KH has picked this as number one because of the poularity of jerky. When we talk of jerky we are not talking about just beef. We are talking about deer, elk, other wild game and even alligator jerky. Dehydrators have been the number one pick for making jerky for years. And don't worry because if you are interested in just beef jerky, we are fine with that and we even have a jerky gun for you to make your job easier.

Our number two pick was fruit. Fruit is a long time favorite of the dehydrating community. From dried banana chips and dried apple slices to fruit leather (fruit roll-ups) and dried fruit medleys. This is one of the most healthy and tasty treats you could make in your dehydrator. It is as simple as cutting up the fruit and drying it. If you want fruit leather simply puree the fruit, add stuff for flavor (or not), then spread it on a flat drying sheet.

Homemade vegetable powder is a well known secret throughout the cooking world. Powders are used in all sorts of recipes as flavor boosters and spices. Add them to your favorite bread recipes to give them a twist or make your own set of personal spices like garlic salt, red pepper, basil etc. It is as simple as drying your vegetables then pulverizes them to powder. This is why vegetable powders is one of our top five choices.

Are you one of those people who loves to make homemde pasta. We hope you are, if not you should try it. Your pasta tastes so good and it really is simple. But that isn't what we need the dehydrator for. We need it to dry that fresh pasta so it will last longer, or so you can send some to your in-laws to show them what a great cook you are. It isn't hard either. After you are done making and using the pasta, put the extra in your dehydrator and dry for 2-4 hours to sucessfully get out all the moisture.

Now, we know what you are thinking. Bread crumbs, why would I want to make bread crumbs? Well, there are a few reasons we have discovered. You know that stage in your bread loaf's life where it isn't moldy enough to throw out yet, but too stale to eat. Well don't just end up throwing out your bad bread, save it before it molds and dehydrate it. By doing this you have created two options. One, pulverize the dried bread and add some vegetable powders or spices to them for tasty bread crumbs, good for frying or stuffing food. Two, cut up the bread before hand and spice it to make handy homemade croutons for salads and other meals. And you thought that bread was done for.