Recommendations - Food Dehydrator

Calcifer on 04/03/2019 - 21:48

Seeking your recommendations for the best food dehydrator for the money.

Mostly looking to dehydrate fruits etc for healthy snacks. Particularly keen on making dehydrated lemon slices you find in many modern cocktails. Might progress to jerkey later

Budget probably up to $100. Will adjust my expectations if thats not realistic. But I'd prefer something "smart" that I can largely set and forget with as little in the way of actions required mid-process (eg changing shelves, adjusting temp up and down, etc etc)

Seen options for $40-100 with decent reviews but I don't know enough about them to sort through the chaffe

Food & Grocery Food Dehydrator

Comments

  • afoveht on 04/03/2019 - 23:19

    I have a generic horizontal 10 tray (2 fan) off eBay. Had it for years now. Works fine. Has a timer and thermostat - that's your set and forget. I usually run it at night while sleeping - it does make some noise but it's tolerable. Not sure why an Excalibur or other expensive brand would be better?? I also got silicone coated sheets for the trays so I could dehydrate slurries / pastes into crackers or leathers. (I often do capsicum, onion, tomato, flaxseed and savoury yeast - that combo makes awesome tasting crackers).

    I had a cheap vertical one before that and it was a waste of time.

  • Tech5 on 05/03/2019 - 01:05

    I use the Sunbeam DT6000. Currently $220 at myer or $150 on ebay, but sometimes on sale down to $120ish. A lot of the cheaper ones have the air coming from the bottom, which means you need to swap the trays halfway or a few times. The air in the DT6000 comes from the back so it is set and forget.

    TBH hot air is hot air. Only difference is which direction it is coming from

  • dust on 05/03/2019 - 08:24

    Mostly looking to dehydrate fruits etc for healthy snacks.

    Are dehydrated fruits healthy? Wouldn't that just make it very high in sugar? (Does dehydrating fruit retain other nutrients/fiber?)

    • Calcifer on 05/03/2019 - 11:12

      Thanks!

      Really depends on what fruit you're dehydrating and how much of it you have. For me, dried fruit and veg would be easier to eat at my desk. I prefer the tart-er fruits like lemons and strawberries, which are generally lower in sugars

      But there's also home made vege chips and a plethora of other options

  • exc3113nce on 09/06/2020 - 11:24

    Sorry to bump an old thread, but I was looking recently for a dehydrator for jerky and the Sunbeam DT6000 another user above noted, and found a post on here from another OzBargainer about the BioChef Arizona Sol model. Just ordered one so will let you guys know. Has plenty of high reviews on Amazon AU, Amazon US, Product Review etc… It's also mentioned in a number of random blogs for top food dehydrators and food dehydrator reviews (majority have Excalibur and a few others up the top but they're $400+ machines) - just nice to at least see this one mentioned on the same page as a contender.

    I'm coming from the old Sunbeam Food Dehydrator (white circle one) which was very bad.

    • Uncle Roger on 17/10/2020 - 23:50

      Hey mate! So how do you find the BioChef Arizona SOL?

      Thinking of buying also…

      Thanks

      • exc3113nce on 18/10/2020 - 08:19

        Yeah its really good! I've used it a few teams, very even drying. Has a timer function which is awesome, and it beeps loudly when its done. Unfortunately I had to pause making jerky for a bit (wisdom tooth pain and now getting them out haha).

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