Preserving food through dehydration

Fiona and Hugh Osborne preserve fruit, vegetables, spices and even meat by drying, an ancient technique with increasing modern relevance

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When we set out to produce as much of our own food as possible, we seriously underestimated what was involved in storing it. Of course, we eat seasonally but honestly, we want to eat fruit, meat and vegetables all year round. Without preserving (and a lot of preserving), that really isn't possible.

We preserve food in many different ways, not only to avoid having more freezers than Iceland, but also because we find different preserving methods suit different types of food. Frozen strawberries become mushy when defrosted, but dried strawberry slices are fantastic when added to porridge or home-made yoghurt. Once we started dehydrating food we realised what a fantastically versatile and flexible preserving method it is for us. We don't just dry fruit, we make a huge variety of space saving and delicious foods. Dried apples in a Kilner jar last for several years and take up very little room. Chilli powder and flakes are familiar, but tomato powder is fantastic for thickening a Bolognese, making a sauce for a home-made pizza or reconstituting into a tomato puree! Dehydrating has become integral to how we fill our pantry - not just because it's effective, but because it produces incredible tasting food!

THE SCIENCE