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Investing in a dehydrator will help make your life easier in the kitchen. Dehydrating is a great way to transform veggies into chips, and also to preserve veggies for easy use in cooking, like when you want to make a quick soup from scratch after a long workday, without having to spend time chopping and peeling your veggies first. For best results, choose veggies with low water content and try dehydrating these 10 veggies below:
1. Potatoes
Potato chips, anyone? Making your own chips means you control the ingredients, bypassing unhealthy oils that can be found in most packaged versions. Dehydrated potatoes are great for making mashed potatoes. Add dehydrated potato flakes to boiling water or broth for instant mashed potatoes, using a one-to-one ratio. Also, try dehydrated potatoes for The Perfect Vegan Fried Egg.
2. Beets
If you’ve never had beet chips, try dehydrating beets and tasting these delicious beauties right away. Beet chips are a healthy alternative to potato chips, and who doesn’t want to snack on crunchy, salty chips with less guilt? Try these beet chips; you can use an oven and bypass the dehydrator if you don’t have one.
3. Carrots
Carrots are low in moisture and therefore are a good choice to dehydrate. Dried carrots work well in soups, stir-fries, and overtop salads. To top salads, try dehydrated carrot pieces in place of croutons for a healthy trick.
4. Butternut Squash
Butternut squash may not be as simple to dehydrate as some other veggies, but once you peel it and put it in the dehydrator, you can easily use the pieces in cooking for the future, significantly cutting your prep time. To make the dehydrating process easier, it is recommended that you steam the butternut squash lightly first before dehydrating. Use these to make soups, purées, and sauces. Try them in this Rigatoni with Roasted Garlic Butternut Squash Sauce.
5. Peas
Peas are also low in moisture, making them excellent candidates for the dehydrator. Dries peas are great to toss in soups, stews, and macaroni and cheese. Use dehydrated or frozen peas for this Vegan Gnocchi alla Genovese.
6. Onions
Once you dehydrate onions, you can grind them up to make your own onion powder. Try sprinkling it over this Raw Vegan Zucchini Marinara Pasta.
7. Green Beans
Dehydrated green beans make for a tasty snack. If you’re trying to lose weight or just cut down on the amount of fat you consume, trade in those potato chops for dehydrated green beans. They’ll give you a satisfying crunch.
8. Garlic
For the easiest process, use Elephant Garlic, often called Mammoth Garlic, since it is several times larger than other garlic bulbs. After you dehydrate the garlic, you can grind it up for use in powder form and even add salt to make a garlic salt mixture. Dehydrated garlic is also a handy way to add quick flavor to pasta dishes.
9. Peppers
Dehydrating peppers takes a few easy steps. When dry, these are great for use in stir-fries and omelets. Try this Chickpea Flour Omelette.
10. Lotus Root
This veggie is also a fantastic alternative to potato chips when dehydrated. When finished, the chips will have holes throughout, giving it a cool appearance that’s perfect for sitting on a buffet table. Try this recipe for Lotus Chips.
Do you have any ideas on how to use dehydrated vegetables? Let us know in the comments!
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