Freeze Dried Cucumber Salad -- How to Use Up Your Garden Cucumbers

Welcome back to another freeze drying recipe! This week we are focusing on using up the abundance of cucumbers available this time of the year. We are goin to make a cucumber salad that is a refreshing and light side dish for the hottest months of the year. Very simple to make, just a few ingredients and a pretty short cycle time considering that cucumbers are 97% water. You can eat these like chips or you can rehydrate and get a slightly different texture than when made fresh. Either way, this uses up lots of those cucumbers and give you some great nutrition for your food storage.
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[@christinelove7491]

When I make cucumber salad, I put the sliced cucumbers and onions in a colander over a bowl, salt them, and let them sit for about 30 minutes. A lot of water comes out! Then I put them in a clean tea towel and squeeze the rest of the water out. Time consuming, yes, but the end result is worth it. Perhaps if you tried that, the cucumbers would be able to absorb more of the dressing flavor.

[@CJFarm]

Well heck... this sure makes sense, Christine!

[@sylviaross2349]

I wonder if leaving the skins on would help keep them from breaking and turning to mush.

[@live.life.simple.]

It might. I was worried about the skins making them bitter. They may soak up the vinegar and sugar an be totally fine

[@urbanpreppingwithpam916]

I wish you would have tasted one as a chip. These might be really tasty without rehydrating.

[@agirlwithdifferenttools5850]

Ive made them as chips. Salt pepper and Parmesan cheese. EXCELLENT!!

[@noplacelikehome9116]

When you showed the "cycle complete" screen I went to touch it! Ha ha Yes, I spend a lot of time with our freeze dryer. 😁 You could use this recipe with cold pasta mixed in at serving time to help with the texture.

[@live.life.simple.]

There you go. Sounds tasty

[@lanapeterson5641]

Thicker slices

[@BlacksTropicalHomestead]

Good morning SoilBrotha!! Cucumbers have been a huge hit this year in the garden. Thanks for sharing this amazing way of preserving them. We appreciate you 🙏🏾

[@chrisdroblyn]

A cheap Flir camera can quickly spot cold areas in the trays visually. Consider adding these to the supporting products.

[@SandyVos2012]

I would suggest trying to slice the cucumbers thicker in an attempt to keep some of the structure.

[@bsaver5942]

Can you rehydrate in the Avid chamber via the marinate function?

[@letmycookingtalk7544]

THANK YOUUU!! As a new HR Freeze Dryer owner and a gardener who is now overrun with cucumbers and failed my first attempt at it, I truly appreciate this video!

[@live.life.simple.]

Good to hear

[@SBC112564]

I just did my bread run yesterday. Let’s get FD!

[@live.life.simple.]

👍🍞

[@carolblaney7668]

Enjoy… you’ve embarked on a journey that is fantastic!!! It’s become an obsession with me🤣😂

[@brucelarson4283]

Good luck!!!.... happy😁. Freeze drying!!!!!👍👍👍🎉🎉

[@wisteria4981]

Even though it’s not a 100% win, at least you can actually freeze dry 🥒’s…..ahhhhmazing 😋

[@abudhabig0ld]

There is a big difference between White vinegar and Apple Cider vinegar, White vinegar is mainly used for cleaning because of its acid content, while Apple Cider vinegar is for cooking, so you don't clean with it, White vinegar when absorbed in food has no flavor. Don't ask me how I know (my mother was born in 1901) I also tried white vinegar in potato salad when I was out of Apple Cider Vinegar.

[@lorismith1906]

Doing my bread run today…. I am so scared! I am most confused about times but I have binge watched your videos for about a week now so am hopeful 😊 thank you for all you do!

[@jeremy7461]

We just got our machine about a week and a half ago and we're having fun with it. We've done candy, fruits, veggies and a bunch of ice cream. So far, our biggest mistake is doing higher water content with lower water content things in the same batch. One batch took 33 hours and we're assuming that it was because we dried canned pears and they were REALLY wet. Good luck!

[@lorismith1906]

@@jeremy7461 thank you! I can’t wait to figure it out! I love the idea of all that can be done and I know I will mess up but it will be fun trying to find out how to do things. Thanks again for the encouragement 😊 Happy Freeze Drying!

[@Baneironhand]

Nothing to be scared about. If you're not sure about something working throw a little bit in a tray corner while you run something else. I like advising strawberries or raspberries for the first batch. Buy a bag of frozen or fresh and do in halves or slices (raspberries can be whole). Best snack ever. And I've never had a drying issues like pineapple or peaches which occasionally do weird things. Good luck soon you'll have tubs of stuff.

[@livelymindartstudio4244]

Mine is on its way… so excited. 🥳

[@laurenandreas5950]

@@jeremy7461 Hi Jeremy, I don’t even worry about mixing more liquid/juicer items with dryer items. Yes of course if you have all of the same type it’s nice but if you have to fill a tray of a drier product, it’s ok. It’s not like an oven where you will over cook something. We are on over 200 loads and I don’t have any odor transfers or problems loading a tray of a garden vegetable in with very lean beef stew, or a tray of low fat broth in with apples. Some people say they have a taste transfer but we can’t notice a difference in taste. Maybe it depends on how sensitive your pallet is but we fill it with what we have and we are always happy. Sometimes people just Like to be PICKEY! Our loads take between 24 & 36 hours depending on the item. With electric charges the way they were it “was” between $3.50 & $4.00 per batch. Happy Freeze Drying!

[@jodysfavorite9762]

Hey nice video! It’s nice to see the end results and the recipe. Thank you for taking the time to provide the video even though it might not be a win-win. Sometimes I use rice wine vinegar and agave instead of the sugar and the apple cider vinegar and it turns out delicious. I haven’t tried freeze drying it though

[@live.life.simple.]

Not sure the agave will make it fd without exploding. It would be a nice sweetener alternative though

[@glorytogodhomestead3495]

Do you think making the cucumbers thicker that they would hold their shape better?

[@gsdalpha1358]

We freeze dried several medium trays of sliced cucumbers. Love 'em on salads - they add a great crisp factor with a hint of cucumber. I'm debating freeze drying some with Ranch seasoning on them since there's not much better than fresh cucumbers and Ranch dressing. We gave cucumbers away every day - lol - and I canned 16 pints of hamburger dill slices. Sorry the salad was not as anticipated. It sounded good in theory!

[@CoolHandLukeakaSgtBilly]

Recommendation, Go to a restaurant supply or even COSTCO a purchase a BUS TUBE to place large quantity of food items. Toss them their and you will have ample space to work with.

[@BigKuda1776]

Would have been interested in seeing your thoughts on how they tasted before rehydration

[@Uncle_Buzz]

My medium trays hold just exactly 4 cups of liquid, and that's pouring it in place. 6 cups would overflow a medium tray by a LOT.

[@live.life.simple.]

Try again. I just did it

[@timmackey2896]

Have been using ours nonstop for about 6 weeks now. Really appreciate some of the hacks you provided. Just the other day noticed the top insulation piece comes unglued somewhere during the cycle moves and reattaches itself by the end of drying cycles. Have you or anyone else experienced this and if so is there a solution?

[@adventuresinfreezedrying]

I’ve experienced this. I reached out to Harvest Right and they told me to buy a certain brand of double sided tape to fix the issue… I’ll post what it is when ai get back by my Freeze Dryer later.

[@scarjss613]

that doesn't look good rehydrated.

[@alisabutler5872]

Maybe rehydration would be better with thicker sliced cucumbers.

[@barnonburnvillelarajo3219]

Im thinking the same thing.

[@nikkiwolfe300]

Can't you leave the stackers on while in the fd?

[@live.life.simple.]

Not recommended

[@jeffrichards2011]

Tip/Thought: How about SPRITZING them with water, rather than soaking them? I found "spritzing" FD Cheese to rehydrate,😉 works much better than soaking.

[@jeffrichards2011]

Q: Because this is a "high liquid" food item, why not pre freeze it first then Freeze Dry? TIA

[@live.life.simple.]

Sometimes i don't prefreeze for videos just to see the time differences. In day to day, I always prefreeze

[@jeffrichards2011]

@@live.life.simple. Thank you!

[@judyr1752]

When is your cookbook coming out?

[@live.life.simple.]

Thats a great question. As soon as we can!

[@hinch-man482]

How many FD cycles do you think you have run in your day?

[@live.life.simple.]

Lost track long ago. 1000's i'm sure

[@stephaniecornwell8766]

Pesky cucumbers?! I can’t find a mess of them to pickle this year because I couldn’t plant much of anything given life circumstances

[@caleighhemp9975]

Might try thicker cucumber slices & don’t peel them ? Gonna try myself- just have too many things in freezer right now waiting so will try later-?

[@janetjackson6283]

we make a similar salad but it includes tomatoes. Don’t know if hubby would like the Reconstituted texture

[@pbfirearms5388]

Sounds great! In our family we don't use sugar in our cucumber salad but to each there own.

[@Baneironhand]

Might have to try this after the cucumbers decide to grow here. Been doing granola bars while I wait for the garden to catch up.

[@cheche8353]

I wonder how spiraling the cukes would be🤔

[@marcuswheeler9950]

Your mats and dividers are clutch, especially for making backpacking MRE’s. Thanks for great content!

[@live.life.simple.]

Glad you like them! That's what we use them for as well. Happy freeze drying!

[@bluewolf4915]

That looked like a fail.. Some things are just better fresh.

[@lisanowakow3688]

Not yet, but I live in the desert. One are just starting to come in now.

[@ronkeller108]

Make some cucumber wine can't believe the flavor wow

[@joycemaurer3588]

The dried chip form looked really good!

[@fj9595]

I really liked the texture freeze dried. No carb chips.

[@trishcraig723]

So I thought seeds os any kind were no good for freeze drying.

[@estherstone4860]

We’re enjoying the stackers out here in California. I’ll be trying this recipe. We’re overrun with cucumbers in the summer as well.

[@live.life.simple.]

I will have a pickle powder video coming up soon that you could use your cucumbers for. Also a cucumber salad video. Problem with cucs is you go from a few to hundreds🙂 Thanks for your support!

[@terryatckison9746]

Thank you for explaining it so well

[@karenstevens592]

I loved the Cucumber salad video! I sliced cucumbers and onions in my food processor and then pour White Balsamic Vinegar and Dill and mixed. I let it set for an hour then froze and FD. They are tasty and wonderful healthy chip snack!

[@live.life.simple.]

Yum!

[@karenc8343]

I saw some freeze drying videos have a pad between the trays and the door. Why? Did you try them dry like potato chips?

[@live.life.simple.]

They used to come with a door insulation pillow

[@CoolHandLukeakaSgtBilly]

BUS TUB not Tube

[@Baneironhand]

Too late I've already googled bus tube. Apparently it is all the forms of public transportation in london. 🤣figured it out eventually tho.

[@wandamoran7658]

I would like to see how you store your freeze dried products with the mylar bags and mason jars. I'm really interested in doing this... but the storage is what concerns me a little bit because you'll need a lot of space. Any hints ideas you can share

[@live.life.simple.]

Using the vac chamber sealer is helpful because for most bags you can get them flat. That doesn't seem like a big deal until you have 100s of bags to store. I used to store mine in Rubbermaid plastic containers and now I have moved to open faced shelving. Labeling and sorting is very important

[@kylesgeller]

love the show!!! any idea when your Food Funnel / Mylar Bag Filler will be back in stock?

[@live.life.simple.]

Very soon. Just got inventory back in.

[@TerrieJohnstown]

You could add vinegar when rehydrating,maybe.

[@live.life.simple.]

It might be overpowering? Maybe the right amount of water vinegar mix

[@lemdixon01]

My wife uses all my cucumbers 🍠

[@johnsmith-dm2tq]

So I bought a freezer dryer and I have an idea for a video. If you already made this video please point me to it. I work. I started a batch at 5 pm and it's going all night, I wake up and it's now 5 am and it will be finished in about 2 hours but I leave for work in 25 minutes. So this is going to be done in 2 hours, or the machine might add 2 hours who knows. and it will sit in my hot house for 7 hours till I get home. Will the dryer just keep cycling to keep it good? Will it defrost with the drain valve closed leaving me a mess? A batch will take between 18 and 40 hours, how can I time this??

[@live.life.simple.]

You would need to.add time enough for your return from work. If you don't your fd will stay in a holding pattern but slowly start to rehydrate

[@johnsmith-dm2tq]

@@live.life.simple. yep, it stayed in a holding pattern till I got home and now I have a new question. My last two batches finished up with a dry cycle and came out warm, this one because of the holding pattern came out frostbite cold. The question is if I put cold product into a bag will it condensate on the inside and spoil food early? Thanks for you help btw.

[@skee6706]

Try rehydrating it with a little vinegar. Going to give this one a try Thanks

[@live.life.simple.]

Great idea

[@Shria9]

Would freeze dried cucumbers still have as much fibre as raw?

[@live.life.simple.]

All you are removing is water, so I imagine all or or almost all

[@TerrieJohnstown]

Great idea for cukes! I am going to try this one! Thanks Brian!

[@live.life.simple.]

Enjoy!

[@pamelamercer1124]

How did they taste as chips?

[@live.life.simple.]

They are great!

[@live.life.simple.]

They are a little fragile, I would slice thick if you are going to do chips

[@daran228wilson9]

Thank you

[@HebronGrandpa]

Do you find the new FD a little quicker?

[@live.life.simple.]

Yes. Medium size is also faster

[@sheilam4964]

👍👍👍👍👍

[@Kargarbo]

How many cups per tray for a large FD?

[@live.life.simple.]

8 cups

[@drewhjc]

If you freeze dry seeds, will they still grow?

[@live.life.simple.]

Yes. Germination is still pretty high

[@jamesschultz796]

Why pull off the stackers? I leave them on my trays. They slide right into the tray.

[@live.life.simple.]

I wouldn't expose them to high heat and extreme cold over and over if you can help it. It will weaken them over time

[@jamesschultz796]

@@live.life.simple. I'll let you know if and when it happens.

[@LianeRollin]

Can we do the same recipe with zuchini?

[@live.life.simple.]

You probably could

[@CJFarm]

Hey Brian, What do you think about FDing sliced cucumbers crushed to powder (no onion/vinegar/sugar) for smoothies?

[@Baneironhand]

That would work fine i should think. if your gonna powder them anyways you could just put them in the blender to begin with and dry that. Some things powder better beforehand. They would take up less space as a powder too I guess.

[@1melamom]

We've been doing that. I seasoned with 'Everything but the Bagel' and garlic salt. We dried them completely and put them in the Blendtec blender. Delicious!! We sprinkled the dust on hamburgers. You could use it on salad, veggies, etc. This is chock full of nutrition and tastes good, too! :)

[@CJFarm]

@@1melamom hey, wow... I love this idea of spicing up sliced /diced cucumber , whizzing it in a blend tech or vitamin, spreading it on the trays and storing the FD powdered product (zucchini etc might work, too?) . I did this successfully with a mixture of greens (no spices or herbs). I use it for my smoothies. Took a looooong time to dry, but it's great to have on the shelf in winter for smoothies!

[@CJFarm]

@@1melamom Love this idea, 1melamom!!!

[@Bama_J]

Good morning y’all

[@live.life.simple.]

Good morning!

[@johnderoy916]

I thought vinegar was a no no for the FD

[@live.life.simple.]

Why?

[@trishcraig723]

@@live.life.simple. allegedly it us corrosive

[@johnderoy916]

@@live.life.simple. I don't know personally because I saw so many other posts saying that vinegar was not a thing you wanted to do I never tried it.

[@caroleevandyk5544]

Has anyone tried freeze drying dates?

[@live.life.simple.]

I would imagine they are too sugary

[@caroleevandyk5544]

@@live.life.simple. Thank you. So do you think they would just turn into date sugar crystals and disintegrate?

[@live.life.simple.]

@@caroleevandyk5544 sometimes sugary things implode or swell.way up.and stick to your heat mats

[@caroleevandyk5544]

@@live.life.simple. Oh my, that’s good to know. Thank you.