CuiZen Dehydrator CFD-20 - Manual (Page 7)

7
Tools You Need To Get Started
• Paring knife (Stainless Steel Blade)
• Cutting board
• Storage containers
Additional tools that make the job easier and faster can include:
• A food processor or other similar appliance for faster and consistent slicing
• A steamer and basket, or kettle and collapsible steamer for blanching
• Blender for making fruit purée for fruit leather
• A small notebook to keep track of length of time and recipes that work for you as well
as those that don’t
Basic Food Preparation Tips
Fruit and vegetable peel often contain much of the food’s nutritional value. Therefore
it is better not to peel if the dried food is to be eaten as snack or used in cookies. On the
other hand, you will want to peel apples intended for a pie or tomatoes intended for soup.
Generally, if you normally peel the food for a specific recipe, then peel the food before it is to
be dehydrated.
One of the most important factors in successful dehydration is how the food is sliced. When
drying fruits it helps to get all the slices about the same thickness so they all dry to the same
moisture level, at the same time. Thick slices dry more slowly than thin slices. The thickness
you choose is up to you but slicing all the pieces to as close to the same size as is possible will
help ensure success and consistency.
The skin of many foods naturally protects the food but it can hamper the dehydration
process. During dehydration, moisture escapes best from a cut or broken surface not
through the tough skin. Therefore, the larger the cut area, the faster and better the food will
dehydrate.
For this reason thin stalked vegetables like green beans, asparagus, and rhubarb should be
cut in half the long way, or with an extreme diagonal cut to expose as much of the inner parts
of the food as possible.
Fruit should be sliced across the core and not down through the core. Try to always make thin
flat cuts.
Broccoli stems should be halved or quartered depending upon diameter. Small fruits like
strawberries can be cut in half. Even smaller berries should either be cut in half or blanched
slightly to break the skin.