RE: Drying Fruit and Meat Without a Dehydrator
|
By Bridget (bee for short) (Guest Post)
|
|
 |
The easiest fruits to dry out are bananas, apples, cherries, peaches, apricots, pineapples, pears, and strawberries.
1.Clean the fruit and slice into quarter inch slices.
2.Preheat oven to 140 degrees.
3.Put fruit on cookie sheet then put in, leave oven 3 inches open(easier for water to dehydrate).
4. Take out when it is all dry.
Posted on 12/30/2008 | Report Spam or Abuse
RE: Drying Fruit and Meat Without a Dehydrator
It has been awhile since I checked in...how long does the oven jerky "keep," and thank you for the seasonings! I just found out I cannot have ANY hickory smoke: worcestershire or bbq due to advancing tree nut allergies!
Posted on 04/20/2007 | Report Spam or Abuse
RE: Drying Fruit and Meat Without a Dehydrator
Many years ago I made an electric dehydrator that worked very well. Just take a cardboard box, some heavy-duty aluminum foil, an old grill rack or cooling rack to fit the box, and a small lamp with a 40 or 60 watt bulb (bulb wattage should depend on the box size; smaller box, use lower wattage). Line the inside of the box with foil, shiney-side to the inside of the box. Fashion a cover for it with another piece of cardboard and line it with foil in the same manner. I laid two bricks, one in each end of the box, to support the rack. Then position the small lamp inside the box so it doesn't pose a fire hazard or sit too close to the food.
Personally if your climate permits I'd (now) go with the natural, sun-dried idea. You might still find the foil-in-a-box idea helpful: use a somewhat cone-shaped box (tapering smaller at the bottom), line it with shiny-side-showing foil, place the grill rack inside and cover with clear plastic or cheese cloth.
If drying meat (I've never tried that) I'd be very careful with it. I'd probably either salt the dickens out of it or marinate it in something heavy in whiskey. Good luck!
Posted on 08/28/2006 | Report Spam or Abuse
RE: Drying Fruit and Meat Without a Dehydrator
|
By carla bledsoe (Guest Post)
|
|
|
my grandma used to put apple slices on a sheet on the tin roof of the shed out back. she covered that with cheesecloth to keep flies off.
i used to work for a solar heater plant (in the 70's oil "crisis") and we had a solar dryer that worked well. you can get plans in old mother earth news or countryside magazine or backwoods home magazine. can internet search too.
an oven on about 150 to 200 degrees should work too. there are library books on the subject that should tell you all you need to know. the old foxfire series tells how the old timers did it. good luck
Posted on 08/28/2006 | Report Spam or Abuse
RE: Drying Fruit and Meat Without a Dehydrator
My mother used to put fruit on a cookie sheet in the back of the car, under the rear window. She checked it at least once a day. We took it out when we had to go somewhere so that it didn't spill. It worked great.
Posted on 08/26/2006 | Report Spam or Abuse
RE: Drying Fruit and Meat Without a Dehydrator
http://www.motherearthnews.com/DIY/ ... tember/Build_a_Solar_Food_Dehydrator
Here are directions on how to build a solar food dehydrator from www.motherearthnews.com
They also have a wonderful bunch of helpfull people in their forums.
Posted on 08/26/2006 | Report Spam or Abuse
RE: Drying Fruit and Meat Without a Dehydrator
|
By Doggy U*u*U (Guest Post)
|
|
|
I have great luck with "oven jerky". I usually use leftover slices of cooked beef, marinated overnight. I use a mixture of soy, brown sugar, garlic and red pepper. You can add a little scotch or wild turkey (alcohol) if you like. London broil cut on the diag works especially well. Cut in strips no wider than 3/8 "
Line a pan with tin foil, place an oiled rack on the pan and place in an oven set to 225º
Prop the oven door opened a bit with a wad of tin foil or a crushed disposable pie plate. depending on humidity, this should take between 1 - 3 hours. Happy Munching : )
Posted on 08/26/2006 | Report Spam or Abuse
|
