How To

How To: You can dehydrate ground beef, but there’s a trick

September 5, 2017

Spend a day or two lugging a 30 lb. backpack around and you’ll be wishing you had something more filling than ramen or mac and cheese by supper time.

One thing I love to bring in the backcountry with me is dehydrated ground beef. You can prep it at home with a dehydrator in under 7 hours and it makes a hearty addition to any starch.

The challenge is prepping it properly, so it’s not crunchy when you hydrate it. Crunchy ground beef can be remedied with bread crumbs and I’ll walk you through the steps below.

Step 1- Where’s the Beef?

You have to start with a lean ground beef. Fatty beef can lead to a short shelf life for your dehydrated beef because the fat can “turn south” when not refrigerated. I’d recommend using the leanest beef you can find, which is usually 93%/7% or 90%/10%.

Step 2- The Trick!

Add breadcrumbs to your beef. The breadcrumbs help absorb moisture during the rehydration process. I use 1/2 cup for every lb. of beef.

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Add 1/2 cup of bread crumbs for each pound of beef

Work bread crumbs into beef

Step 3- Color equals flavor

Dehydrated Ground Beef Recipe — Brown the meat cooking out the pink color

As Gordon Ramsey always says, “Color equals flavor!” That color is going to come from a hot pan. Heat up your pan (I like cast iron) and brown your meat cooking it thoroughly, but not drying it out. If you’d like, you can season the meat with your favorite all-purpose seasoning just before browning.

Step 4- Degrease

Remember, the fat can make the dehydrated beef go rancid quicker, so you want you make sure to remove as much as you can. First empty the beef into a strainer/colander, then blot between paper towels, as pictured.

Spread beef on some papertowels

Blot beef to remove grease

Step 5 – The Shrivel

Place the cooked ground beef on the tray of your dehydrator and set to 145 degrees. It needs to dehydrate for about 6 hours.

Dry at 145 degrees

Spread beef on dehydrator tray

During the dehydrating process, you’ll want to blot off some of the excess oil every few hours.

Need a dehydrator recommendation?

Nesco FD-75A Snackmaster Pro Food Dehydrator Great Buy- I use this and it gets the job done
MAGIC MILL PRO Food Dehydrator I’ve read great things about the Magic Mill. The stainless steel racks make for easy clean up.
Excalibur 3926TB Food Dehydrator The Excalibur has a great reputation. You can dehydrate large batches, but it may not be your first choice if cabinet space is expensive real-estate

Step 6 – Bag of Beef

I like to store my dehydrated beef in a vacuum sealed bag. It makes it compact and keeps moisture out. But don’t rush out and buy a Vacuum Sealing System . Plastic bags can get the job done.

If properly prepared, the beef should last without refrigeration for several months. However, I would not use it after a year though.

Step 7 – Resuscitate

When it’s time to bring your beef back to life, simply place the dry beef in simmering or boiling water on your gas stove. Once hydrated, mix with your favorite starch. Mac and cheese, dehydrated potatoes, or rice are all great and lightweight options.