DEHYDRATION OF VEGETABLES 21 



Summer Squash: Only the small, tender squash should be dehydrated. Trim, 

 wash, and halve, removing the seeds. Cut in one-fourth inch slices without peel- 

 ing. Blanch for 10 minutes in steam. Tray load should be about 1^2 pounds, 

 and individual pieces should be separated. 



Soup Mixes 



Deh} drated soup mixes have recently achieved considerable popularity. They 

 can readily be prepared from home dehydrated vegetables, and offer a tasty, 

 nutritious supplement to the diet. Dehydration of the following products is 

 recommended only for incorporation in soup mixes. 



Celery: Use only crisp, garden-fresh bunches, preferably of the varieties having 

 little fiber, such as Pascal. Remove stalks from the bunch and trim off the 

 leaves. Wash thoroughly, remove blemishes, and cut into quarter-inch lengths. 

 Blanch in steam for 5 minutes (the pieces should be soft but still hold their shape). 

 Tray load should be 1 J^ to 1 ^ pounds. 



The thoroughly washed leaves may be dried separately and make a good "sea- 

 soning" for soup mix. These should be green and not wilted. Blanch for 2 to 3 

 minutes in steam. Spread on trays evenly and not too heavily. The leaves 

 are very light and dry rapidly. 



Onions: Peel off the outer "paper" layer by hand. Trim off ends, and slice 

 the onions into one-eighth inch slices. Blanch in steam for 2 minutes. Tray 

 load is IJ^ pounds. For dehydration of onions, the temperature should not 

 exceed 140° F.; hence it is usually best to dehydrate onions alone and not in a 

 mixed batch. Temperatures above this point cause the onions to turn brown. 



Potatoes: Peel potatoes and trim to remove eyes, blemishes, and other defects. 

 Until the desired quantity Is peeled and trimmed, the peeled potatoes should 

 be placed in a cold brine (one teaspoon of salt per quart of water). Since home 

 dehydration of potatoes is recommended only for soup mixes, they should be cut 

 in the form of julienne or shoe-string pieces approximately three-sixteenth inch 

 thick. The pieces should be thoroughly washed several times in cold water or 

 brine to remove the starch. The last water should be clear. Loose starch will 

 give an undesirable chalky appearance to the dehydrated product. Blanch in 

 steam for 10 minutes, or until the pieces are thoroughly cooked. Tray load is 

 approximately' 1 % pounds. 



Parsley: Wash thoroughly and sort to remove undesirable leaves. Blanch in 

 steam for 7 minutes, or until the leaves are practically cooked but not mushy. 

 Trays should be loaded loosely with approximately 1 pound of the product. 



Tomatoes: Firm, mature tomatoes are washed, cut into one-fourth inch cross 

 sections, spread one layer deep on trays, and blanched 3 minutes in steam. 

 The skins slip easily from the sections after blanching and can readily be removed 

 with the fingers. Since the dried sections are pliable when warm, they should 

 be tested for completeness of dehydration by removing one or two from the 

 trays, cooling and testing for rigidity when cool. 



The following suggested soup formula is easily made up, and can be varied 

 to suit the taste. The dehydrated vegetables should be broken into small pieces, 

 either by hand or by passing through a medium-fine food chopper, so that the 

 pieces are approximately one-fourth inch in size. 



