cross-posted from: https://crazypeople.online/post/6674394

Cross posting because someone was asking about preserving meals, and dehydrating is an option that people might not always think about! I’ll add more context in a comment.

It’s chilli: pinto beans, tvp, mixed veg, tomato sauce, jalapeno, and seasoning. I think the seasonings were salt, celery seeds, veg bullion, chilli powder, cayenne, and cinnamon. I made it in an electric pressure cooker.

I dehydrated it for about 24 hours before I broke it up and stored it in an air tight container.

  • Arcanepotato@crazypeople.onlineOPEnglish
    9·
    2 months ago

    Dehydrating isn’t going to get you meals that are as fast and easy as freezing things, but it can still be a handy option. I made this specifically for a backpacking trip, but I will also keep it in the pantry and get into it when I’m too tired to do anything but throw on the kettle.

    Big disclaimer that I don’t know a lot about food safety when it comes to dehydrated foods so I could be wrong about some of the details.

    Home dehydrated food doesn’t last nearly as long as the backpacking food you buy in stores, because that stuff is freeze dried and stored with oxygen scavengers in the bags. I store my food in glass jars with plastic lids and try to eat it within about 6 months.

    I’m vegan and I don’t use oil in my cooking which eliminates a lot of the pitfalls! The key is to make sure it’s dry, so pieces should be as small as possible.

    For this chilli I spread it out on parchment paper as thinly as possible. I do have a dehydrator, which makes it a lot easier, but you can do it in some ovens and toaster ovens too, as long as they have low temp settings.

    I’ll prepare this by covering it in boiling water and then covering the bowl. It will sit for ~20 mins and then should be good to go!

    • ObtuseDoorFrame@lemmy.zipEnglish
      3·
      2 months ago

      The combination of the name of this product and your username certainly is… something else.

      I think that stove is an incredible idea but I just can’t stand the thought of having it strapped to my body for 2 hours. I sweat enough already. I would end up with a rectangle of acne in the exact shape of that pouch on whatever skin it happened to be strapped to.