When you’re out camping or on a survival mode, of course, you don’t have any immediate food supply but the food stored in your backpack.
Expelling ice or other kinds of solidified solvents from an item through the sublimation procedure and removing the bound molecules of water through the desorption procedure is known as Freeze Drying.
If you’re new to freeze drying at home or are considering if a home freeze dryer would be useful, you might be wondering what kinds of foods you can freeze dry. We love experimenting, and so do our customers, so there’s no shortage of information on the subject.
Freeze Dry It
The short answer is, most foods can be freeze dried including:
- fruits
- vegetables
- meats
- dairy
- entire meals
- desserts
Don’t Freeze Dry It
There are a few foods that don’t do well in a freeze dryer. Remember, freeze dryers work by extracting water from food. It does leave behind oil, so oily foods don’t fare very well in a freeze dryer. Some foods are:
- peanut butter
- pure chocolate
- butter
- honey
- syrup
- jam
Read More
There are several ways to extend the shelf life of food. One of the oldest methods belong of smoking and salting is drying – which was used long before freezing, boiling or vacuum packaging. Freeze drying is a modern extention of traditional drying methods to protect food from spoilage for longer.
This process is only made possible by modern vacuum technology because freeze drying food takes place under vacuum.
Where is it used?
Freeze drying is suitable for fruit and berries as well as for cooked meat or vegetables. Herbs and spices are also preserved through freeze drying by removing all but a few percent of the water from these products. The best-known Read More
Freeze-drying is a simple process that keeps food and medicine from perishing. The process involves freezing the material, reducing the surrounding temperature
In general
Advantages:
- Great snacks
- Little to no chemical changes to food
- Little physical changes to food
- Nutritional value is almost completely maintained – it is healthy
- Long-term storage — 20+ years
- Lightweight food
- No refrigeration required
Disadvantages:
- Water required for reconstitution (except for simple snacks)
- Slow process — average cycle is 24+ hours
- Some dislike the dry, styrofoam texture
- Not all foods can be freeze dried
- Airtight containers are required for long-term storage
- No space savings — the food’s cellular structure is mostly retained
- Sometimes, normal dehydration is better
- Production cost
At home
Advantages:
- Custom recipes
- Great food variety
- Allergy awareness
- Self reliance
- Knowledge & novelty
- Food quality
Could be good or bad:
- Learning curve
- Machinery
- Learning how different food types dry
- Packaging
Disadvantages:
- Cost (when comparing other food preservation methods)
- Machine
- Materials
- Time
- Power consumption
- Freeze drying is one of the most energy-intensive methods to Read More
- Freeze drying is one of the most energy-intensive methods to Read More