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| 15 lbs. of bananas |
I dehydrated 15 pounds of bananas for about 48 hours because I want them so dry they snap when bent. For my efforts, I now have three quarts and one pint of dehydrated bananas. There was about a cup of dehydrated bananas that I used as a snack on Saturday. No, I did not eat the whole cup of banana chips. The rest are in the car for snacking later.
Since I paid $0.20 per pound for the bananas, I am supremely happy with the results.
The quart jars were on sale for 20% off at the store going out of business. The blue pint is a new one.
Since I will want to reused the lids, I quit writing on them. For years, I wrote on the lid and had to try to re-label for the next storage event. I quit using tape that required working up a sweat to remove it. This is blue painter's tape and a sharpie, used to make a not-so-pretty but effective label. The writing will be easy to see and the label comes right off. Okay, since these are going to be on a shelf over my head, I labeled the front in the same manner, just a piece of painter's tape. That way, I can see which are bananas from the first of the year. But, I am too tired to go take a picture. Use your imagination just this once.
Of course, these jars of food will be stored in the dark so that the nutritional value will not be destroyed. Some people like to store canned/dehydrated food as a part of their décor. Some people store canned/dehydrated food in rooms with windows. Both storage ideas drain the nutritional value from the food. Light should be managed! Keep your home-canned food in the dark.
It will be good to have bananas to rehydrate for banana bread. Yes, these are for snacking, too.
Your turn
Are you a banana lover like I am?
Yum--I dry all kinds of things, and still have a gazillion bananas left from last year. Same deal as you--I got a wallopin' sale on them and went a little crazy. Today I picked up peaches and apples for drying. woohoo !
ReplyDeleteI have two quarts of bananas from last year. Somehow, I just quit eating them. I will fix that by bringing them in sight instead of the top shelf!
DeleteYum, dried peaches and apples! I don't have the money to do that. Maybe in a little while?
I'm very new to dehydrating. I know that a lot of people dehydrate onions but I don't know why. Does drying intensify the flavor? I have never used dry onions. How are they used? Do you re-hydrate them and use them like fresh or are they only used in soups and stews? What shape are they cut into? Diced? sliced?
ReplyDeleteAlso how is dried cabbage used? You got a sweet deal on bananas! What is their regular price in your area? In my area the best produce prices are at the little independent ethnic markets. Chain stores are priced much much higher. We really don't have farm stands in the area.
You are always so good to answer all my questions. THANK YOU!
I dehydrate onions when they are plentiful and cheap so I don't have to spend more money later. Besides, Vidalias are seasonal. I don't know if the flavor is intensified or not. But, they are mushy when rehydrated, so not good for tuna salad. Oh, maybe they would add flavor, but they won't be crunch.
DeleteYou can dice them. I do. Or, you can dehydrate in sort of half circles. Size is your choice.
Bananas are usually $0.44 to $0.69/lb. So, $0.20/lb. was intoxicating to me. This was in the store that is closing forever.
I would use the dehydrated cabbage in soup. Maybe I would find other uses.
And, we don't have ethnic markets. Oh, there are a few Mexican ones. But, sometimes the prices are high to me.
I am always glad to answer questions.
Dehydrated onions bought commercially are a convenience item. Plus, they don't spoil and can be stored on a shelf. I am dehydrating for convenience, economy, and stability. I hate to find an onion spoiled or have to go buy one at a high price.
DeleteLinda, Thank you for the response. I will mail you some of this weeks food ads. I think you will enjoy having a peek at food prices out this way. By shopping in the ethnic markets I can find produce at reasonable prices. Produce can be had cheaply but housing and utilities are off the chart expensive.
DeleteVONS (Safeway) and Albertsons are the big chain stores. We have a lot of independent markets in our town. They are generally a mix of Mexican and Middle Eastern.( We have a very large Chaldean population in our town).
Janet,
DeleteFood ads from your area will be welcome. We have two stores that advertise themselves as "Mexican." I will have to look at those again. From what I remember, the peppers of all sorts are sold. Bananas are the same price as in the bigger stores.
This town and county has a homogenous population with few Hispanics or other ethnicities. We are the second whitest county in AL. Walmart has a section that is Ethnic food...about 8 feet long. It has racks with the brands people used in Mexico--cookies, candies. None of it is cheap.
We had a "sundown" sign at the city limits once upon a time, before my time here.
OH Linda! I had to look that terminology up. I had never heard the term sundown sign. Growing up in Southern California I have never been exposed to that sort of thing..... but way back in the 1960's during my teenage marriage we moved to Louisiana, twice. That was an eyeopener. I was taken aside several times and spoken to because I didn't understand "the rules". About that same time we went to visit my mother-in-law's family in South Carolina. I was horrified when they pulled a large flat box out from under the spare room bed to show off their KKK outfit! This person had recently become the Grand Cyclops of that area and was really proud of his position.
DeleteJanet,
DeleteNot knowing the rules could get a white person lynched. Yes, whites were lynched all the time. You certainly had a cultural shock early. A KKK robe, wow!
Butterfingers, Twizzlers, and bananas : everything got taken away with diabetes.
ReplyDeleteOh, no!
Deletelotta joy,
I could not stand to give up bananas! My mother was limited to 1/2 banana each day. More exercise won't help?
Oh gosh....I just loathe bananas. My husband, though, has a neurotic obsession with them. He loves them. I just can't stand them...not sure why...I used to like them.
ReplyDeleteDehydrated onions are great....I use them on roasted potatoes. I put about 3 Tbsp olive oil in a 9x13 Pyrex, put in about a dozen quartered Yukon Golds from our garden, sprinkle with dehydrated onions, garlic powder and smoked paprika. The kids love them. Commercial onion flakes just don't seem as flavorful, do they? Enjoy!
I suppose I am obsessed with bananas, too. When the "s" word is said, my first worry is "do I have enough bananas?"
DeleteYukon Golds with dehydrated onions, oh my. I will have to try that. Home dehydrating does result in better tasting onions.
Tell your husband that I do understand the banana obsession.