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I grow, literally, 50 or so different varieties of herbs of all sorts, from the common place to the exotic. Drying them was always a process, and I always seemed to lose them to mold, mildew, or those that I kept were brown and unattractive looking. Then, as a gift, my husband bought me this dehydrator because he was told it'd dry herbs.
This little gadget has turned into just about the most important gadget I have in my kitchen. It's practically in-use everyday from May to November, dehydrating everything from my precious herbs, to apples, tomatoes, jerky, and all manner of fruit and flower. This dehydrator has literally saved me hundreds of dollars, not only because I can make my own jerky, fruit roll-ups, and dried fruits for everything from trail mix to healthy snacks, but because vegetables from the garden that were left to rot because we couldn't otherwise keep them (and there wasn't enough to can) are now being saved, and every last one of my herbs, even some which didn't take to being dried the "traditional way," are easily preserved. I can even buy in-season fruits and veggies in bulk and dehydrate them, saving me even more money!
This gadget dries everything very quickly and efficiently, so everything really retains its color. I've found myself drying everything from rose petals to bee balm flowers (and all sorts of other flowers that couldn't previously be dried) for use in sachets, potpourri, and carpet deodorizers. My red and purple rose petals stay red and purple, and my herbs keep their emerald-green color, something I'd never keep with conventional drying. I'm really impressed that a dehydrator that is gentle enough to dry herbs is also rugged enough to make jerky and apple chips. Unlike other dehydrators I've seen, this particular one allows you to custom set the temperatures, ensuring that whatever you dry is dried at the temperature most conducive to effective and attractive drying. There's been more than once where I dry a batch of herbs, then after a quick scrubbing, my husband sets it up to dry jerky, which is just awesome. The little booklet full of recipes and drying times that accompanies this dehydrator ensures that even if you've never seen a dehydrator before, you can still use this one almost right out of the box.
Our dehydrator comes with a fruit-rollup attachment, which I'll admit we only have used once, but it appeared to work very well. I will also admit we saved a few dollars by buying some door screen from a hardware store, and cutting it to the size of our dehydrator racks, saving quite a bit of money on the "Clean-A-Screen" which is offered as an optional attachment. It's also nice that this dehydrator is quieter than your average stove fan or air conditioner, so it's not loud at all. If the TV is on, I can't even hear it. My only real complaint with this dehydrator is that it doesn't have an "on/off" switch, so to turn it on and off, you have to plug and unplug it. For people who don't have a lot of power outlets our outlets that are hard to reach, I'd imagine this is a hassle.
I have to say, this tool is a must-have for any cook or gardener. I know my culinary ambitions have always stretched beyond my wallet, but with this I can make my own "sun dried tomatoes" and keep my own exotic herbs, saving not only a chunk of change and using everything in my garden, but also really dressing up my meals for super cheap. My friends have wondered just how I do it. :D I dare say, this is almost more useful than my canner, since I can save a garden harvest of any size, and still make use of them in jams, jellies, sauces, and meals... This product is a must have!
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I love my new Nesco FD-60 dehydrator. My first month I probably spent $300 in fruit and meat trying all sorts of recipes and fruit-roll mixture.However I recommend buying from Walmart. Their price is about $45. Also, I wouldn't recommend buying expansion trays because 4 trays cost about $30 but a new dehydrator for $45 includes 4 trays and a fruit roll sheet (>$4 value)plus the usefullness of a backup or second dehydtation unit.
That aside, beef jerky, dried fruits and homemade fruit rolls are wonderful and easy with this unit. Much better IMHO than using the oven (safer, faster, more cost effiecient).
