Freeze Drying Adventures

[Western_hunter87]

well just picked up the freeze drier and the oilless pump. so this thread will start here in the next few days with i think skittles being the first run. Its a large harvest right and i ahve 2 sets of trays coming. Excited to learn and experiment with different candies meals veggies and fruits. stay tuned and feel free to drop any experience or knowledge or certain things you would like to see made. @robby denning i know was interested in this and i hope he has some imput for different things he has seen or heard of. More to come in the next few days.
Ju

 

[robby denning]

well just picked up the freeze drier and the oilless pump. so this thread will start here in the next few days with i think skittles being the first run. Its a large harvest right and i ahve 2 sets of trays coming. Excited to learn and experiment with different candies meals veggies and fruits. stay tuned and feel free to drop any experience or knowledge or certain things you would like to see made. @robby denning i know was interested in this and i hope he has some imput for different things he has seen or heard of. More to come in the next few days.
View attachment 680314Ju



View attachment 680315

following!

I know nothing about the process but excited to learn.

 

[Wrench]

Buy tray dividers for meals. Pre freeze your food. DO NOT put whole pieces of taffy in until you understand how much they swell.

Food in mason jars under vac keep well.

Mylar bags that stand up will piss you off much less. There are much cheaper options than harvest right for bags.

Expect a lot of water in typical wet foods.....our large machine will often make 1.25 gals per load.

Canned mangoes are amazing.

Johnny salt on canned green beans are just like the veggie chips in the store.

Thin cut sweet potatoes make crunchy chips.

Before you get started, tape a dryer sheet or furnace filter over the intake.....it pulls a ton of dust.

Enjoy.

 

[Western_hunter87]

Buy tray dividers for meals. Pre freeze your food. DO NOT put whole pieces of taffy in until you understand how much they swell.

Food in mason jars under vac keep well.

Mylar bags that stand up will piss you off much less. There are much cheaper options than harvest right for bags.

Expect a lot of water in typical wet foods.....our large machine will often make 1.25 gals per load.

Canned mangoes are amazing.

Johnny salt on canned green beans are just like the veggie chips in the store.

Thin cut sweet potatoes make crunchy chips.

Before you get started, tape a dryer sheet or furnace filter over the intake.....it pulls a ton of dust.

Enjoy.

lots of good advice there thanks. i have looked at tray deviders and tray stackers so i can stack trays in freezer pre run to drop run times

 

[Reddish]

Freezes dried zucchini chips are pretty solid. A bit of olive oil and salt before you throw them in…good replacement for potatoes chips. I’ve done them dehydrated too.

Freeze dried ice cream is also fun.

 

[EricBender208]

I’m definitely following along! I want to get into to freeze drying so bad. Little for hunting little for prepping!

 

[Revolting Peasant]

Following. Been thinking about one of these for the extra garden produce.

 

[Western_hunter87]

ok a few updates. buddy forgot to drop off the trays when he brought me the unit. so i got the trays today and i need to jump on a call with harvest right tomorrow so i can download new software with candy setting on it. should be doing my first run early next week.

 

[Gone4Days]

I just ordered a new pro model medium size 2 weeks ago. Can’t wait for delivery.

 

[Western_hunter87]

I just ordered a new pro model medium size 2 weeks ago. Can’t wait for delivery.

cool so we can bounce some tips tricks and help each other shorten the learning curve. i have 2 large pharma models with oilless pumps. congrats on ur purchase

 

[bpurtz]

I've got 15-17lbs of Hearty Elk Chili in FreezeRay right now.

FreezeRay put in some OT last week...
* Barbacoa Pork
* Granola, Milk & Berries
* Chocolate Chip Cookies & Milk

 

[Western_hunter87]

I've got 15-17lbs of Hearty Elk Chili in FreezeRay right now.

FreezeRay put in some OT last week...
* Barbacoa Pork
* Granola, Milk & Berries
* Chocolate Chip Cookies & Milk

View attachment 681293 View attachment 681294

im also looking forward to some mule deer chili and wild pig chili

 

[Gone4Days]

for anyone interested Harvest Right is having a sale on refurbished units (not the new pro models). Pretty good prices. Here is the email I received after I ordered:



“Due to the high demand of Harvest Right PRO, we are blowing out our limited supply of regular refurbished freeze dryers.

Can't read or see images? View this email in a browser

Refurbished Pricing:

Large (5 Tray): $2,595 + Free Shipping*
Medium (4 Tray): $1,995 + Free Shipping*

If you would like to place an order for a refurbished freeze dryer, please EMAIL me your full shipping address, the size of freeze dryer you are interested in, as well as any other items you would like to add to the order, and I will send you a quotation with an out the door total price and a quote/link that you can pay through.


Important Things to Know (PLEASE READ AND RESPOND BY EMAIL):

• These units have been slightly used and/or have some minor cosmetic flaws, but are guaranteed to work perfectly!
• Due to the limited supply, the customer is not able to choose the color as well as if the unit is a scratch/dent or refurbished freeze dryer. Hence the huge discount.
• All units being sold are our best conditioned units when it comes to damage and look. Unfortunately, we are not able to send pictures since these move quickly.
• These units are treated as new, which means they include a full warranty as well as all the accessories/tools that the new units come with.
• The freeze dryer would include a new premier pump, starter kit, and everything you would normally get with a new freeze dryer.
• We do not have the option for financing or to put these freeze dryers on layaway. The order must be paid in full.
• There isn't an option to pick-up these refurbished freeze dryers, however, they do ship for free.
• Only available in US 110V power. (Large does still require a 20 amp Dedicated Circuit)

NOTE: When we have had these blow out sales in the past, supplies tend to go fast due to the discounted pricing. We only have a limited inventory, and once they are gone, they are gone.

*Free Shipping only available within the contiguous 48 States.

If you have any questions at all let me know, I am happy to help! I will be also responding to emails over the weekend as well.

Thanks!

Mitchell Meyer
[email protected]
385-715-1508”

 

[bpurtz]

for anyone interested Harvest Right is having a sale on refurbished units (not the new pro models). Pretty good prices. Here is the email I received after I ordered:



“Due to the high demand of Harvest Right PRO, we are blowing out our limited supply of regular refurbished freeze dryers.

​ Can't read or see images? View this email in a browser

Refurbished Pricing:

Large (5 Tray): $2,595 + Free Shipping*
Medium (4 Tray): $1,995 + Free Shipping*

If you would like to place an order for a refurbished freeze dryer, please EMAIL me your full shipping address, the size of freeze dryer you are interested in, as well as any other items you would like to add to the order, and I will send you a quotation with an out the door total price and a quote/link that you can pay through.


Important Things to Know (PLEASE READ AND RESPOND BY EMAIL):

• These units have been slightly used and/or have some minor cosmetic flaws, but are guaranteed to work perfectly!
• Due to the limited supply, the customer is not able to choose the color as well as if the unit is a scratch/dent or refurbished freeze dryer. Hence the huge discount.
• All units being sold are our best conditioned units when it comes to damage and look. Unfortunately, we are not able to send pictures since these move quickly.
• These units are treated as new, which means they include a full warranty as well as all the accessories/tools that the new units come with.
• The freeze dryer would include a new premier pump, starter kit, and everything you would normally get with a new freeze dryer.
• We do not have the option for financing or to put these freeze dryers on layaway. The order must be paid in full.
• There isn't an option to pick-up these refurbished freeze dryers, however, they do ship for free.
• Only available in US 110V power. (Large does still require a 20 amp Dedicated Circuit)

NOTE: When we have had these blow out sales in the past, supplies tend to go fast due to the discounted pricing. We only have a limited inventory, and once they are gone, they are gone.

*Free Shipping only available within the contiguous 48 States.

If you have any questions at all let me know, I am happy to help! I will be also responding to emails over the weekend as well.

Thanks!

Mitchell Meyer
[email protected]
385-715-1508”

That's a great deal!

I have the original, non-Pro, in large and it's worked flawlessly. I opted for the oilless pump which adds significant cost upfront, but it eventually pays for it self and reduces oil change maintenance. I also bought an extra set of trays, tray covers, and a set of silicone tray mats. Parchment paper works great, but for fruit and berries, the silicon mats are easy.

 

[Dirtscoots]

Freeze Dryer Tray Lids -- (it's stackable!!!) The "Original"

The "Original" is the first freeze dryer tray lid. Our Patented design is the first of its kind Great for keeping your food safe in the fridge and freezer Designed to fit the Harvest Right Trays (trays not included) Avoid spoiled or freezer burned food and save ALL of your leftovers for...

www.freezedryingsupplies.com

These tray lids are awesome. My freeze dryer lives in my shop so moving food to and from is way better than the cheap stackers. Also great for putting food in the freezer to pre freeze. Also the food funnel is a game changer. It gets tedious loading Mylar bags. Way easier to dump a tray fill a bag. The guy that has the site I posted has a YouTube that is very informative with a ton of meals.
Also a moisture meter has saved me. Sometimes it looks done but needs a bit more dry time. My last batch of guacamole I had to put in for few extra hours

 

[Dirtscoots]

Venison birria a recipe shared on here, was great I can’t wait to enjoy it in September. I had some space so I loaded a tray with cheddar cheese , and a left over piece of pizza. No idea if the pizza will work I just thought it would be funny to pull out of my pack at some point.

 

[bpurtz]

Just finished packing 15 Hearty Elk Chili meals. I have 3 trays of Salmon, Crab, & Clam Chowder in the freezer, and I'll add 2 trays of Costco Broiled Chicken, Bacon & Rice for my next FreezeRay batch. I'm going to need to add some more hunts to be able to eat all of this food. Lol.

 

[Dirtscoots]

What is the salmon dish you made? That looks good. I’m really not into salmon but have a few in the freezer

 

[bpurtz]

What is the salmon dish you made? That looks good. I’m really not into salmon but have a few in the freezer

This is the receipt I used...the clams and crab were not part of the original receipt - I also doubled the bacon. I didn't follow the preparation exactly - I precooked the potatoes and salmon and added those along with the crab and clams to the rest of the simmered chowder.

 

[Dirtscoots]

Thank you! I think I may need to try that! Hope we get some clam tides soon