How to Condition Dehydrated Foods for Food Storage and Pantry
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- čas přidán 21. 08. 2024
- I've created and even more updated version of this video: • Answering All of Your ...
Conditioning is a process of making sure your food is equally dry and safe for putting up in your pantry. It's a step very few people do. Not doing so is one reason why people have moldy dehydrated foods after a month or more.
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Please watch the updated vidoe here with even more info! czcams.com/video/SIc1m1gewK4/video.html
Wow I’ve been dehydrating since the 90’s. I’ve never heard this. Thank you so much for sharing when food is so important right now. God Bless
You are so welcome!
First time I’ve seen anyone mention conditioning. Thank you 🙏
Good Evening, Darcy! I’m really learning! I didn’t know about Conditioning! So Mold is the problem! 20% Fruit! 10% Vegetables! Thank-you! ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
Don't go by percentages - just dry the food - you can't really know the %, and it should be less than 15% for fruit - so dry it until it's dry - condition and store.
Thank you so much I am learning even though I'm over 70 and I am feeling confident about food insecurity. I have prepped for a long time but now its time to dehydrate vegetables and fruit and I'm just thanks to go very excited and hopeful.
You can do it!
Thanks for talking about this! I have learned the importance of conditioning...the hard way.
I once added a newly dried batch of mushrooms to an existing 1/2 gallon jar because there was room in the jar. A couple weeks later I went to use a handful in a sauce and the whole jar was ruined. It broke my heart, there were enough mushrooms in there to last me a year!
Again, thank you for sharing hopefully you won’t make such a costly mistake!
♥️👍😎🐝🌻
Thanks for sharing!! I'm sorry it happened :(
Same thing happened to me
Same for me..I was sooooo mad at myself !..lesson learned
Well, I just came to your post to make sure the onions I just took out of the dehydrator last as long as possible, and I’ve already made a mistake, that’s easy to rectify. I knew about shaking, but I went ahead and put in a desiccant, I’ll just dig around and remove it till next week. Thanks so much for being a great source of helpful information.
You're welcome!
Sutton's Daze recommended you. She wasn't wrong! 💕
Thanks - and I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Thank you Darcy for sending this video to me. It very well explains what condition means. I appreciate this since I have never dehydrated anything before. Just bought my dehydrator.
You are so welcome! Have fun with it!!!
Thank you! This information is so valuable! You should do a book. I've recently purchased a Cosori dehydrator and love it. Your channel is a great educational resource for beginners and experienced individuals alike. You cover so many aspects and things you wouldn't know or necessarily consider when it comes to dehydrating. I've subbed and will be going through more of your content!
Now I know why 7 years ago, all my stuff got moldy. Thanks
Sorry that it happened - but try again!
Thank you Darcy🙏🏽☺️
So glad you are back. Thank you. You share and show so much!
Thank you so much!
You were recommended by Leisa at Sutton's Daze. Thanks for the information and inspiration , watching you have given me so many new ideas.
Awesome! Thank you!
Great information Darcy, thanks! I've been dehydrating for many years, and I've never heard this info anywhere else. Good to know!
Glad it was helpful!
Ive read the term conditioning in blogs thanks for actually explaining what that means!!
You're so welcome!
Thanx for this!
I'm new to dehydrating and I've been trying to do some research on long term storage. I'm finding so much different information out there. Some sites say the food is good for up to 25 years. Some sites say a year or two. How is there that much time difference? What's the best way to seal food for long term storage? I would really like to prep for a (please excuse this term) zombie apocalypse or natural disaster but I want to make sure that the food will stay good. Thanks again for all of your videos. I've really learned a lot from you and I trust your opinions. :)
By the National Center for Home Food Preservation standards - which is what the US standards are, dehydrated goods are good for a safe and tested 12-18 months. You may get more years out of it, but the 'safety standard is 12-18 mos. Dehydrated and Freeze-dried foods done by commercial companies are done under different circumstances than we can replicate at home, and they are given for the still sealed in original packaging containers, NOT once already opened.
@@ThePurposefulPantry so the commercial companies last longer?
Seal food in mylar bags.
@@KohimaGaming Yes, with oxygen and moisture absorbers. It’s really important to know that if you get a mouse in the house, that mylar is no protection against mice. A friend of my father had a nice bit of food storage put aside for the hard times, in mylar. One mouse decimated the entire supply, and there was no sign until he went in to find a food item, but the bag had been hollowed out from the bottom in the back.
So the name of that game would either be to put your Mylar bag in a plastic tub, metal tin, glass jar with a lid, or something along those lines.
Thank you for this video!! It was very informational plus enjoyable to watch 💙
I am new to dehydrating and this video answered my questions. Thank you...
Glad it was helpful!
Thank you! I’m very new to dehydrating and have a very basic device. I am excited to know, though, that I was unconsciously doing the right thing by shaking my containers every little while. I’ve been very nervous that maybe things weren’t dry enough. I’m very excited to check out your link about what the various dehydrates food should look like! So far I’ve done strawberries, zucchini, cucumbers, and asparagus.
Glad it was helpful!
Such a great video about dydrating ,I do have a confection electric oven newer so I like this - so much especially Jerky...as its so expensive these days an for great gifts 🎁..not just canning or vacume freezing items .thank u Josette Tharp Montgomery County, Texas .God bless you 🙏🏻
The first couple of years I was dehydrating I didn't know about that step and lucky for me I never had a mold problem. But after learning about it a few years ago I always do it now for insurance. Thank you, Darcy. I know your video is going to enlighten a lot of people.
Thanks, Molly! I sure hope so! I've seen too many comments from people who said they quit after they found everything molded - when it could've been easily caught.
I’m so glad I found your channel because you are a lot more informative than other people I’ve watched. I’m subscribing so I’ll be able to gain gain more knowledge about preserving our food.
So helpful mis! Thank you very much for your expertise! :)
Thank you so much for that very useful information. Never heard of that before and don't recall reading about it either.
Glad it was helpful!
This is great information!
But, as time is short and life busy, I’ve decided to simply burn everything to a crisp. Just kidding!😂
Exactly! :D
Thank you for sharing your knowledge!🥰
Any time!
Hello Darsie, I just want to say thank you for this information, I am currently dehydrating my first thing on my new dehydrator lol its chicken feet for my dog, Im pretty much testing out the new toy :D my husband and I do want to start dehydrating fruits and meats (jerkies) and woah Im so glad to find this video cause I didnt know about conditioning it after the waiting, no where in the booklet talks about it. again thank you for this info. yes I know I will make many mistakes but I also dont like wasting food xD
I'll be honest - the book isn't written with food storage in mind. It's for snacking - and sometimes by people who don't do it a lot. So if you're going to store, conditioning is necessary. If you're going to be storing in the freezer or snacking quickly - there's no real need.
Thanks for this very important advice!
You're so welcome!
I had no clue about conditioning Thank you for the info!
Happy to help!
I did a mad thing of drying apricots in the dehydrator, then vacuum sealing in vacuum bags, then freezing them! Did the same thing with prune plums and it seemed to work! No O2 or moisture absorbers lol...
Didn't need to do it if you vacuum sealed! Why freeze them? Just wanted to ensure their long-term?
The Purposeful Pantry I guess I was just thinking of their moisture content, cos they weren’t dried to a crisp. It worked - they’ve come back to room temp in perfect condition after about 2 years. I already had heaps of apricot jam so needed another way to preserve them...
Great video! Thank you for the useful information :)
My pleasure!
Thank you for the useful information.
You are welcome!
Thanks for this! Great information!
Glad it was helpful!
Thanks for the information, I did not know you should condition your dried fruit and veggies. I have been vacuum sealing them and checking to see it if remained sealed for a couple of weeks and if not I re seal them.
Vacuum sealing is great for storage, but conditioning is a good safety measure to practice.
Very inclusive tutorial! Thanks! : )
Glad it was helpful!
Excellent vid Darcy!
Glad you liked it! ♥
Excellent video! Ty ,soooo important !
Glad you think so!
I am confused with apples, I wanted them crunchy but they are soft and chewy. I have rings, chunks, slivers. I have a silica tea bag size in each jar. Would like to eventually put in seal a meal bags because jar are impossible to find. Suggestions. All my other fruits and vegetables are dry and crunchy. Suggestions please, thank uou.
It will depend on the sugar content of the apples, how thick you've cut them, etc. Rings should be cut very thin to be crunchy. Chunks of apples will be hard and leathery, but not crunchy. Just get them good and dry, condition them, and store.
What about storing in a dark pace? Will
Light effect the nutritional value over time?
Ie: colored jars to reflect light.
Yes, cool dark place is best
I think I've been reading, watching and over thinking here. I totally trust your info so please advise if oxygen absorbers are necessary used with vacumn sealed containers. There has been passions where I vacumn sealed a jar, cannot get lid off to find a few days later it's not air tight.ty
You don't need to use a vacuum sealer with O2 absorbers - they serve the same function if you are vacuum sealing. A vacuum sealing machine can be used to seal a mylar bag with an O2 absorber because it is only sealing the bag, not removing the air. You NEVER want to use O2 + desiccant packs ever, but a vacuum seal + o2 is just not necessary as they are doing the same job.
Sometimes vacuum sealing fails...it's the nature of it. But ultimately , neither are necessary unless you are putting that food away for 9mos+. If you were already opening a jar (did it have a ring on it - it needs to), to find that the seal had failed, then you may not have needed to vacuum seal in the first place.
Wow! I didn't know this. Thanks.
Happy to help!
Wouldn’t a vacuum sealer be the best for long term storage ? Maybe with a Mylar bag. Great video thanks
Depends on how you want to store, but conditioning isn't about long-term storage, but about proper drying. You can choose to vacuum seal a jar, a bag, etc. - whatever works best for your cirumcstances.
Thanks for the awesome information. New subscriber right here. 😊
Awesome! Thank you!
How about a drop-in hygrometer like the ones they use in cigar humidors? You could put all the 'stuff' in a glass gallon mason, drop the hygrometer in, and then monitor the jar? When 'good', pull the hygrometer and store appropriately.
Because this isn't just about testing the humidity in a jar. But about equalizing humidity within all the pieces. A hygrometer cant tell you which pieces might not have been as dry as others, etc. You can certainly use it if you want, but conditioning is more than just an immediate measurement of humidity once.
I am using amber jars is that ok? Can I transfer from 1/2 gallon jars to a clean smaller jar? I listened to one of your videos about convection ovens. My gas stove h as a convection feature but not a dehydrate feature. I tried to set the temperature lower than 170 degrees but I can't. Should I just stick with the dehydrator? Propping oven door open is not an option altho I would love to use it. Large rambunctious pet. Thank you.
Amber is fine - that helps cut out a little more light that can break down foods. If you can't prop the door, stick with your dehydrator. It works better anyway!
Fantastic TY
You bet!
Great information, thank you. I am enjoying your videos! However, I have a question: One of the videos I watched about dehydrating, vacuum sealing and botulism on another channel stated that vacuum sealing some vegetables after dehydrating them actually puts them at greater risk for botulism. They said that botulism is anaerobic, and that some vegetables still contain too much moisture even after dehydrating, so vacuum sealing them puts them at greater risk. Part 2 of this question is, when you are conditioning the vegetables, aren't they "reabsorbing" some of the moisture in the air? (So wouldn't this put them at even greater risk of botulism when vacuum sealed?) Thank you!
They are wrong. They are overblowing a canning issue that isn't a problem in dehydrating. But I'm not going to argue about it. The thing is, vacuum sealing isn't even necessary to begin with.
The tiny bit of moisture that is in the jar isn't an issue. Especially if you've properly dried your food in the first place and followed the proper conditioning steps.
@@ThePurposefulPantry Thank you :) I will follow your instructions.
THANK YOU
I have never heard of this Thank you so much! Is this true for spices too?
If you're drying herbs, it's helpful if you're not experienced on stems vs leaves.
You rock!
TY!
Hi Darcy, I dehydrated apple slices. I’m conditioning them now. I want to coat them with cinnamon and trivia. Can I store them for long term with the cinnamon and trivia?
Sure - but you probably should put that on as you're drying them, not after.
@@ThePurposefulPantry Thank You! I will remember that for next time.😁
I have never heard of this and I have dehydrated a lot of vegs and fruit, even some ground beef. How ever I do vacuum seal my jars.
It a thing that isn't taught much, and glossed over in books. But it's recommended.
Very good tip. I haven't heard of that too. I just finished onions and zucchini . Will do that for sure.
Sounds great!
I got confused about conditioning my dehydrated foods. I went to one of your links that talked about it and it said to leave it open for the few days to check for moisture but then it said to use jars with lids. So I’m confused about that part of your article.
Yes, you put it into the jar with a lid to let it sit for a week - shaking it every day. You're looking for moisture build up on the glass or in pieces that begin to look wet signifying something wasn't fully dry and then you put it back into the machine to dry more. If you see evidence of mold, it went too far and has to be thrown out.
Hi Dacrey. I have a question about the amount of portions to use when using dehydrated foods in recipes. I'm new to dehydrating & have been dehydrating vegetables as per your instructions. Now I'm wondering about the amount of these vegetables to add to stews, soups etc. Would appreciate it if you could give an estimate. Thanks for sharing all your knowledge.
I've included a graphic in the blog post linked in the description with the info.
@@ThePurposefulPantry Thank you!
Thank you for this. Now can the dark gray plastic lids made for the jars be used?
I'm not sure which lids you're talking about, but anything airtight can be used.
Just want to make sure I get this correct.
after drying and conditioning for 7-10 days,
use a moisture absorber and then can I use a vacuum sealer to seal it for long-term storage?
You can - you don't need to, but you can.
Would u also do with jerkey or just fruits and veg?
Because jerky is a short-term storage item, there is no real point in doing this as long as it has dried and has gotten to a safe temperature. The National Center for Home Food Preservation's guidelines is that it should be stored in the fridge or freezer, not on the shelf, so mold is less likely of a problem.
Could you put a soda cracker in the jar of onion or garlic powder, like some people do with their sugar shaker?
I wouldn't, but you could if you wanted to try it.
I cant find a vacuum sealer attachment for jars anywhere...it seems people are buying up all the things necessary for putting food away. At this point in time, I'm just using dehydration as another method of putting food by, since my freezer is tiny. Just for medium-term usage, not for long-term, disaster-type storage. Do you think it will hold for this coming winter's food supply if I dont vacuum seal it?
Yes, vacuum sealing is a great way to extend, but it's not necessary. As long as you dry and properly condition, you're fine.
Try putting your dehydrated food in small Mylar bags with oxygen absorbers and seal. You can also vacuum seal in food saver bags as long as the food will not puncture the bag. Or you can put the dehydrated food in jars with lids and bands with an oxygen absorber. The oxygen absorber sometimes causes the lid to seal. I got my lid attachments on EBay last summer. I knew they would be hard to find later on. Best of luck!
Have you ever dry can it in the oven after you dried it to seal the jar
Never - it's not safe.
I dehydrated Sun gold cherry tomatoes…I am conditioning like you instructed….I am on day 4 and looks good…no visible moisture and on occasion one will stick but I can shake it off…the texture is leathery and they are pretty dried up, but still a little pliable not crisp. After a eeek if there is no visible moisture I can vacuum seal them and be ok? Or should I dry them more. Do they need to be like small pieces of hard plastic? Sure do taste good.
They should be little hard bits of plastic :) They aren't going to be crisp the way thin cuts of veg are for chips.
I want to use vacuum sealer. How do you feel about that. I'm just getting into this. How do bags change colors
It's not necessary, but can be helpful. The moisture absorber bags turn color when they've absorbed as much moisture as they will hold.
I dehydrated some peas and carrots. Thought they were okay but now some of the peas have black areas on them. It’s not fuzzy but I’m thinking this might be mold. Bummer.
Because I can't see them, I can't tell you - but it could be a burn if you are using a one temp machine or have them under the heating element too long - assuming this is coming off the dehydrator. If it's in storage, then I'm not sure what it would be.
@@ThePurposefulPantry Oh!! Okay. Thank you. I tossed them just in case.
What is the difference between an oxygen absorber and a moisture absorber and what are they used for?
Here's an explanation: czcams.com/video/3OBU1udS2Wo/video.html
Hi Darcy, where can I see more pictures of what good and bad jars might look like, ie moisture, mold, sticking together. I know it might seem obvious but when doing it as a beginner I question everything I am seeing. Sometimes I am not sure if it is powder I am seeing on the side of the jar or the start of moisture. How much sticking in the jar is ok? And what will dry strawberries or raspberries look like in a jar vs mixed vegetables? Thanks so much.
No sticking in the jar is okay. If it sticks to the side and doesn't easily shake off, it needs more time to dry. if there are clumps that stick together in the jar and don't easily break up, you need more time in the dehydrator. I can't give you photos of foods gone bad because I don't let food get there just for photos. I give images of the final product of all of my food on the blog or in a YT video - so you can see that.
Do you dry all of your fruit to a crisp?
If you intend it for storage, yes.
Do you have to do a water bath or just close the lid
There's no canning involved - properly dried foods are shelf stable and just need to be stored in an airtight container.
What are the best moisture absorbers?
They are all pretty much the same - as long as you're using food-grade, you're good. I prefer to use the ones that have color changing beads simply for a visual. I happen to use a company called Dry and Dry that I purchase on Amazon. amzn.to/3BFmFZL
Hi Darcy! So glad for this video! I dehydrated carrots end of January, and am DH more, but I was going to add to what I DH'd in Jan. and am wondering if carrots have 'whiteness' at the center of the dried carrot, or if I have mold. I'm not sure....
Generally that's losing the color from not blanching. But because I cannot see them, I can't tell you more.
@@ThePurposefulPantry Nope, I didn't blanch either time. I will say though, when I DH'd frozen mixed veggies, I didn't have this issue, and the veggies sound different in the jar when I shake it. Does that make sense?
Because the frozen veggies are already pre-blanched before freezing.
Ahah! Pre-Blanching is the secret/ culprit! I must've missed your video about that blanching. I'm ordering some plastic trays becuz it cuts down on time vs. Parchment to prevent the food from falling thru the tray holes as the food shrinks.
Can I do frozen broccoli
yes
I dehydrated apples, bananas, strawberries can I store them all in the same jar? I put them all in the same jar and it filled it to just half the jar. I don’t have any small jars but It’s on the list.
Sure - it would be the same as trail mix.
@@ThePurposefulPantry thanks!🙂
Question : can I dry in in the oven after dehydrating , let cool & then dry can them...Vegetables.
No - dry canning in the oven is an unsafe method of preserving. Just dry your veg thoroughly, condition them, and store them in an airtight container.
The Purposeful Pantry ...Thank you ...I’m going to order some oxygen absorbers to put in my jars since this is my first time dehydrating..I’m not going to dry can them ❤️🌼
Can you put some rice in to keep it dry?
Rice woks okay - but silica gel desiccant packs work better. You don't use them during conditioning. And you don't use them to finish drying something, but to help control any moisture introduced when you are in and out of the jar using it.
What is the shelf life??
Will pressure canning help or hurt?
Pressure canning dehydrated food? Two different processes - you don't use pressure canning with dehydrated food.
Ok,so I am in my basement pantry and discovered 2 pint jars of dehydrated mix veggies, lost their seal. So.... should I throw out? My food saver failed me on these two. I had sealed them in late October.
If the ring was on it, they are still airtight. The seal doesn't matter like it does in canning.
@@ThePurposefulPantry I had the bands off. So I was going thru just rechecking seals and those 2 just came right off. Since I didn't store with band, what do think? Reseal or dispose?
how long can you actually store dehydrated foods?
12-18 months is optimal storage, but you can get longer out of most dehydrated foods - but over time, their nutrition, texture and things can begin to degrade, as with all stored foods.
Why can't you can your dehydrated products and add to shelf life? Like canning jerky for instances.
Do you mean pressure can them? Because canning doesn't work that way. If you mean vacuum sealing - that's fine. There's no promise it extends, but it insures it's good while you have it.
@@ThePurposefulPantry I mean to put them into jars, then put the jars into a canner. Heatingjars will make a sterile environment inside the jar and cause the jar to seal. There would be no air or anything else inside the jar to contaminate the jerky or "whatever" Thanks so much for getting back to me.
Because it just doesn't work that way.
I made a big mistake strawberry (frozen) on top rack ,juice got on other racks do i have to trash the other racks ?? I just don't know what I was thinking.
Just clean them. You may need to soak them for awhile to get it loose, but you can just clean them.
@@ThePurposefulPantry Thank You .
How do you know when pineapple rings are dry enough? I’m worried to assume they’re complete... 😬😬
There is a link to the blog post about how to know when fruit and veg are dry. Make sure to bookmark it so that you can refer to it often. nchfp.uga.edu/how/dry/csu_dry_fruits.pdf
The Purposeful Pantry awesome! Thank you!
Do you guys sterilise your jars before conditioning? Recommendations please 😊
Nope - they are clean jars washed in soap and water. Nothing more needed.
@@ThePurposefulPantry thank you!
Can't I just toss in a moisture absorber packet?
No - don't use them to finish the dehydrating process - they are for storage and dealing with the introduction of moisture then. But of course, you can do whatever you'd like ;)
@@ThePurposefulPantry that's what I figured, thanks
I would be afraid of oxygen absorbers, setting up the environment for anaerobic bacterial growth
if you dry your food properly, it's not an issue at all. But they aren't necessary anyway ;)