More Important Dehydrating Tips

 I may not be able to have a post about dehydrating every single week - it has just worked out that I have dehydrated enough things lately that I have something to say about every week so far. But I am not a one minded tunnel vision type of homesteader. I have many different interests going. I am learning a whole lot of things. And as I learn things I will be sharing with you all. Just in case the things I have learned can help you along your journey through life. 

So last week I dehydrated something that not only surprised me but taught me a few things and I wanted to pass these things along to you as well. 

So as I was doing some dehydrating I decided to start dehydrating some marshmallows. I had watched a youtube video so I was prepared for marshmallows not to shrink like many other foods do when you dehydrate them. But I still ran across something that surprised me. 

So once you have had the marshmallows going for a while and it is time to check them - you will not get an accurate idea of if they are done for not unless you let them cool off. So where I went wrong was once the timer went off and I went to check the marshmellows I would find them not done. This went on for a few hours. Finally it we time to go to bed and I did not want it going all night nor did I want the 20 beeps going on sometime during the night and waking me up, so I just turned the unit off. The next morning before I started the dehydrator again something nudged me to try a marshmallow and sure enough they were done. You can just squeeze them between your fingers and it should crumble- it is firm and takes a good amount of pressure but it will crumble.  

So this same concept also happens with bananas. 

So when you test them - you may want to let them cool off - especially if they have been dehydrating quite a while. This photo of course is the before photo - I did not realize that it is a good idea to put your bananas in a mixture of lemon water prior to dehydrating to help them not brown so much. So my bananas browns a bit. They are still delicious. Oh and something awesome I learned about bananas I want to share. So I love to eat bananas when they are just turning yellow - nice and firm and wonderful. Once they start getting all sorts of spots and brown and mushy - I don't like to eat them unless baking with them. Well I was amazed that when I dehydrated some bananas past their prime they were SO good once they were done - the banana flavor come out so strong and they were tasty!! 

So if you dehydrate marshmallows or bananas - you may want to let them cool down to test them to see if they are done before you add more time. There is no telling how many extra hours I ran my dehydrator than I needed to. Hope these tips help you in your dehydrating journey! :O)