis.


butthead

PS: Bacon! Yes pre-cook my own. I pre-cook to a stiff not crispy condition. Freeze it as other dried meats. Have used over 7 day period, but no longer. If I want it longer into a trip it would go as slab un-cooked. Like was done in old days prior to refrigeration.

"

Thanks Ken... my experience has been similar. Just comparing notes here. I may try the slab bacon for a few days. Might try it at home, I have a small insulated bag I could keep it in and with a little care it might work.

I really think you are pretty safe here. I'm no expert, but what I've gathered is that if you cook something to a safe internal temperature and then stick it in a dehydrator, there really isn't a chance for any nasties to grow on the food. Most bad bacteria grow in an anaerobic environment, which a dehydrator is almost by definition not.

Also, I've read that it's very unlikely that ONLY a toxic bacteria would grow on your food. If the conditions are right for bacterial growth, a lot of things will be growing there, not just toxins, and you are going to smell and taste it.

So if something smells rancid or is moldy, best not to take a chance. But otherwise, I think it's pretty safe .

Can't answer the bacon question, but based on the other responses I see, it looks like I should be doing that. As far as the dehydrated meat goes I have a fair bit of experience with similar results to BH.

I always try to use the leanest beef I can, brown it, then drain it on paper towels and pat it dry with more paper towels. Venison is even better and I imagine bison and elk would be too. Beef and venison will keep on the shelf in the pantry for at least 6 months if you keep it cool < 75. I've used it in Sept after dehydrating it in May and I'm still upright.

Pork sausage is a little different, but "shouldn't" be a big deal if you account for the extra fat. I'm still a little leery about using it and I'm constantly looking at it wondering if its turned. LOL I know it's all in my head, but I still fuss over it. I've done it two ways and it's kept for 2-3 week both times. It may keep longer, but I used it in that time frame. First way was just like the beef, brown it, drain and pat dry. I've also browned it and then rinsed it under hot water before putting it in the dehydrator. I could taste the difference by itself, but not once I put it in with everything else.

I boil chicken breasts and finely shred them. Very little fat and it will keep at least 6 months on the shelf, probably even longer but that's about the limit of my experience with them. Left in long shreds, they'll be a bit chewy when rehydrated. I may try running it through the food processor after shredding it to see if that helps the texture. Hadn't thought about that until reading BH's post above.

We're about to lose a family pet and part of the challenge is getting her to eat and keep it down. Vet recommended boiling hamburger to get the fat out of it so she can keep it down. Light bulb went off and I imagine that would be a good way to do the sausage too, but I haven't tried that yet to see how it affects the taste.

If it goes south, you'll know it. It will be the residual fat that turns rancid. I don't vacuum pack anything, but that would help the shelf life by keeping oxygen out of the bag. Oxygen is what makes the fat go rancid.

I think the keys are cooking it through, getting the majority of the fat off of it and making sure it's fully dehydrated. Your mileage may vary.

Rinsing browned meat will reduce the fat content, and a good bit of flavor. Tried both ways and now do not rinse, just keep amounts down to suit use.
Ground pork is another alternative to sausage. Can be found very lean prepared and spiced as desired in the field.
If you know someone who hunts wild boar, beg borrow of steal some of the venison. Run thru a food processor and dried, very good stuff and lean as can be.

butthead

Regarding chicken...one option I've used is dehydrating ground turkey. The process is the same as dehydrating hamburger, and the end result is the same...gravel. It rehydrates well in soups.