r/trailmeals

Hi all, I have been preparing for my 3 week hike and wasn't sure what is the best way to dehydrate eggs. Internet told me to just dehydrate them

A. RAW as they are - or

B. WHISKED - separate whites, whisk them to stiff peaks, whisk the yolks, fold the two together and then dehydrate.

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So I've tried both and added a

C. PASTEURISED version (inspired by dehydrating lemon curd) I cooked some eggs with a bit of water in water bath to 74°C till they thickened but not curdled.

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Results are:

Ease of preparation:

1. Raw. Naturally. Just briefly whisked/mixed whites and yolks together and poured onto the tray. Difficult to load in the dehydrator as eggs are liquid and spill easily.

2. Pasteurised take annoyingly long time to prep. But pasteurisation can be done at once with a large batch and they're easier to handle when putting the egg loaded trays into the dehydrator as they're not so runny anymore.

3. Whisked. Takes long time and (with standard kitchen equipment) you can whisk like 4 eggs at a time only, so you need to do it many times. Easy to load though.

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Dehydrating time (dehydrated at 63°C):

1. Whisked. These were a bit faster do dry, but it was difficult fit all of the eggs on a tray since the foamy eggs are so voluminous, so you might need to use fewer eggs per tray.

2. Pasteurised. Even though there was added water during the pasteurisation process they dehydrated a tad faster than the raw version.

3. Raw

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Powdering:

1. Whisked. It is much easier to blend them into fine-ish powder.

2. Raw. Ended up pretty grainy, here I can't speak about powder anymore.

3. Pasteurised. Yet more rough finish resulting in more grit than a powder.

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Rehydrating (rehydrated for several hours in adequate amount cold water):

1. Whisked. Since the powder is the finest they seem to be smoother when rehydrated.

2. Raw. Bigger ju ks in there but all right. Neither has the snooty egg texture as fresh eggs, it's just a yellowish liquid with chunks in it.

3. Pasteurised. The chunks and water kinda didn't get together much at all.

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Cooked (scrambled with fat):

1. Whisked and raw. I expected the raw ones being more gritty but I struggle to taste any difference in the end. Nearly as smooth as fresh eggs, though not quite 100%.

2. Pasteurised. Tangibly rough, but still edible. The chunks weren't rock hard, just a bit gummy.

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Conclusion: simple RAW liquid eggs are the winner for me personally for the ease of preparation and at the same time not so noticeable difference on plate. If I am dehydrating just one batch I'll maybe invest time and effort in the whisking for the satisfying powdering phase, but it's not worth it for a large dehydrating project.

Pasteurised version is doable and quite all right if you are worried about food safety.

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Hopefully this will help someone to decide with meal prep for their hike!

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Do you know another method that might be worth trying? Have you tried rehydtrating with hot water?

I got the inspiration for this recipe from puttanesca pasta, which is typically made with anchovy and tomato. I wanted something a little lighter and trail friendly. All ingredients were dehydrated separately, then vacuum sealed in a bag for long term storage.

2.5 oz ditalini pasta, cooked and dehydrated
3 tbsp diced tomato
1.5 tbsp black olives
1/2 tbsp capers (rinse before dehydrating)
1 tbsp roasted red peppers
2 tsp diced red onion
1/4 tsp garlic salt
1/4 tsp Italian seasoning

1 packet tuna (Sundried tomato flavor may be amazing here)
1 packet olive oil
1 Parmesan packet

Warm soak everything except the packets until the pasta is tender about 30-45 mins. Drain excess liquid. Add tuna, olive oil and grated Parmesan.