Freeze drying Pre- Freeze?

[@rickbevquade9351]

Please walk me through freeze drying shredded cheese!

[@cufarm196]

So would keeping this unit in our farm walk in cooler (around 39 degrees F) be at all advantageous?

[@janest-ic8ws]

How much freeze time is saved by pre-freezing. How much time should I reduce the pre-programmed freeze time.

[@joebolling]

I’ve heard one advantage to not pre-freezing is that allowing the freeze dryer to “flash” freeze the product is less damaging to the cellular structure. Is that for aesthetics, or does it effect nutrition?

[@SchoolReports]

It is true that flash freezing does tend to do less damage to the cellular structure. The people at Mountain House (freeze dried food manufacturer with a 50+ year track record), say that a slower freezing is better _because_ it does more cellular damage allowing for better rehydration and a better mouth feel of the food. Here's what the Senior VP of manufacturing says about ice crystals - ua-cam.com/video/OzOvsDVL_Q8/v-deo.html

[@joebolling]

@@SchoolReports interesting - thanks! Maybe it could actually work as a sort of meat tenderizer for cheap steaks, then :) btw, I’ve watched hours of your vids on freeze drying - great channel!

[@SchoolReports]

@@joebolling Thanks! I have a list of 13 freeze dryer sellers/manufacturers that I have looked into, but Blue Alpine is really the first new one that I've found very interesting. If mine dies someday, I'd differently check more deeply into the Blue Alpine machines.

[@joebolling]

@@SchoolReportsI preordered a large Blue Alpine - sure looking forward to getting it in a few months!! It’ll by my first freeze dryer… been wanting a freeze dryer for a very long time… years… but this is the first one that has me sold on actually making a purchase. They don’t come cheap 😯 so I waited patiently for one that has the features that make it really worth it to me

[@SchoolReports]

​ @joebolling Please keep us all updated on how yours does. They really do look good, better than most/any of the other home-size machines I seen. I'm just not the early adopter type; I _almost always_ wait for a _long_ track record. After having and using mine for 6 years, there are still changes that I would hope to see in my ideal new freeze dryer. I may just have to modify mine own. (more than I already have)🤣

[@zotyhd8052]

Donald’s Freeze Dryer Support and Reviews?

[@Sapphireleadershipadvisors]

My problem is that I don’t have a freezer where I can lay out trays to freeze. I have a slide out under the fridge and I have an ice chest which is usually full. So I think I will be using the freeze function frequently.

[@TheRealBatCave]

The freeze dryer it self should just stay in freeze cycle til it's frozen solid then go into the drying cycle

[@hosephine1]

So freeze drying in a cool garage is an advantage? How cool can it be?

[@TheRealBatCave]

He was saying ur basement would be cooler, the garage would be hotter

[@BryanKirch]

I find it interesting he doesn’t respond to comments…

[@TheRealBatCave]

Say I didn't have a freezer big enough to pre freeze, isn't the actual freeze dryer going to freeze the strawberries solid before it starts the cycle

[@tjayne8121]

It will. A lot of people pre-freeze their food because it then allows them to skip the freeze cycle on the freeze dryer, which shaves off several hours from the total time. However, you can absolutely not prefreeze and the machine will do everything for you. I have a chest freezer, so I like to have a batch going in the freeze dryer and then I prep my next batch and pop it in my chest freezer. Then once my current batch is done and the machine has defrosted, I can just put those already frozen trays in the freezer dryer and shave several hours off the entire freeze drying process.

[@TheRealBatCave]

@@tjayne8121 I have the new XL and it doesn't give me the option to remove the "extra freeze time" so even with prepped pre frozen trays it will stay in freezing for a minimum 10-12 hours, the only options on it are temp, mtorr and extra dry time, it's completely different from my large...

[@BryanKirch]

@@TheRealBatCaveyou have an XL from this company or HR?

[@TheRealBatCave]

@@BryanKirch it's a HR XL