Deryn

I took the free shipping (supposedly $250 value to here) since I already have a mound of mylar bags in many sizes, and several ways to seal. I got extra stainless trays but forgot that I should have ordered some O2 absorbers (mine are old and I don't trust them right now) - will get those from Honeyville probably. Wonder too if I should have ordered oil as well - I live in the boonies - is the oil a common item I can get at most automotive places? I do have some oil for my chamber vac on hand - perhaps that will get me through the first while if it is the same type (but I am not home in NS to check right now). Will be watching to see how this 'misting' issue is best addressed. I may post a big red sign on my FD'er to remind me to make sure valves are open and closed as directed as I hope to avoid this issue. Thank you for posting about this though - because I didn't know about it and the thought of cleaning up sprayed oil from ceilings, etc. is not my idea of fun. Would it be easy, if we knew right specs, to attach such a mist trap (for someone not skilled at all in the plumbing area)?

Just ordered my FD'er. Will be several weeks before I get to use it but I am excited. Current (for October) unadvertised special is instead of bags, impulse sealer and absorbers, one can choose free shipping (in the US only though I think - forgot to ask since I am currently in the US), just fyi.

Not to take this thread off into the weeds, and certainly not to disagree with you about canning in general, but retort canning does eliminate 'some' of your objections - no rings, glass jars, extra sterilization of bits and pieces, and weight/storage issues. It has its place too, but, as you say, and I concur, FD'ing is the new and better way to go for most things.

I grew tomatillos (well, they grew me) in NC a few years ago. When they just went wild near the end of the summer, they were in all stages of growth/perfection/maturity. One day, my husband pulled up all the plants at once (no idea why - but they were 'messy') and I had to 'rescue' the fruits. I think I had some of each of what you described in your query. I just removed what husks there were, soaked them all in the sink for a few minutes (mostly to be sure I got the bugs off) and popped them in a pot to cook them down for an impromptu pork chile verde. Tasted great. No one died. Probably wasn't ideal. Had they all been at a very immature stage, I might not have tried that, but, the mix worked quite well in a pinch. I am no expert either. That was my first time growing tomatillos - and the last (so far). Just from my personal experience, I think I would use them all - cooked, mixed up, in a stew or cooked down sauce. Others opinions may vary.

I am not sure that freeze dried bread is meant to be reconstituted but thank you for your efforts in trying to do so. Did you try eating a bit of it before you wet it, etc.? If so, what was the texture, taste, etc.? Could you imagine a use for it in its freeze-dried, non-reconstituted form?

Hot toddies. So comforting. Butter, brown sugar, dark rum, and sometimes a squeeze of lemon - the latter especially if one has a mild sore throat.

Re-reading my long post, I am embarrassed because I see I never got to the crux of the matter. Circular thinking and stream of consciousness writing. Bad habit. So, to simplify - how are they the same? They are all methods of preservation. How are they different? In a million ways, apart from just method. Taste. Texture. Longevity. Form. Uses for end product. Reversibility to original 'fresh' state. Sometimes, as Kerry pointed out with her kimchi example, Huiray's mentioned processes can be used as simply a step to the final product (which includes FD'ing as the final stage). Could this be reversed (in other words, can one take plain freeze-dried ingredients and later reconstitute and salt or smoke, or even dehydrate them?) - I expect one could in many instances, though why one would dehydrate a reconstituted freeze-dried product I don't know right now ... but stay tuned. I bet some among us will play with stuff enough that we may find this answer too.

dbinokc - Thanks. I am sure the 'pre-sliced apples' are dipped in something or have something added to them as well. The food saver powder is also a good idea - will keep that in mind. So I guess the answer is yes.

Huiray .. I am not yet using a home FD, however, I have purchased both 'dehydrated' and 'freeze-dried' ingredients for years (and cooked with them), and have dehydrated my own as well. I would say that 'all of the above' may be my answer to what seem to be the questions you pose throughout your post, depending on the type of food and the 'interests' of those who will use those foods. For me, freeze drying is a different method of food preservation with more long term benefits than canning or dehydrating. To your final query - is FD'ing 'comparable' to salting/pickling/preserving' - again I would say yes .. but not the same. I do now, and intend to continue to, keep some FD'd items for very long periods of time - so it IS a very viable and successful method of preservation and for many FD'd items, not just a mere shadow of the fresh version. Those who have been posting their results on this thread have mentioned about many FD'd foods, when reconstituted they are very, very close to fresh.. I think dehydrating (regular drying of an ingredient) is a different beast from freeze-drying the same food, but not always - in terms of taste and reconstitutability (is that a word?). Dehydrating requires heat. Freeze drying doesn't (except to remove the water at very low temperatures - so not heat that could 'cook' something). In terms of nutritional, texture and longevity aspects, I think they are different generally. A freshly dehydrated food when reconstituted may have a similar fresh taste though its nutritional benefits may depend on how long and at how high a heat it was dehydrated. It will usually be much denser and have lost its recognizable shape in its dehydrated form (but natural form may resume if reconstituted), but not so if it is freeze-dried. It will generally not keep as well or long as a freeze-dried product. Canning/pickling, smoking, and salting I think usually alter a food in its natural state more than FD'ing (or even dehydrating). And why not freeze-dry something that is already smoked, has been canned, salted or pickled? Therefore if you look at it this way they are completely different. FD'd foods are both separate ingredients and just regular ingredients that you may or may not reconstitute. Some FD'd items one will usually, if not always, reconstitute before eating or combining with other ingredients. Some FD items are very edible obviously in their FD state - and indeed, some of those won't ever reconstitute well anyway. Therefore some FD'd foods will be a 'poor substitute' for their fresh counterpart - and one would treat those as 'separate ingredients' in my opinion. FD'ing preserves nutrients much better than dehydration does and the foods that are FD'd keep MUCH longer (up to 25 years if packed correctly). And I believe someone posted about freeze-drying pickles. I don't know how those compare to the types of pickles you mention. There are many more experiments to come I imagine from many of us - and we will probably get to trying enough Asian ingredients that we can give you a better answer down the line. If it is not fatty or very over-sweetened .. it is my understanding that we can hope to freeze dry it successfully. I hope to try working with a lot of seafood/shellfish (including salted and smoked ones) and will let you know if my opinion changes. Not sure if that answers your question(s) - and this is merely one opinion. When I started writing this post I thought I understood how to attack the subject, but now I am not sure I was successful. edited because I apparently can't spell the word that I am not even sure IS a word.

Yes, very interesting article. Thanks for posting it as I doubt I would ever have come across it on my own. Not sure it made me want to try products/recipes that use fresh blood mind you. I have a new-fangled set of taste buds (as opposed to those of my father's generation and origin - he loved blood pudding). Too bad about the metallic thing. Fascinating to learn that you can foam it like eggs, indeed replacing all egg whites in a meringue.

Question for you FD'er pros - When you FD anything that can oxidize quickly (avocadoes, apple slices, etc.) do you dip in acidulated water first? The avocado pics you have posted are so pristinely green and beautiful, but, I would think that they should have oxidized somewhat before they actually got too cold for that process to happen unless you dipped them after peeling/slicing?

Preserved lemons!

Asparagus. Rhubarb. Berries of all kinds have their own 'seasons' for me (strawberries usually in June, raspberries in July, blueberries in August and early September, cranberries from late October to Christmas) and I rarely buy them out of season - though if I picked/grew my own I may freeze them and use them occasionally out of season. Springerle is also Christmas season only for me because that is when my mother used to make them. Corn candy is Halloween only - not that I eat it much any more at all. Maple candy/sugar - only fresh in the spring (though it is available all year long).

Oh dear .. I am sooo bad at 'recipes' because I am an 'intuitive' cook (which basically means I throw stuff in, taste a lot and pray for an edible outcome of some kind). I say Rick Bayless inspired those pecans because I think the first time I made them, many years ago, I did use his recipe but haven't ever since. I go by taste but it seems to me that I looked up his recipe again a few years ago and was surprised that mine didn't seem quite the same any more so I must have morphed it somewhere along the line. My apologies to the master. I have however made these for years and had many requests for more. I warn people if I have been what I think might have been a bit heavy on the hotter elements but no one has ever complained about that. However, that said, this is my method (rather than a precise recipe): I usually make them in large quantities (often 5 lbs of pecans at a time) but it is easier to make smaller batches. I toast the pecans in the oven till they are dry and smell delightfully like pecans. Then, in a large pot, I add a fair amount of dark brown sugar (could be 2 cups or more - I would start with a 1/2 cup for a pound of nuts) and butter (I usually start with a quarter pound stick - again reduce butter to match sugar amount - and I generally use regular salted butter) and cook (while stirring) on medium to low heat until the nuts are well 'glazed'. I once messed this stage up by being impatient and though the nuts tasted great, their coating was granular rather than silky smooth once they cooled. After glazing, I add a mixture of 'spices' including cinnamon, freshly ground cumin, curry powder, chipotle powder, and cayenne, stir well and cook again for a few minutes. The amounts for those are according to my own preferences that day and/or the amount of nuts in the pot, but, the proportions are probably from largest amount to smallest amount in the order listed. This is the point at which tasting is most critical. Even with tasting you will still be 'guessing' at how piquante the end product will be but if you can't taste any heat - add more chipotle and cayenne or you won't have any heat when you are done I have found. Next, add apple cider vinegar. Depending on how many nuts I have the amount could be anywhere from 1/4 cup to 1 cup - I taste as I go - and for me this stuff makes the nuts so I like to keep the taste somewhat prominent. Cook again till the vinegar has nearly gone. The final step is to spread them out on a cookie sheet and put them in the oven on low heat for a few minutes. Remove from the oven when 'dry' (sticky dry) and sprinkle with coarse salt (usually sea salt) and let them cool. The stickiness fades as they cool if you got them dry enough - but they taste good sticky too. The flavour 'develops' as and after they cool. It is a bit tricky to get the spice proportions right but the end result is a wonderfully sweet aromatic caramel-ly nut with a lovely apple cider vinegar tartness and a back end heat. They are so addictive! Not 'diet' material mind you but I make them only at the holidays. I know I said this was a stovetop recipe, It indeed can be done entirely on the top of the stove, if you toast in a skillet and then at the end, you just reduce the heat and cook till the nuts are dry-ish - they will be sticky but the moisture should be mostly gone. Have done it that way myself. The oven is just easier if you are making a large amount. By the way, hard as it was NOT to eat them all when fresh, I kept some once and did a taste test to see what the storage time might be. They didn't go rancid, even with the butter in the mix, and were very edible 4 months after they were first made. And that was not stored in the fridge or freezer either - just in a vacuumed packed bag which got opened and closed regularly.

Making tea sandwiches. With my mother. Olive and cream cheese tea sandwiches. mmmm Thanks for the memories.

Kerry is away, Mike so she can't contribute here right now (though she is using some of the products from her recent experiments in freeze-drying). I would love to contribute but don't have my FD yet - soon, I promise. Please keep posting your pictures and comments - I LOVE this thread and am drinking it all in. Thanks. I appreciate very much you telling us what is good to eat in its freeze-dried form too, without reconstituting at all. I have all sorts of reasons for wanting a FD but 'food storage' for long periods is one of those, along with convenience for everyday eating, and just getting to play with new ideas in food, if you will.

mgartz - sadly I am probably living proof that, but, I am willing to continue 'experimenting'. This whole idea has me fascinated. Keep talking. I am listening.

What fun, Darienne! Very creative. I can imagine you and your kitchen companion devising that device - and it makes me smile. For several years, I made Christmas gift parcels for family far away, all from my kitchen, full of at least 10 different things in each box - which ran the gamut from 'interesting' jams/jellies using herbs from my garden, pretzels dipped and swirled, marshmallows in pretty colours and different flavours, nougat, cake pops, fruit pates, my 'family-famous' Rick Bayless-inspired sweet chipotle pecans, my 'you can drink this, it's so boozy' Christmas cake, candied orange/lemon/grapefruit rinds, lavender and rosemary shortbreads, on and on. My husband thought I was nuts (though he did like the 'taster' position he was given). And I have to say it was a lot of work - much harder I think than just running out to the local department store - and possibly more expensive (because of course there is always some new 'gadget' I needed to make life easier or more interesting). But, it was THE most fun I had had in years. I would love to have that kind of fun again - but I really have no one to send to any more. Perhaps we Canucks should get together and do a 'Christmas treat' box exchange sometime! (note I only suggest Canadians because of the border/customs issue/mailing time - but, if that doesn't bother anyone, the more the merrier) ... and it doesn't have to be 'Christmas' either - no pressure but might be fun if others are interested. I started soaking the fruit for the fruitcake a month and a half ago. (ick - 'fun' seems to be my word of the day and my brain, on only a single cup of coffee, can't remember where the Thesaurus is.)

So .. did you love that pear and almond cake? It looks absolutely delicious - and I'm with Shelby, I would have snatched the piece that didn't quite make it to the plate. The grass still looks summery green but that sky has a hint of late fall, bordering on winter, in it. Quite a contrast. I know the seasons of the year not so much by the temperature but by the way light differs. Nice picture.

Dipped/drizzled (various chocolates) pretzels. Candied orange peels dipped partially in chocolate. Home made marshmallows. Sweet/spicy nuts. Salt water taffy.

Bakery items are made fresh daily, as are any items where freshness is key to enjoyment. The flavours of some deli items and salads however benefit from longer storage after cooking.

Oh .. I am guessing from Chocolot's enquiry, that today is Kerry's birthday! HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Kerry! I hope it is a wonderful day for you. And thanks for the freeze-dried 'cheesecake' chocolate experiment.

Anna, believe me ... I 'get it', about 'gadgets' - large and small, inexpensive and otherwise. My comments were selfishly about me and a new 'gadget' for me, not you! You and Jaymes got me looking at items I had not seen before - and as a result, I found one that might intrigue me. Thank you both. I do hope Jaymes will give you more details as you requested. Sorry .. wasn't trying to interfere with that.

I use my TMX Varoma a lot for steaming/one pot cooking. If I am too lazy to even bring that out, I use the microwave .. with a bowl, food covered by wet paper towel or parchment paper - so I am not sure that particular steam case would be ideal for me but this Lekue pasta cooker looks interesting - should save time and having to bring out a colander for microwaved pasta: http://www.amazon.com/Lekue-0200702N07M017-Pasta-Cooker-Orange/dp/B00BB64R42/ref=pd_rhf_dp_s_cp_5_BP7K?ie=UTF8&refRID=14KYXKQ23B7HG48FRFYF.

I too can taste red food colouring .. and dislike Red Velvet cake as a result.