when you dry hot peppers, put the dehydrator on the porch

We have had one day of food dehydrating in Louis Manor.  The kids call the strawberries and bananas, "Astronaut Fruit."  They taste delicious!  We are getting some experience with produce and intend to move into jerky in the near future.  It is surprising how much water is in all the produce.  It comes out a lot smaller than how it went in.

We have successfully dried bananas, strawberries, tomatoes, and hot peppers.  I intend to make spices out of the hot peppers and use the tomatoes for soups and salads.

The only mistake we've made so far, since it is not an exact science, is that we have dried hot peppers in our kitchen and it gives the whole house a "pepper spray" type feeling.  The kids ran around all morning plugging their noses until we were able to get out of the house.  Therefore, we have learned FOOD DEHYDRATING LESSON NUMBER 1:  When you dry hot peppers, put the dehydrator on the porch.  That way you will keep the fumes outside!

I'm going to have to dehydrate the fruit more rapidly to keep up with the demand the kids have for it.  They LOVE IT as a snack.  I am a happy momma to be able to give them a preservative free snack option when we are not at home.

So far, I am impressed with the quality of this dehydrator.  I will know more once I use it for jerky.  This is definitely a way to reduce waste in our home and work toward a healthy alternative for when we eat on the go.  I hope to post pictures soon of what we are making and give some practical suggestions for how to use this dehydrator.