Are you reluctant about getting yourself a food dehydrator? You risk having your fruits, meat, and other fresh foods spoiled if you lack favorable storage conditions. Water content in food makes it susceptible to mold, bacteria, and yeast.
Food dehydration could be the solution you are looking for to safeguard your food supply. Food dehydration can increase your food options and reduce your expenses on meals. You may be unaware that food dehydration is a simple, easy, and fun experience.
Dehydrated foods can be stored for several months up to a year, although the period of storage depends on the storage environment. Moreover, the storage method you choose for your dehydrated food will significantly determine how long the food will stay without getting spoilt. Vacuum-sealing your dehydrated food is the best option.
Here, we’ll take you through everything you need to understand about dehydrators. Let’s get started.
If you haven’t already, I recommend purchasing a vacuum sealer to accompany your dehydrator. We’ve been using Nutrichef’s sealer for all of our dehydrated fruits, but it works great for fresh food too.
How do Dehydrators Work?
Fresh fruits, vegetables, and meat, among other fresh foods, spoil quickly because of their water content. Traditionally, people would dry their grains in the sun and store them in a dry place to prevent them from going bad.
These grains could go for months with less water content and provide a constant food supply. Technological advancement has simplified removing water content in fresh foods through food dehydrators, ovens, and other commonly used equipment.
Dehydrators heat the food while supplying a steady airflow to remove moisture from the food through evaporation.
How Long Does Dehydrated Food Last If Vacuum-Sealed?
If you plan to keep your dehydrated food for 30 years or more, you will need a vacuum seal. Combining vacuum sealing and dehydration will preserve your food’s nutrition content and flavor for all those decades.
A vacuum seal ensures your food is secure from air and moisture, reducing the lifespan of dehydrated foods. While vacuum sealing improves the shelf life of your dry food, different types of food will have varied storage periods.
The following table shows the shelf life of some vacuum-sealed dehydrated foods
| Food | Shelf Life (Years) |
| Fish/Meat | 5 |
| Eggs (Powdered) | 15 |
| Rice | 20 |
| Vegetables | 10 |
| Beans | 30 |
| Apple slices | 25 |
| Wheat | 30 |
The vacuum seals should always be intact and ensure the temperature in the storage room is optimum, with no moisture or excessive light.
How Should Dehydrated Foods Be Stored?
Although airtight containers are the best when storing dehydrated foods, other options can meet your storage needs. Some of the locally available storage equipment includes;
Mason Jars
These are household jars in your local store or order online. They are flexible and easy to use, although you should ensure the food you plan to store is equivalent to the jar’s volume. It is economical to fill all the jar space with dehydrated food.
Before using mason jars, ensure they are clean and dry. Moreover, they should not have a crack to ensure airtight when closed. In some cases, you may have to vacuum-seal the Mason jars to increase the shelf-life of the dehydrated food.
You can quickly learn how to vacuum-seal Mason jars with handheld vacuum sealers. The good news is that you can reuse your Mason jars to restore dehydrated foods severally.
Vacuum Sealing Bags
Vacuum sealing bags are suited for storing food in the freezer. These bags should be airtight, and some can break when poorly handled, which shortens the life of the food. It would help if you were cautious when handling sharp dehydrated foods whose edge can be a challenge when storing.
You can protect your sealing bags by wrapping the sharp edges with parchment paper. The sealing bag will be protected from punctures that are likely to occur with slight movements.
Some foods become brittle when dehydrated and easily crash into small pieces under slight pressure. You can use larger sealing bags to reduce stress on dehydrated food.
Mylar Bags
Mylar bags are among the options you have when planning to store your food for a long time. These are not easily punctured when storing dehydrated foods with sharp edges and can be an excellent alternative to vacuum sealing bags.
Mylar bags with a rough inside part can be vacuum sealed. Store Mylar bags in canisters which are unreachable to rodents. Rodents can puncture Mylar bags and eat dehydrated food.
Mylar bags with zipper tops and clears are ineffective for the long-term storage of dry foods. These bags are air permeable and shorten the shelf life of the stored food.
Air Tight Containers
There are several options you can choose from in the market. Most people prefer glass jars, plastic ware, and Tupperware. These jars have airtight seals and are a good option when storing your food for a long time.
You may need to confirm if the jars are airtight in some cases. Simply squeezing plastic jars and checking if there is any escaping air can help you quickly check how effective an airtight jar is.
What Foods Can Be Dehydrated For Long-Term Storage?
While you can dehydrate almost every fresh food in your house, the storage period will vary from food to food. Most dehydrated foods can be stored for a year and last over ten years in a vacuum-sealed environment with the right storage conditions.
Here are some foods which you can dehydrate and keep for years:
Meat and fish: Meat and fish can be stored for years when dehydrated. These include; turkey, ground beef, fresh fish, cured meat, and chicken.
Fruits: There is a wide range of fruits that you can dehydrate and store and secure their nutritional content for years to come. Some of them include; cherries, pears, bananas, and apples.
Seeds and nuts: You can dehydrate and store nuts and seeds, including macadamia, walnuts, and pecans. In some cases, you will need to sprout or soak the nuts to ensure they are digestible.
Vegetables: Vegetables are highly perishable, and when dehydrated, you can store them for years. These include mushrooms, tomatoes, beans, peas, and many others that you regularly use.
Herbs: You can dehydrate and store herbs such as hyssop, mint, basil, oregano, and lemon balm, among many others.
How to Tell If Dehydrated Food Has Gone Bad
Sometimes, dehydrated food goes bad after a few months or years of storage. Poor storage conditions are among the significant factors that result in food getting spoiled.
It is advisable always to confirm the requirements and how dehydrated healthy food is, especially after storing it for a long time. There are signs which indicate that the dry food has gone bad.
Moisture: Containers storing dehydrated food should be dry to prevent the growth of bacteria. When you observe moisture, especially in containers storing dehydrated fruits, do not consume the food until you are sure it is healthy. When not sure, dispose of the dry food to avoid food poisoning.
Mold: The mold in storage bags and containers indicates that the food has gone bad. Mold is likely to occur in cases where there is moisture. Dehydrated fruits are more likely to have molds than other foods.
Smell: A foul smell from a storage container or a bag shows that the dehydrated food has gone bad. Dry fruits should have a fruity scent which should not be confused with the foul smell of spoiled food.
Taste: In some cases, you will not tell whether dehydrated food has gone bad until you taste it. The absence of moisture, mold or a foul smell does not guarantee that your food is healthy for consumption.
5 Dehydration & Storage Tips
Use the right temperature: A successful dehydration process involves slow heating with constant airflow. Dehydrating is different from food roasting, and when you use improper temperature, the food will harden on the outside while moist inside.
Mold will quickly grow inside the food, hence shortening its shelf life.
Prepare Foods properly before storage: Each type of food had a recommended preparation procedure before dehydration. It is advisable to check information from credible sources on preparation procedures to avoid mistakes that shorten the storage duration.
Store dehydrated foods in a dry environment: Some dehydrated foods become rancid when they come into contact moisture. Ensure storage containers are tightly closed to prevent the entry of any water.
Avoid using Wax paper: It is advisable to use plastic wraps or parchment paper when storing dehydrated food. A wax paper is inseparable from dried food.
Do not under-dry your food: In many cases, it is better to over-dry than to under-dry your food. Under-dying leave moisture can allow mold and bacteria to grow.
Dehydration could be all you need to secure your food supply. Try out these steps and tips, and lead a healthy lifestyle.