Air fryers are the new craze, and everyone is so eager to get their hands on them! They have completely transformed cooking, making meals much healthier due to the lack of oil being used, and they are incredibly easy to use.
But besides cooking, did you know that air fryers can be used to dehydrate food? Find out more about how this is done by reading on.
Air fryers vs. dehydrators
First of all it is important to understand the difference between air fryers and dehydrators. Both share similarities in which they both help to cook delicious and healthy food, they both cook your food evenly and thoroughly, and they both use timers to measure how long your food is being cooked for.
But there are fundamental differences too.
Air fryers use hot air which is circulated around the fryer, cooking the food thoroughly, and this should only take a few minutes.
Whereas a dehydrator takes much longer to cook food and the appearance of the food is different due to the water removal. Food cooked in a dehydrator can be consumed even months after, but food made in an air fryer should be consumed immediately in case it gets spoiled.
How an air fryer dehydrates food
Air fryers are capable of dehydrating food as they function quite similarly to dehydrators.
But you must check your own individual air fryer to see what settings you need to use to dehydrate your own food.
Your air fryer needs to be on a low heat to be able to dehydrate food, and it must be at a temperature below 45℃.
Slice your food up and place it on the air fryer rack, and ensure that there is a good ventilation system within your air fryer so that the water is able to be released. Dehydrating your food in an air fryer will take several hours, and it will be absolutely delicious when ready!
Benefits of dehydrating food in an air fryer
There are countless benefits to dehydrating food in an air fryer.
By dehydrating food, you are able to preserve it for much longer, meaning that you don’t have to consume it immediately. This will prevent wastage, and save you a lot of money as you can dehydrate food and use it weeks later, instead of buying new ingredients.
Another benefit is that you can easily create seasonings or snacks by dehydrating food that can be readily stored in your kitchen for a while.
Top foods you can dehydrate in an air fryer
- Potpourri for Christmas.
- Your own seasonings like lemon pepper – you simply dehydrate lemon and add pepper to it.
- Fruit like cranberries, apricots, and peaches to make healthy snacks.
- Mushrooms for risotto or different types of Asian soups.
- Fruit roll ups can be made.
- Nuts and seeds to make them more digestible.
