It’s perfectly normal to be curious about the nutritional value of something you’re eating, whether you freeze-dried it yourself or are simply considering trying something a friend did. Comparing these to their fresh counterparts, are they really less nutrient-rich?
According to studies, freeze-dried fruits and vegetables have slightly lower levels of some vitamins, but they are higher in fiber and antioxidants. The majority of scientists concur that nutrient losses from freeze-drying are negligible.
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What Affects Nutritional Value When Freeze-dried Food?
Although some nutrients may be slightly but noticeably lost during the freeze-drying process, the taste is unaffected. When compared to other methods of long-term food storage, freeze-dried food keeps longer and is the closest to fresh that is possible.
Using freezing and sublimation, the food is dried out during the freeze-drying process. Okay, so it’s a three-stage process that repeats itself. freezing, sublimation (primary drying), and adsorption (secondary drying).
Simplicity and translation: the freeze dryer freezes foods to a crazy-cold temperature. Then it activates the vacuum pump, removes the water, and slightly warms the food so that it can continue to absorb more water. The process is repeated until approximately 95% of the food’s water content has been eliminated.
The food that results lacks the enzymes that would have otherwise accelerated the process of structural degradation. Because of this, the resulting food retains its nutrients very well over an extended period of time.
Food that has been freeze-dried maintains its nutritional value as closely as possible while also remaining shelf-stable for up to 25 years (depending on the food).
So while freeze-drying does alter some foods’ nutritional value, it does so only slightly. And it’s significantly less than if you processed the food using another technique (like canning or dehydrating).
We haven’t noticed any differences in taste among the foods we’ve freeze-dried; only the texture. Foods that have been freeze-dried are extremely dry. Yet after reconstitution? A taste difference is not discernible. Additionally, we haven’t been able to quantify or identify any variations in nutritional value.
Related Reading: What is Freeze-dried Food?
Do Freeze Dried Foods Have The Same Nutritional Value?
Food that has been freeze-dried retains 97% of the nutrients it originally contained and only loses 3%. The nutritional value of food is much better preserved by freeze-drying compared to other food preservation techniques. High temperatures cause food preservation techniques like dehydrating to lose about 60% of the food’s original nutrients, and canning to lose about 40%.
Does Freeze-drying Affect The Nutrients In Products Made From Meat?
Saturated fatty acids and total fat have been consistently seen to decrease with the freeze-drying process. Furthermore, it has been demonstrated that freeze-dried chicken, turkey, and ham all maintain their high levels of protein and minerals.
In other words, you might lose some of the fat, particularly if you’re actively removing it to help the meats freeze-dry more effectively. You won’t see a significant loss in other nutrients unless something drastic happens.
Benefits Of Freeze-Dried Food
- Compared to other food preservation techniques like canning, which retains only 40% of nutrients, and dehydrating, which retains only 60%, freeze drying retains 97% of the nutrients.
- When rehydrated, foods that have been frozen retain a lot of their original flavor and texture. No food that has been freeze-dried shrinks. Additionally, it doesn’t make food tough.
- The shelf life of freeze-dried food is between 10 and 25 years when stored properly. Up to 20 years longer than other preservation techniques like freezing (two years), dehydration (four years), and canning (three years).
- The practice of freeze drying is not new. Since 1906, and has been improved over time to preserve food’s flavor and keep it at its ideal nutritional level.
- Preservatives and additives are minimal or absent in freeze-dried foods. Food is dried using real ingredients and food.
- Fruits and candies, for example, can be eaten without being rehydrated and are frequently preferred to do so while maintaining the same nutritional value.
What Benefits Do Freeze Dried Foods Offer?
- Preserving and storing more food items – Unlike other methods of food preservation, freeze-drying also successfully preserves meat, fish, dairy, eggs, candy, Skittles, ice cream, and even fully prepared meals. It is especially effective for fruits and vegetables. The benefit of freeze drying is that it can preserve most foods.
- Longer shelf life – One of the main benefits of freeze-drying food is that it can be kept at room temperature for up to 25 years in a sealed mylar bag, jar, or food-grade bucket.
- Nutritional value – 97% of the nutrients in freeze-dried food are still present. Other food preservation techniques, like canning and dehydrating, employ higher temperatures that reduce the food’s nutritional value.
- Taste – Foods that have been freeze-dried rehydrate more completely than food that has been dehydrated, so the taste and texture of the freeze-dried food are more similar to that of fresh food. This also implies that you can successfully rehydrate freeze-dried foods as ingredients in regular cooking.
- Freeze drying candy including skittles, gummy bears, and much more. The freeze-drying process does not work well with jam, honey, syrup, or pure chocolate.
Drawbacks Of Freeze Dried Foods
- Cost /Expensive – Due to the specialized equipment required, the biggest drawback of freeze-dried food is its higher price when compared to non-freeze-dried items. It may cost as much as five times more in some circumstances. A home freeze dryer costs a lot to purchase, with the smaller machines starting at more than $2,000 in price. However, if used frequently, the cost can be reduced over time.
- Water is necessary for reconstitution (aside from simple snacks).
- The dry texture annoys some people.
- Not every food can be frozen and dried.
Difference Between Dehydrating And Freeze Drying
Keeping food from rotting or developing mold is the main goal of food preservation. The shelf life and nutritional value of the food are increased when moisture is eliminated without changing the food’s basic makeup.
Most of the water in food is removed during dehydration in shoddy home dehydrators—roughly 70%. The food is only edible in this situation for a short period of time. But high-end commercial dryers can get rid of 90 to 95 percent of the moisture. In contrast, using a Harvest Right unit at home to freeze-dry food eliminates 98 to 99 percent of the water content.
Most homemade dehydrated products, like dried fruit, meat, and vegetables, have a shelf life of one to two years at most due to the amount of moisture that remains in dehydrated food. The same foods that are freeze-dried have a 15–25 year shelf life.
Additionally, the nutritional value of dehydrated food is only about 60% that of fresh food of the same caliber. Dehydration uses heat, which breaks down the vitamins and minerals in the food, which is largely to blame for this loss. The majority of the vitamins and minerals present in freeze-dried foods are still present, according to the American Institute of Cancer Research. Because the water is removed using a cold vacuum process, freeze-dried food frequently retains 97 percent of its nutritional value.
Neither the appearance nor the flavor of the food is altered by freeze-drying. Big slices of turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, stuffing, and corn are all included in the above freeze-dried turkey dinner, which looks and tastes exactly the same as if it had just been prepared. The best part is that you wouldn’t be able to tell if this meal had been freeze-dried 15 years earlier.
Difference Between Freeze-dried Foods And Fresh Foods
Water is the main component that separates freeze-dried foods from fresh foods. By removing 98 percent of the water from food, the freeze-drying process preserves it. By doing this, food is kept from going bad while still retaining the majority of its flavor, color, texture, and nutritional value. Some freeze-dried food can last for several years! Just keep in mind that you should drink more water to make up for the lack of water in freeze-dried foods if you consume a lot of them. Also, keep in mind that chemical treatments are a part of the freeze-drying process. Despite the fact that most of the chemicals used in these processes are FDA-approved and subject to regulation, it is wise to be aware that some chemicals may have negative health effects, especially for those who are sensitive to sulfites.