Drying Foods: How Freeze-Drying Magic Works.

Hocus pocus, technobabble! Remember that thing we used to do to food, where we sun-dried it? Or dehydrated it in that device that my grandma’s grandma had in her basement? Nah. Now we have magic, we have freeze-drying. What is magic? How does freeze-drying compare to dehydration? Time for a chat.

Introduction to Food Preservation

How often do we bite into a crunchy apple or a steak whose beefy juices spurt at the first bite without wondering about the sense we made of it by keeping it fresh and delicious for so long? Preserving perishable food is as ancient as human culture. The Romans knew about salting meats and vegetarians pickled veggies.

Traditional Dehydration

The history of dehydration

A few hundred years ago, everyone preserved food in the time-honoured way – by drying it in the sun or by the fire. The removal of the moisture made it difficult for bacteria to survive.

Benefits and limitations

Sun-drying and dehydration, both an inexpensive, natural option, are also effective. However, the food often loses its original flavour and some of its nutrients in the process. The colour could also look unappealing.

The Marvel of Freeze Drying

How does it work?

Imagine this: instead of evaporating the water off by heating, freeze-drying freezes the food and then lowers the surrounding pressure to let its frozen water go directly from the solid state to the gas state. Magic? Indeed, it’s science!

Benefits of freeze drying

Not only does it have most of its nutrients left under these conditions but there is no smell and it doesn’t get weevils, lasts a long time and rehydrates quickly as well, which means most of it comes out the same colour and shape – and that’s a winner!

Freeze Dried Food vs. Dehydrated Food

Nutritional value comparison

You want nutritional retention? Go with the freeze dried food. Food preserved by the freeze-drying process retains approximately 97 per cent of its nutrients. Even when dried, it may still contain bacterial spores.

Shelf life

Stored properly, food that has gone through the freeze dried process hits the 25-30 year mark. Regular dehydration? Call it 15-20 years max.

Taste and texture

Have you ever bitten into a freeze-dried strawberry? It’s like chewing a strawberry cumulus cloud. The berry itself is still delicious, but now it’s a crunchy, coveted texture. Dehydrated food tastes good, but it also winds up being harder.

Uses of Freeze Dried Foods

In daily life

And that’s not all: we’re using freeze dried food as an ingredient in other, everyday recipes: preparing it to use in smoothies, baked goods, casseroles and other dishes.

In emergency situations

You know what? When SHTF, you want it to be those kinds of freeze-dried foods that have a 30-year shelf life that retain 97 per cent of their nutrients.

How to Store Freeze Dried Foods

After these miracle foods go through the magic of freeze-drying, keep ’em in a cool, dark place for long-term storage; oxygen absorbers and a vacuum sealer will help.

Conclusion

We have come a long way from sun-dried tomatoes. Freeze-dried mangoes have it all, and I say that as someone who grew up eating sun-dried tomatoes. Sure, the time-honoured traditions of dehydration will always have a place, but when you want to preserve flavour, nutrition and shelf-life, freeze-drying is hard to beat. And when you do sit down to eat that freeze-dried food – someday soon – spare a thought for what it took to get it that way.

FAQs

What sort of foods can you buy freeze dried? Truthfully, almost any food. We can do fruits and veggies, meats and dairy.

Is freeze-dried food expensive? At the first look I think that this product is very expensive.But for shelf life and nutrient, it's worth saved.

Can I preserve food at home? With a home freeze dryer, yes you can! It’s a game-changer for food storage supplies. It’s an investment, however.

And how do I re-hydrate the freeze dried food? Add water! Most foods will be re-hydrated in just a few minutes and will taste and feel as fresh as they were before (I’ve posted a complete list of meal offerings before).

So is freeze dried food lighter? Yes, it’s light as can be because most of its moisture has been extracted. It’s great for backpacking and travelling.