Anyone had success with oven-dehydrating?

[mellow_muse]

I desperately need corn chips!!! But I would also be thrilled with flax crackers, onion bread, burgers, etc! If you have had success making any of these in your oven, I will be your best friend if you post your method!! :D
The lowest my oven goes is 140 degrees. So should I try leaving it cracked open, turning it off and "dehydrate" as it's cooling? Any help is appreciated!

I would love to get a dehydrator, but I will be moving back to the States in a year, so I dont wanna spend all that money on one, just to spend a whole bunch more to ship it home, where it wont even be electrically compatible.

Thanks!!

[Adensspell]

Before my dehydrator that's what I did. I turned it onto the lowest setting and then left the door open. It worked fine. Good luck!

[violetsareblack]

Adensspell is the one who helped me, and I tried it, it worked! I just kept a thermomitor in it because our lowest setting is 200 andleft the door open wide at first to get it down a bit lower then cracked it once it was where I wanted it. I did Alissa's carrot pecan burgers this way and OMG!

[Adensspell]

glad to see it worked out for you!

[mellow_muse]

Thanks so much guys! I'm gonna try it! Violetsareblack, I saw in another one of your posts that you had good luck with corn chips - I'm gonna try making those first :)

[Jfish]

I have been using mine it goes down to 100f I don't know how well dehydrators work but the oven works fine for now.

[nanetteb]

I'm lucky that my electric oven stays about 115-125 degrees F at its lowest setting. I'm going to get an Excalibur but I don't need one right away.

So far I've made flax crackers, the veggie burgers from Carol Alt's book and the Rawritos recipe from this board. The Rawritos started out crunchy but I guess I need to put them back in the oven each time I want to eat them to crisp them up.

[Raw Hope]

Thank you guys for saying this! we have officially released my last excuse of going completely raw
nanetteb: how was carol alts book

[Eva]

This is helpful info -- I'm about to move to Europe and am so sad I won't be able to bring my Excalibur or my juicer. :(

I'm crossing my fingers that the oven at my apartment will go down to a low temp. It's a studio with a small kitchen, so I bet it does...

[ltcartwright]

I'm new to raw, Day 5. I don't have Alissa's book/DVD as yet (arriving in mail), neither do I have a dehydrator; to purchase one to ship where I live is on the heavy side of $500.00 (9-tray machine, s&h, taxes, duty, etc.) My oven's lowest setting is 150degF, can I get some basic instructions on "How to oven-dehydrate"? Like length of time, type of product, etc? I see that my first step is to get an oven thermometer, so I'll begin with that. Any recommendations??

(Maybe I should just Google it!) But your experience would be much appreciated.:D

Note:
I re-read and saw the piece about leaving the oven open. *scary* my 18mth old moves like a whirlwind around the house, I'll have to leave off dehydrating this way when she's with her "Mama" (aka "grandma") on the weekends!!!

[tanishamarshall]

I have but you have to keep checking the temp often. I used a oven them to monitor it but it became nerve recking after a while.

[violetsareblack]

Note:
I re-read and saw the piece about leaving the oven open. *scary* my 18mth old moves like a whirlwind around the house, I'll have to leave off dehydrating this way when she's with her "Mama" (aka "grandma") on the weekends!!!

Do you have any way to get a cheap baby gate to your kitchen? I have 5 kids - ages from 2 years to 8 and we have a baby gate at the kitchen anyway for safety, I just kept him out when we did it.

[Thick]

Instead of leaving the door open (besides being dangerous---it wil heat up your house--not good in summer!) You can turn it on to the lowest setting, then turn it off when your thermometer reaches the temperature you want, then keep turning it on off and and on all day.

[Eva]

Instead of leaving the door open (besides being dangerous---it wil heat up your house--not good in summer!) You can turn it on to the lowest setting, then turn it off when your thermometer reaches the temperature you want, then keep turning it on off and and on all day.

Good idea Thick! Aren't there beeping thermometers that you can stick in the oven?? They would go off when it gets to that temp. I think I've seen stuff like that that you stick in a turkey or something.

Actually, here's one. It's a little pricey but seems like it would be useful. http://www.amazon.com/Polder-Classic-Cooking-Thermometer-Graphite/dp/B000P6FLOY/ref=pd_bbs_sr_6?ie=UTF8&s=home-garden&qid=1211202771&sr=8-6

[ltcartwright]

I'm searching on amazon right now, but in reading the reviews, it's iffy which ones are good or not. I don't like to buy anything with less than a 4star overall (particularly if the number of reviews are high). Someone suggested a Taylor Mercury Oven Thermo, anyone used those?

[Mairzee_dotes]

Don't dehydrators have a fan blowing in them to airate the air? How would that work in an oven? Doesn't the air need to be moving to properly dry things?

[Eva]

I really liked what thick suggested so for me it would have to be a beeping thermometer to let me know it's at the temperature. This is actually pretty exciting. I have a travel coffee grinder (for flax, cacao etc.) that fits into my travel blender. So I'm really just missing the dehydrator for my most basic needs. And this would work just fine!

And then I don't have to get aNOTHER expensive and heavy (ie taking up a lot of my 2 bags at 50 lbs each!) converter and dehydrator to Europe.

Yay!

So ltcartwright -- I guess it just depends on what you prefer.

I'm sooooo curious to hear if others have had success with oven dehydrating. Anyone?

[Eva]

Don't dehydrators have a fan blowing in them to airate the air? How would that work in an oven? Doesn't the air need to be moving to properly dry things?

Ruh roh!!!

[Eva]

Thank you guys for saying this! we have officially released my last excuse of going completely raw
nanetteb: how was carol alts book

Yahoo!!! That is GREAT!!!

[jacsam]

Nope....my oven only goes as low as 260.....I do love my dehydrator.

[ltcartwright]

I'm going to try the oven as suggested first. If I feel like I'm dehydrating at a level that requires the dehydrator, then I'll make that purchase. But for right now, I couldn't justify to my hubbie the $500 expense (and I really tried!):(