Tuesday, September 24, 2013

Presto Dehydro Dehydrator Review

 Having used my Presto Dehydro Dehydrator twice now, I have decided to officially review it.


So far, I have made dehydrated beef lung and chicken heart dog treats with it, and both have proven to be a huge hit.

Dehydrators and other methods of food preservation seem to be making a comeback.  Perhaps it is because of zombie apocalypse/doomsday preppers, people wanting to be less reliant on others for their food (i.e. homesteaders), or people looking to return to a simpler way of life.  Maybe more people (like myself) are interested in making homemade dog treats, so that they can feel confident they are giving their dogs goodies that are wholesome and pure.  Who knows?

I purchased this on a whim a couple of weeks ago at a big box store for about $45.  This model is fairly basic, and simple to use.  It comes with the base, four trays, and lid.  Additional trays and accessories such as fruit roll sheets can also be purchased.

The base, trays, and lid are all made of plastic.  The trays and lid are dishwasher safe, which is important to me. 



Both pictures show the dehydrator with all four trays and lid in place.  The top photo is what the dehydrator looks like when in use.  The bottom photo shows how the trays can be alternatively stacked to conserve space.  This is also important to me, as I have limited pantry/cabinet space.

As previously mentioned, this dehydrator is pretty basic, which is not a bad thing.  It does not have a timer, a thermostat, or a power switch.  One simply loads the trays and plugs it in to begin dehydrating.  An instruction book with dehydrating times and "recipes" is included.  The times given are estimates, as ambient temperature and relative humidity will impact dehydrating times.

The finished chicken hearts.


Overall, I am very pleased with this.  It is no frills, easy to use, and does what is says it will do at an affordable price.  I eventually plan on using this to dehydrate some fruit and herbs for myself, as well as many more dog treats.

Disclaimer-I purchased this product, and was not asked to review it.  All opinions are strictly my own.

4 comments:

  1. Sounds very handy! We have a dehydrator but I've never thought about using it for dog treats- it's a great idea.
    Dina Mom

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  2. I started with a little dehydrator and upgraded to a massive one. Be careful. Dehydrating dog treats gets addicting if you love spoiling your dogs :P

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  3. Drying apples, strawberries, and peaches will allow you to use them in your pies and you will be able to say you made your pies with fruits from your garden and trees. There is no sense of pride than when you have harvested fruit from your own property and then use it in your famous recipe pies.
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  4. Broiler drying takes longer than the sun or an electric dehydrator and can't be utilized if your stove can't warm at temps beneath 140° Fahrenheit. On the off chance that your stove won't go underneath 140° it might cook the nourishment as opposed to getting dried out it. excalibur 2400

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Thanks for the howls!!