Harvest Right freeze dryers make it easy to freeze dry full meals, even in one cycle. You can place different foods on separate trays (or on the same tray) and there won’t be any flavor transference (foods with strong flavors/scents such as onions, garlic, and jalapeños may have some flavor transfer and may be an exception to this rule). That means you can freeze dry all of your leftovers or grocery surplus at once. At home freeze dryers make food preservation easy; meatloaf, mashed potatoes, stir fry and chocolate cake can all process together, for example.

When you’re ready to rehydrate your meal, often just adding warm or hot water until it returns to the original consistency will be the trick. You can also finish warming it in the microwave or stovetop. For pastas such as spaghetti and lasagna, steaming them back to life helps them retain their original appearance — simply add hot water, cover with a lid or plastic wrap and the pasta will come back to life perfectly in a steam environment.  To rehydrate casseroles you can also add warm water to about 1/3 the height of the casserole dish then cover and bake at 350 degrees for 30 – 45 minutes. You’ll be amazed that it looks and tastes exactly the same as when it was fresh.

To freeze dry breads, cakes, and brownies, you can place sliced right on the tray. To rehydrate breads and cakes, fold a moist paper towel around each slice and let them slowly absorb the water (this may take a few hours). Or, you can also place several slices in a plastic bag with a damp paper towel and let the bag rest in the refrigerator slowly absorbing water until it’s rehydrated.

Hungry yet?