Dehydrator Buying Guide

If you are new to dehydrating, it can be hard to understand exactly what will work best for your purposes, and what the differences are between the popular styles of dehydrators.

Currently there are two main types of dehydrators that consumers are using:

• Shelf
• Stacking

Each type has its advantages, so one type may be better for your purposes than another. They have different selling points and different price points. Know what features are a must for you and go from there. In the end, the best dehydrator is the dehydrator that does what you need it to do.

This page will help you understand the differences between the types of dehydrators, so you can make an informed decision. Take a moment to learn a little about the different types of dehydrators and see what’s currently on the market, as well as see popular accessories and recipes for dehydrators.

HOW TO CHOOSE A DEHYDRATOR – STACKING VS SHELF

The shelf dehydrator has shelves that slide in and out like dresser drawers. Typically the air flow in these units comes from a fan in the rear, enabling air to blow horizontally and evenly across all of the food inside. This is the reason why some people call this type of unit a horizontal-flow dehydrator. Foods prepared in these dehydrators don’t need to be rotated.

Pros

• You can remove some of the shelves to accommodate thicker or larger foods.
• Each shelf is whole, unlike stacking trays that usually have a hole in the center of the tray. This means that each shelf can hold more food.
• Because air moves horizontally instead of up through the food, flavors don’t tend to mix so you can prepare different things at the same time.

Cons

• You are limited to the space the unit has. Because the unit is contained, you cannot add shelves as you can in many stacking style dehydrators.
• Shelf dehydrators are usually more expensive than stacking units.

The stacking dehydrator has trays that sit on top of one another during the drying process. This type of unit is also called a vertical-flow dehydrator. Typically the air flow in these units comes from a fan in the top or bottom. As heat rises, units with the fan on the bottom are a bit more efficient.

Pros

• Units are often expandable, allowing you to add more trays
• You can remove some of the shelves to accommodate thicker or larger foods.
• Because air moves horizontally instead of up through the food, flavors don’t tend to mix so you can prepare different things at the same time.

Cons

• Stacking dehydrators require you unstack all of the trays in order to remove one or move some around.
• As the trays have a hole in the center not all of the space is used, which could mean you need more trays.
• Drippings from models with the fan on the bottom can drip into the fan.
• Since all of the trays stack on each other, you can’t just remove one to accommodate larger food as you can in a shelf model.
• Flavors of different foods drying at once can potentially mix, as air moves horizontally instead of up through the food.

DEHYDRATOR ACCESSORIES

Accessories can be helpful when making jerky. A jerky gun such as the Jerky Gun shown above allows you to get well-formed and similarly sized pieces in less time. I have one and using it is my preferred way to make jerky. There are also different cures and spices you might find helpful.

Here are some more of the most popular jerky making accessories and spices on the market today.

DEHYDRATOR RECIPES

There are many different types of jerky. And of course, thousands of recipes for them. Until you have grown comfortable enough with your dehydrator to concoct your own recipes, find a jerky cookbook that works for you and make use of that. The book shown above, The Dehydrator Bible, is a huge cookbook that will provide you an excellent jumping off point until you are ready to try and create your own.

Here are some more of the most popular jerky cookbooks on the market today.