One of the easiest ways to preserve food is to have it dehydrated.
You don’t need to invest in specialized equipment, preservatives, or special jars to do so.
In fact, you don’t even need to buy a dehydrator. Your oven will suffice. Perhaps even a full-sized toaster oven will suffice.
These appliances are fully capable of dehydrating your food perfectly in the same amount of time as a dehydrator.
So the question is, can I really use my convection oven as a dehydrator?
Yes, in fact, you can use the oven to dry your food. The fact is that both a dehydrator and conventional oven-dry most foods in precisely the same way. However, a conventional oven and dehydrator both have different benefits. Ovens are probably the most accessible form of drying your food because pretty much anyone has an oven inside their home.
Drying food inside your oven is pretty simple, but they are some limitations, as well.
In some cases, you want to set the oven to its lowest temperature irrespective of whether you are dealing with an electric or gas oven.
However, both are designed to work at high temperatures so
achieving a good temperature for drying would be anywhere between 50° to 70°C
and this process often takes a little bit of fiddling, to get it right.
Contents
Using Convection Oven As A Dehydrator
Lots of people use their convection ovens had dehydrators or a toaster oven to dry food instead of a food dehydrator.
The tools responsible for dehydrating food are simple, and you probably already have them lying around in your kitchen.
If you are just starting out drying food in the oven, there are a few things that you need.
- COOKING FUNCTIONS: This premium 1800 watt toaster oven and AirFryer, is equipped with an AirFry setting plus toast, convection bake, bake, convection broil, broil, warming feature, with a wide temperature range (Warm-450°F) .Toast Shade Selector-Timer | Nonstick Easy-Clean Interior | Whisper Quiet Operation
- CAPACITY: Large enough to toast 6-slices of bread, air fry 3-pounds of chicken wings, bake a 12-inch pizza or roast a 4-pound chicken
- SUPERIOR OPERATION: Equipped with an adjustable temperature dial, 60-minute timer/auto-shutoff and a toast shade selector to ensure your meals are cooked to perfection.
- INCLUDES: Oven light, oven rack, baking pan, AirFry basket and a nonstick easy-clean interior to make cleanup simple.
- LIMITED 3-YEAR WARRANTY: Refer to user manual for troubleshooting steps and questions surrounding warranty policies.
If you’re drying fruit, you need lemon juice, a mandolin knife, cookie sheets or any flat pan, wax paper, and a spatula.
Preparing The Food
Depending on the food item that you are using, the
preparation will vary. Here are some tips to get the best results:
- To prevent foods from going brown, soak them in an
equal mixture of lemon juice and water for five minutes before starting the
dehydrating process. - Fat on meat cause it to scorch and burn during oven
drying. So to remove the visible fats from meat and use lean cuts instead - In order to dry food evenly and naturally, the pieces
need to be the same size and thin enough to get the best results. Cut them fairly
thin, and around a quarter of an inch slice are the best for drying food in
your oven. - If you don’t have the best knife skills, use the food
mandolin instead. A large piece of meat can be placed directly on your oven
rack or use paper towels to blot access marinade, so it doesn’t drip down into
the heating element. - A sheet of wax paper should be used on your cookie
sheet and lay foods on top. This prevents a sticky situation when trying to
remove the foods from the sheet.
Setting The Temperature
The key to proper hydration is getting the oven temperature just right. If it’s too hot, your foods will scorch and burn.
Alternatively, if it’s too low, you won’t get the desired results as well. Your oven temperature should be under 200°F for adequate results.
However, not many ovens have temperature options under 200°. In that case, simply set your oven to warm, and you’ll be all set.
However, if you do have an oven that gives you temperature
options, 120° F to 140°F is usually optimal for a variety of foods.
When you start the dehydrating process, crank up the heat to
150°F until the surface moisture is visibly evaporated. When the surface of the food seems dry, lower the temperature to 120° F.
For Optimum Results
Drying food in your oven can be tricky, so here are a few
points to remember:
Ovens tend to have hotspots, which can cause some foods to dry faster than others. So throughout the dehydrating process, ensure that you rotate the pans so that they dehydrate uniformly.
This is especially important when you use a toaster oven because they usually don’t contain fans to distribute the heat evenly.
The food should be flipped over several times throughout the dehydrating process so that all sides are dried evenly as oven drying times vary depending on the food.
Ultimately, plan on taking 6 to 10 hours to get your desired
results. The drier the food, the less time it will take to dehydrate. Juicy
foods tend to take longer than any other food type.
Finally, to check whether your food has dried properly, do a
simple test. If the food is sticky or moist, then it isn’t finished drying.
Also, ensure that you space the pans 1.5 inches apart so
that air can circulate around the food as it continues to dry.
How To Use It?
- In a nutshell, when it comes to dehydrating food, a food dehydrator is not needed in many cases. A convection oven will do the job just as well as the food dehydrator since it has a fan and convection cycle to speed up the dehydration process.
- Dehydrating food in this method prevents the formation off yeast, bacteria, and molds by removing moisture from the food. It also slows the enzyme that eventually will break down the components of the food.
- Your convection oven should be heated up to between 140 to 160°F. Thereafter, place the food that you are going to dry on a cookie sheet so the food edges are not touching, and there’s plenty of an assassination around your food.
- The loaded cookie sheet then goes into the convection oven, and you close the oven door or try experimenting with popping it open with a wooden spoon to ensure further air circulation.
- Remove a piece of the dried food from the convection oven and allow it to cool before you test the level of dryness.
- Ultimately, in the final step, if the food still feels sticky, then you need to put it back in the oven for longer until the food comes out completely dry.
- With this large capacity oven, you can toast 6 pieces of bread at the same time, bake a 12” pizza, make a cake, or even roast a whole chicken
- Clear the clutter and free up your counter space with this 11-in-1 multi-function toaster oven and air fryer
- 11 smart programs let you cook with the touch of a button: Air fry, dehydrate, toast, roast, bake, broil, slow cook, proof or reheat. Choose convection and rotate for delicious chicken and roasts
- The easy-to-use dials and function buttons let you customize programs to make your food just the way you like it
- Start cooking delicious, nutritious food fast and easy – From air frying french fries, to dehydrated snacks, this toaster oven satisfies all your family’s needs
What Is The Best Temperature For It?
If you own an oven, you practically own a food dehydrator.
So all you need to do is combine the factors of air current, low humidity, and
heat to turn your oven into a dehydrator.
If you enjoy occasionally drying beef jerky, fruit rolls,
making banana chips or preserving excess produce like mushrooms and celery,
then learning how to dehydrate food in your oven will be an advantage for you.
However, you should be aware that ovens dry food slower than dehydrators and do not have a built-in fan for air movement. Some convection ovens, however, do have a built-in fan that promotes speculation.
However, one of the drawbacks is that it takes the oven twice the amount of time to dehydrate food as a proper dehydrator will.
Ultimately you will be using more energy at the same time.
However, if you do not own a food dehydrator and would like to try out drying your food in your oven, here are the steps you need to take:
First, you need to check the dial and ensure that it has a
setting for 140°F. This is crucial because if your oven does not go below
140°F, you will end up cooking your food instead of drying it.
The oven door should be left propped open at 2 to 6 inches
to promote air circulation inside the oven. Circulation can also be improved by
placing a fan outside the oven near the door.
However, keeping the oven door will ensure that the temperature will vary.
Placing an oven thermometer placed near the food will give an accurate reading. So adjusting the temperature dial will achieve the needed 140°F.
Using A Food Dehydrator
If you still prefer to use a food dehydrator, then you need to know that there are advantages and disadvantages to doing so.
Ultimately food dehydrators are designed to improve the quality of dried foods. So they also lock in the original flavor and color of the food where possible.
They usually have heating elements to dry the food out as well as fans and vents to encourage air circulation for uniform drying.
As the food dries it shrinks and becomes lighter and good; quality food dehydrators allow more of the flavor to be retained inside the dried food.
There are quite a few affordable food dehydrators on the market, and to get the most of your purchase, use it as often as you can.
It’s optimized for people with farms or even backyard gardens that produce a lot of produce during harvest time.
Pros
- Ultimately, food dehydrators have adjustable
temperature controls that allow you to refine the drying process, especially
for high-quality results. This will enable you to dry a variety of different
types of foods as well. - A food dehydrator
ensures that you can dry a variety of foods at the same time - It is designed to be more energy-efficient than an oven
- It offers faster drying time and consistent results
Cons
- It does take up extra counter space
- Some fans tend to be very noisy due to dehydration
- These machines tend to be costly
- DESIGNED IN CALIFORNIA: Cook delicious and healthy treats in less time with a 600W rated power, a max temperature of 165°F / 73°C, and hot air circulation from the rear fan
- FULLY EQUIPPED: Your food dehydrator comes with 6 stainless steel trays (12 x 13 in), 1 mesh screen, 1 fruit roll sheet, 1 user manual, and a 50-recipe cookbook. Search for C267-2MS or C267-FR to find more accessories
- LARGE CAPACITY: Dehydrate enough snacks for the whole family with up to 6.5 ft² of drying space
- PRECISE TEMP & TIME: Use the digital control panel to set the timer for up to 48 hours. Dry foods at the exact temperature you want between 95°–165°F, with accuracy down to the degree
- PREMIUM MATERIAL TRAYS: Made with 304 food-grade stainless steel, the trays are safer, more durable, and dishwasher-safe. Wash the trays on the top rack of your dishwasher and remove them before the drying cycle
Using A Convection Oven
Using an oven is also a convenient way to dehydrate food. It will take anywhere between 5 to 6 hours or more to dry food properly, and starchy or meaty foods will take longer.
A normal oven usually requires low heat, and soft foods almost always require only low heat in order to dr food properly.
Oven temperatures should be low, if possible under 140° F. If it’s higher than this, food is likely to cook and instead of drying out.
The oven door should be left slightly ajar with a gap of approximately 2 to 6 inches wide. This will allow air to circulate into the oven while your food is drying.
It will also allow for even heat distribution. Placing a fan near the slightly open oven door will also help with air circulation.
Any kind of oven will do. Convection ovens are the best; however, if you don’t have one, a normal oven will work as well.
Energy costs are about 9 to 12 times more expensive than canned food. So you should be aware of this as well.
The most economical way of drying your food in an oven is by
using a convection oven. Convection ovens have temperature-controlled settings
and go as low as 120°F, which is adequate for drying food.
A gas oven will also get the job done however you run the
risk of cooking food instead of drying it since keeping the temperatures low
will be a challenge.
Pros
- Your normal oven or convection oven serves multiple
purposes, so you won’t require an additional machine which will take up counter
space. - There’s no need to spend money on excess equipment.
Cons
- It will take longer for your food to dry in an oven
- It would require frequent checking and fidgeting to
adjust the drying process and make sure you get the desired results - It consumes more energy than a food dehydrator, and
it’s more difficult to maintain temperature and keep good air circulation
flowing - You also run the risk of burning your food if you don’t
constantly monitor the temperature
- COOKING FUNCTIONS: This premium 1800 watt toaster oven and AirFryer, is equipped with an AirFry setting plus toast, convection bake, bake, convection broil, broil, warming feature, with a wide temperature range (Warm-450°F) .Toast Shade Selector-Timer | Nonstick Easy-Clean Interior | Whisper Quiet Operation
- CAPACITY: Large enough to toast 6-slices of bread, air fry 3-pounds of chicken wings, bake a 12-inch pizza or roast a 4-pound chicken
- SUPERIOR OPERATION: Equipped with an adjustable temperature dial, 60-minute timer/auto-shutoff and a toast shade selector to ensure your meals are cooked to perfection.
- INCLUDES: Oven light, oven rack, baking pan, AirFry basket and a nonstick easy-clean interior to make cleanup simple.
- LIMITED 3-YEAR WARRANTY: Refer to user manual for troubleshooting steps and questions surrounding warranty policies.
Related Questions
Can I Use A Normal Oven To Dry Food?
Yes, you can. However, the process is slightly different from using a food dehydrator and you need to exercise caution due to oven’s having high temperatures.
Does Using An Oven To Dry Food Use More Energy?
Yes, your oven will consume more energy as it takes between 6 – 10 hours to dry starchy and meaty foods in your oven as opposed to a fraction of that time in a food dehydrator.
What Temperature Do You Need To Set Your Oven To Dry Food?
It needs to be below 140 degrees Fahrenheit.
