Britesea - Living the good life in rural Oregon

I've found the best way to store dehydrated stuff is in mason jars that I've sealed with the Vacuum Sealer, and then stored in a dark cool-ish area. Some people say this isn't necessary, but I do it to make sure no bugs get in also (I lost a whole batch of carrots once because I had stored them in ziploc bags which do NOT protect long term).

As far as using the dried goodies- it depends on how you are using them. Take the onions you mentioned: if you are adding them to a soup or stew, just throw them in; there's enough liquid to rehydrate them just fine. On the other hand, if you are adding them to some scrambled eggs I would recommend soaking them in some warm water for a bit first (save the water for soup!).

I learned the hard way that the biggest mistake is using too much dehydrated veggies. We had some pretty weird dishes until I got wise and started doing some before-and-after measuring. The denser veggies end up almost the same volume both ways, but celery for instance... if 1 stalk yields about 1/2 cup of fresh dice, the same stalk dried will give you about a tablespoon.

Dehydrated tomatoes can be ground up into a powder and makes the most delicious tomato soup you ever had by just adding some boiling water to it.

You can always toss dehydrated stuff in the freezer from what I understand. Of course, I've never done that cuz I've never had it last that long. Most of what I dehydrate is fruit, and it gets eaten pretty quickly.

Thanks for the tips! I have a couple books on my Christmas list and a dehydrator too

How long did you want to store the dehydrated leaves for? do you want to access them and use them occasionally or storing for WTSHTF? For occasional access, you can put them in a canning jar with the lid screwed down tight and store in a cool, dry place. Use as needed. If you want to store some for a longer time, you can add a desiccant pack to them and put them in an airtight container - like dry sealing a canning jar or a vacuum sealed bag. You can buy desiccant packs or buy food grade silica gel from a craft store and make your own with coffee filters.

To use a dehydrated food, you just need to rehydrate it. If you are using it in a soup or stew, just throw it in the pot and it will soak up the moisture that it needs - note that you may need to add extra water. For other things, I will mist with water and keep spritzing them until they are completely rehydrated and soft. For things like mushrooms, I usually add extra water and after rehydrating I have a really dark mushroom nectar to add to the gravy for extra flavor.

Well, the Clan grows...

Meet Millie:

She is a Great Pyrennees/Akbash mix and is a real darling. We got her yesterday from a local farmer. She looks more like her mama (the turkish Akbash) rather than Dad, which is fine by me; I didn't want to have to groom all that long white fur!
Today, we are going to my girlfriend's house for Thanksgiving. She adopted Millie's sister (named Lily), and we are bringing our 2 dogs over so Millie isn't alone for Thanksgiving. It should be great fun- the two wombmates will probably enjoy seeing each other again, and the 2 older dogs have been buddies for 9 years at least.

what a little doll, congratulations on adding her to your family.

I can't say I blame you. I wouldn't want to groom all the fur either! She sure is cute.

The fur is what stops me from wanting a great pyr!
she's adorable! Congrats!

Well she may be adorable, but that's the only reason she's still alive today.. grrrr. She chewed up the cable to my computer and I've been offline for the last couple of days. I got more cable yesterday and DS got everything reconnected today-- the cable is now going up to the ceiling and around the room to the connection, instead of along the floor.

We have another new resident... I found a posting on the bulletin board at the Post Office about a Swedish Blue duck that needed a home. A hawk had gotten her mate and the owner just wanted to give her to someone that had other ducks.
I set her up in a dog kennel with some fencing across one corner of the duck yard late Saturday night. When I opened the coop up in the morning, all of our ducks came over to see what the new enclosure was all about. The girls all exchanged comments, then they wandered off to get some breakfast; but the drakes were all lined up along the fence checking her out and strutting their stuff, and she (the hussy!) was admiring them and telling them how lonely she has been...

My DD had a pet rabbit that liked to chew up wire, so I hear ya on that one!