Dehydrating: Kiwi Chips

Dehydrating is a great way to use up your fruits and veggies that are about to go bad or that you find on clearance.  I’ve been meaning to do more with it, but never got around to it till now.  And let me tell you, I absolutely love it!  Not only is it easy to do with minimal prep & cleanup, but its healthy, frugal, delicious, & a great way to extend the life of your food.  Why have I waited so long to start doing this?  I plan on exploring the wide world of dehydrating, making my own jerky, fruit leather, chips, spices, & raw cookies.  Today, I’m sharing my kiwi chips.
We all love kiwi and it is usually responsibly priced so it is a good 1st starter fruit to dehydrate.  That way if you mess things up, you won’t be losing much money.  The reason I love kiwi is because it is full of nutrients that our body needs such as:

1. Vitamin C
double as much as oranges contain

2. Potassium
help control blood pressure

3. Vitamin E
Antioxidant which helps with numerous thing like your skin to name one

4. Folic Acid
helps prevent cardiovascular disease

5. Fiber

6. Zinc
helps skin, teeth, & nails

Some additional health benefits are:
*low glycemic index so safe for diabetics
*helps digestive enzymes with actinidain that’s in it

Dehydrating kiwi successfully depends on one thing, having a slicer to slice them thin enough.  Invest in a mandolin slicer to make this successful.  For the longest time I didn’t have one and the ones I saw online or at Target where around $25-$55 which wasn’t in our budget.  Then Job Lots randomly carried it and I got it for super cheap.  Having a slicer like this will make all the difference between having your fruits & veggies dehydrate correctly or having them being a sticky gooey mess.  Once you’ve got your slicer you’re ready to make your own kiwi chips, which is as simple as 1-2-3.

1. Peel the skin off and slice them as thin as you desired.  To start I tried the thinnest slice and it worked fantastic.  Just make sure you use the same size for all of them or else you will have different finishing times.

2. Place the kiwi slices on the plastic What have you dehydrated?  Has it been a success or a failure?  Any tips, ideas, or recipes to share?sheet that comes with your dehydrator.  Put them close together but don’t have them touch, otherwise when they are done they’ll be stuck together.

3.  Turn on your machine and time it for 5 hours.  Check them & if you need to continue to dehydrate them till your desired crispness is achieved.  Once done, wait a few minutes, then begin to take them off.  Place in an airtight container & enjoy. You can store you kiwi chips in an airtight container for a few months to 6 months.

That’s it.  Simple……..Easy…….Frugal……..Healthy……..Delicious
Have you dehydrated anything before?  If so were you successful?  Any tips, ideas, or recipes to share?

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