Eastman Outdoors 38254 Mode D'emploi page 8

FRUITS - DRY AT 130ºF TO 140ºF
Wash fruit thoroughly and remove any imperfections. Remove skins (if
desired), stems and seeds. Halve or slice in 1/4" to 1/2" circles or slices.
Some fruits have a natural protective wax coating such as grapes,
blueberries, cranberries, etc. If you want to dry these fruits whole, first
dip them into boiling water for 1 to 2 minutes. This makes the skin more
porous by removing the natural wax coating and thereby speeds up the
drying time.
VEGETABLES - DRY AT 130ºF TO 140ºF
Wash vegetables thoroughly and remove any blemishes. Peel, trim,
core, and/or slice vegetables. Halve or slice in 1/4" to 1/2" circles or
slices.
Most vegetables must be blanched before dehydrating, either by
steaming over boiling water on your stove or in the microwave oven.
Blanching slows the enzyme action which will continue during drying
and storage.
Steam until vegetables are heated completely through, but not cooked.
This is usually about 1/3 of the time required to cook the vegetable.
Vegetables should still be crunchy. Drain in steamer rack and place
immediately on dryer trays.
A microwave oven can also be used for blanching vegetables. Prepare
them in the same manner as for steam blanching. Place them in a
microwave-safe dish, cover and cook on high for about 1/2 of the
time required to completely cook the fresh vegetable. Drain and place
immediately on dryer trays.
Load blanched vegetables onto drying trays, making sure that air can
move freely between the pieces. For vegetables, such as corn or peas,
that tend to clump together, stir occasionally to allow air to reach all of
the pieces.
Vegetables are dried until they are crisp, tough, or brittle. Package
immediately after drying to prevent absorption of moisture from the air.
TESTING FOR DRYNESS
Food must be monitored during the final stages of dehydrating to
prevent over-drying. Over-dried foods will lose quality in texture,
nutrition and taste. To test for dryness, remove a piece of food, let it cool
and feel with your fingers for dryness. Use the following guidelines:
1. Jerky should be tough, but not brittle.
2. Dried fish should be tough, but not brittle. If the fish is high in fat it
may still appear moist due to the high oil content.
3. Fruits are pliable and leathery with no spots of moisture. Tear in
half, pinch and watch for moisture drops to appear along the tear. If
no moisture appears then it is sufficiently dry for long term storage.
4. Vegetables should be tough or crisp.
8