A dedicated dehydrator can take that ripe fruit on the counter to make fruit leather that lasts up to one month at room temperature or up to a year frozen. It can churn out a wide variety of spices (ground spices can stay flavorful for one to three years and whole spices can last three to four years), beef or fish jerky (home-dried beef jerky can be stored for one to two months), and healthy snacks like kale chips, yogurt, dog treats, and more.
Dehydrators are electrical appliances that remove moisture from foods using horizontal or vertical airflow and fans. Horizontal units have an advantage because horizontal airflow reduces flavor mixture, so you can dehydrate different foods without worrying about their taste being affected. Dehydrators come in various sizes and with different features, so there’s one out there to suit everyone’s food needs, kitchen space, and budget. CR tested three popular food dehydrators by Magic Mill, Hamilton Beach, and Excalibur. We put them to work making fruit leather, beef jerky, and three dried herbs: parsley, basil, and garlic. If you’re wondering why you can’t just use your oven, microwave, or the sun to dehydrate foods, stay tuned: We cover that, too.
Well-dehydrated fruit leather should be pliable, easy to remove, and not contain soft or sticky patches. If you’re dehydrating beef jerky, you’ll know you’ve done it right when your meat is savory and slightly chewy, but not brittle. Dry herbs are perhaps the easiest to judge: the leaves should crumble in your hands. Here’s what we thought of the three food dehydrators we tested.
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