Top 20 Items to Freeze-Dry for Your Freeze Dried Business

[@estherfilip3275]

Lemons and oranges are awesome too!!! I have never sold anything I made, but we love our freeze dryer fruits!

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Sounds great!

[@bloodlove93]

you should try,easy way to have it pay itself off,feels good for those who aren't rich and actually have to try to get these.

[@davekintz]

When I do bananas, I like to skewer them on long skewers, rather than lay the slices down on the tray. Can get a whole lot done this way!

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Excellent idea! Are they difficult to take off the skewer once freeze-dried?

[@davekintz]

@@freezedriedbusinessNo, not at all.

[@jago4673]

Do you use wooden or metal skewers?

[@gabrielleanzaldua7553]

Peach rings from a target or H‑E‑B brands work best for me! I have a medium and didn’t update to candy mode. It’s still on the original settings. I put temp at 145 and run 9-12 hours. This is what worked best for me! And don’t have to worry about releasing slow or them deflating. I have tried so many brands so much waste! Lol

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Thanks for sharing! Peach Rings have always been my nemesis but I’m glad you’ve found a good process to get them working. They are such a fun candy to freeze-dry.

[@sugarbranchranch5148]

I cannot believe that you left out seedless green and red grapes! OMG, they are probably my favorite!!!

[@freezedriedbusiness]

I will add this to my new product experimenting list for 2023.

[@seizetheday2357]

I’m intrigued. What settings do you use for the grapes?

[@angelajensen439]

How long do grapes take to freeze dry?

[@luceroascencion]

What setting do you use for grapes

[@jenniexfuller]

Grapes are wonderful but they take a long time in my experience.

[@rockymountain3245]

I like the recap. It keeps me on track.

[@lilasdavis102]

Thank you for taking the time to share your ideas and expertise with us. Much appreciated ! Will try some of these foods. 😎

[@freezedriedbusiness]

My pleasure 😊

[@paulacomstock3742]

Pickles are a big seller for us

[@TheAvira123]

I instantly subscribed. You're a legend!

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Legend! Haha, love it!

[@philw7174]

Thank you for this video David. I appreciate your help as I try to make the best product for my friends and family. Happy trails!

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Glad it was helpful!

[@kimmididwhat]

Actually, Freeze Dried taffy came before skittles. Betty’s group members started doing them in 2015. FD’d Skittles were discovered by 2 of Bettys group members, ( Justin Dumoit and Preston Rich) starting back in Dec 2016 and the breakthrough was in Jan 2017. Been selling them every since. 😃👍

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Wow! Great freeze-dried history facts, I didn’t know all of this info. Thank you for sharing!

[@TheOfficialArthurMorgan]

I wish ppl wouldn't sell so much of those freeze dried poison. Not trying to rain on everyone's parade but we have so much terrible poison around us and i feel like FD shoudl be used to make healthy eating easier

[@kimmididwhat]

@@TheOfficialArthurMorgan , That is your opinion and your prerogative to have it. It’s also our prerogative to sell what we wish to. A lot of us sell both candy and FD’d fruits and veggies. FD’d candy, fruits and veggies is not new. The earliest HRFD users started selling in FD’d candy in 2015. FD’d candy just got very popular in 2020. In response to your statement about poison though, I’m sure there are people who would think that one or more things that you like are akin to poison. Ya can’t please everyone. 😃👍

[@bjetmech]

Best way for jello is to follow the jiggler recipe. It is the one thing I will give to people and have them guess what it is. It gets the best reactions. I haven't done jello since the candy mode update, but I am not sure it will work without a full cycle. I just filled a full try up and used the dividers from another freeze dryer channel. Jello is very sticky when finished so I have bought the silicone molds from Harvest Right and will try them with those. I got tired of almost stabbing myself with a butter knife trying to get it out of the trays.

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Good to know on the Jello, thank you for sharing! I do want to try it sometime soon

[@jlynn77]

Can you buy bags of frozen fruit and do it that way?

[@dnlmachine4287]

That absolutely works great for certain fruits. I find that berry type fruits (blueberries) with that skin take a long time. Anything that is open pore works very well - Strawberries are supreme, things that are chunk, sliced, cut etc work best. Frozen vegetables, same thing. Its extremely efficient to buy X number of bags per load. Literally get the bags, open and dump into pre-frozen trays (to help avoid sticking to warm tray). Stay gold.

[@lindaarnold3091]

I just found this channel and excited to see what’s new. I am new to freeze drying got mine last June. I don’t have the candy setting. Can you or someone tell me which version I need?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Version 5.0 or higher. You can download the latest software on Harvest Rights website. affiliates.harvestright.com/1974.html

[@blazingrose4847]

Currently running some chocolate jello, set then frozen in the Harvest Right cubes. Hoping it's as delicious as when we just did it poured into the pans!

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Hope you enjoy it!

[@kimweaver1899]

Now I’m going to have to look up chocolate jello. I’ve never heard of it before.

[@bettecassida]

I'm interested in learning more about the settings. I have made skittles, milk duds, and other candy bc I found the candy mode. But where do I find the fruit mode and the fruit settings

[@dennivaldez]

You just run fruit on the normal cycle... then 12-24 hours of extra dry time. A scale is always your friend. Keep checking the weight until it stops dropping as usual with anything you freeze dry normally

[@cindynewman7955]

Hello! Thank you for the videos! What's your suggestions on the peach rings? I haven't been successful yet. Thank you!!

[@karinemikesell8981]

also can you sell freeze dried fruit with just in llc in Idaho?

[@mikeferretti7422]

Just stumbled across the FD industry and your page and it intrigued me. So you touched on the health dept for dairy products. What if you only did candy or fruit or anything non dairy, does the health dept not get involved with anything produced since its food and one is selling to the public?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Health Department will still want to approve your menu for the cottage food permit but other than that no.

[@gigihenderson8567]

Make sure you check the refs in your city, county and state. They can vary wildly

[@yukonsmomma3562]

Thanks for this information.

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Glad it was helpful!

[@michelleburgess1613]

Great info! Thank you!!!

[@freezedriedbusiness]

You're welcome, sorry for the delay in my response.

[@edgotbait]

I’ve done corn and jello. I used jello packs I had in the fridge already made in the little cups I just popped the jello out and sliced it into discs Sadly it was sugar free lol Came out ok The taste and tang hit you at the end Would like to try normal jello ( with sugar) to see if it’s has a different taste Corn is like eating pop corn. Drained right out of the can and I added dry salad dressing mix on top Garlic and Herb from Good Seasons you could do ranch also

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Thank you for the comment! I'm very much looking forward to trying corn next month and the Ranch seasoning was already on my list to try with a few trays.

[@cathyturnbull5813]

I have the newer model 5 tray harvest right freeze dryer. I am having trouble with storing my candy. I have mylar bags with the sealer and oxygen absorbers and still my candy gets ruined in the bags. Any idea why? 🥺

[@freezedriedbusiness]

It’s either that the candy hasn’t dried long enough or you need to increase the temperature when it’s on candy mode

[@cathyturnbull5813]

@The Freeze Dried Business ok. So I have it in candy mode for 8 hrs bc I found 4 wasn't doing it. What temp should I have it on? The candy is always great coming out but then a few days later in a sealed mylar bag with a 300 cc oxygen absorber it's hardening 🥺

[@gigihenderson8567]

Hi Cathy, are you using the Harvest Right bag sealer? I have heard that it doesn’t do a good job. Maybe try dealing with a different appliance, (I’ve heard hair straightener)

[@JB-tp9we]

​@@cathyturnbull5813I believe they are using desiccant not oxygen absorbers, to help keep them dry.

[@teresawheat8966]

Great info

[@savqe_2834]

Where do you buy your candy from? I want to start a business but trying to see where it’s best to buy the skittles and stuff from or do you just go to ur local store and buy the biggest bags you can find?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Amazon and local stores that have specials.

[@Dayneooo]

i’ve tried peach rings 3 times and failed each time. what settings do you use?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Peach rings are my nemesis, join the club! When they work I’ve ran them at 135-140 degrees for 3-4 hours. I don’t know if it has to do with the freshness of the peach rings or what but they are very inconsistent. Make sure when you release the drain value to release the pressure slowly. I found that if I released too quickly, the peach rings would start shrinking back down.

[@Dayneooo]

@@freezedriedbusiness okay thank you! I will try that next time! If you don’t mind - one more question. To maximum return how do you make affordable shipping? Maybe make a video about this?

[@Dayneooo]

Shipping seems to cost 6-9$ even with PirateShip! 😮

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Charge for shipping or work in the shipping cost to your prices. Stay under 1lb and you'll keep your rates low which isn't too difficult with freeze-dried products. Shipping costs are going up across the board so I wouldn't worry about it being affordable for your customers as they expect to pay for shipping.

[@omaryeager6101]

I do peach rings all the time. I do no heat, run in candy mode, and go straight to drying for 9 to 12 hours. they come our everytime. Nice and puffy and crispy. I even do them with Chamoy and Tajin to make a Chili peach ring.

[@howtoinvest4yourself241]

I love this

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Thank you!

[@chickenhawkfarmstead8478]

Bless you 3:28

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Thank you

[@sharonjennings1282]

Do you skip the freezing part of the harvest right when you do the lemon head and you warm them up or do you wanna but still go ahead with the whole procedure?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

I haven’t done LemonHeads yet. Since I have the software version with Candy Mode, you have the option to warm the trays first and then choose how long you want to dry. If you go to my latest video on Bit O Honeys, I show how to put in Candy Mode.

[@laurenstefanowicz3034]

Hey David, I’m just starting out my freeze dried business. Do you have any mentorship things?? Thanks!

[@briannaburke2572]

What size bags do you offer for sale? Also, does it cost more to run a larger freeze dryer or is it just a bigger space??

[@freezedriedbusiness]

I use these bags to sell to customers: Kraft Food Bags (100 counts) - amzn.to/3iGpi8n. Electricity bill will be higher the larger the freeze dryer

[@mrfirstime5750]

Packaging means a lot love what you recommend

[@debbiepires317]

Do you need to freeze things before you use the freeze dryer

[@freezedriedbusiness]

No, the freezer dryer will freeze your food and then dry it

[@sheetalchakravarty2502]

​@freezedriedbusiness Hi David, great video ! Wouldn't it make sense to freeze the produce or candy first in your refrigerator freezer section & then use the freeze dried mach on candy mode with high temp 140 degrees...it will freeze dry faster may be within an hour or so, saving more on electricity & hourly rental space cost? Did you ever try this?

[@luigivendittelli164]

Which unit do you recommend for purchase?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

I recommend the Harvest Right XL: affiliates.harvestright.com/1974.html This is the best size for starting a business because of the capacity. They have a $500 off sale right now through the end of August or you can wait until Black Friday which they usually have sales too.

[@pattibuckman2473]

Can you freeze dry jelly beans. Or Swedish fish..

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Worth a try, that's what's fun about this industry!

[@snoozeandrelax]

How are you printing on the kraft bags?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

I hand stamp them all!

[@TheRealBatCave]

What do u think in terms of the medium vs Large harvest right in relation to candy, i want it for food, my wife wants to do the candy the price difference is 1000$, is the large the better option in my situation do you think, or should i just stick with the medium?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Large hands-down. There is a huge significance in the amount of food or candy you can do in the Large on one cycle/run in the machine versus the Medium. Also in my opinion the Large Harvest Right resells better if you end up selling it. If you do end up purchasing, would you mind purchasing from Harvest Right using my affiliate link; affiliates.harvestright.com/1974.html. THANK YOU!

[@PosterityOf1776]

Go with the large. You'll be happy. Go with medium and you'll regret it. I'm glad i went LARGE!

[@beckyhild1140]

YOU DO NEED A DEDICATED LINE

[@TheRealBatCave]

@@beckyhild1140 thats a 10 minute fix tho, at least in my situation

[@TheRealBatCave]

​@@freezedriedbusinesswhat do u think of all.the upgrades all the machines just got? Like the extra tray in them all lol. I bought the large then a few weeks later the came out with the extra tray.......i bought the 7 tray XL latwr on and its been having huge software issues.....we have done 3 updates so far

[@merleobrien6646]

does anyone know where I can buy wholesale? I am looking to see if this makes sense as an add on for my business before I buy my own freeze dryer- thank you

[@freezedriedbusiness]

I sell wholesale, send me an email with what you are thinking either in bulk product or in bags. [e-mail]

[@jadsalame835]

Hey! Question: Can you actually use a brand (e.g. London dairy icecream) and freeze dry it and then sell it? Would that be legal?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Absolutely! I wouldn’t use the London Dairy name in your product name, put it in the ingredients section

[@briannaburke2572]

What are the dimensions of a medium vs an xl freeze dryer?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

I don’t know about the medium but I did a comparison to the large in this video: Harvest Right Freeze Dryer | XL REVIEW | SPECS | FREEZE DRYER BENEFITS kzbin.info/www/bejne/qKaZeZWQp6h8r7M

[@jayrice9106]

where in idaho?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Located in Boise

[@TimberlineMountainLife]

@@freezedriedbusiness me too! Thinking about starting a FD business, but not sure I want to rent a commercial kitchen.... decisions, decisions. 🤔

[@Getraging]

Awesome. Do you print your own packaging?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Great question and thank you for watching the video! I currently hand-stamp all of my packaging and then have individual labels on the back for each product with ingredients etc.

[@Getraging]

@@freezedriedbusiness great info! Thank you for the reply!

[@katopeterson5179]

Where did you Buy the stamp to do that? Did you have to make it?

[@michaelcook1766]

What’s the best machine for a beginner

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Large Harvest Right, if you are doing it for a business. You will want every available amount of space to freeze dry your products. The medium is less expensive but there’s a huge difference in how much you can freeze dry compared to the Large

[@gigihenderson8567]

Even if it’s not for business, the large is a better bet. If you luck into 20 pounds of apples or strawberries, you will be able to do them all in the large, where you would have to do at least 2 batches in the Medium.

[@fygmicrogreens]

How the heck do your candies all look so spherical? I've even tried (with taffy) rolling them into balls before I dry them and it still doesn't look as good as yours.

[@edgotbait]

Also you may want to do a video on dog /cat treats

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Great suggestion, what dog/cat treats have you attempted?

[@edgotbait]

@@freezedriedbusiness I have not My friend who raises quail uses the wings (feathers on ) ,head ,feet from knee down lungs ,heart ,liver I want to try hours old quail chicks or mice ,rats I think it would be a better option than frozen in your freezer but something that needs to be tested. To makes sure it rehydrates well and will the reptile like it

[@edgotbait]

@@freezedriedbusiness definitely something with pumpkin in it it’s very good for animals

[@TimberlineMountainLife]

@@freezedriedbusiness I've tried beef heart and liver dog treats and they turned out awesome - my dogs went crazy for them! Also, if you do them in larger chunks, they break in half perfectly for smaller dogs. I did learn recently that vitamin A toxicity is a real thing, so you should only give your dog a maximum of 1-2 treats a day.

[@TheChiliPrepper]

Peas weren’t my favorite, they reconstitute great though. Corn is a little better but again, reconstitutes awesome!

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Good to know! Thank you for watching!

[@raydogloc8127]

How much cash flow do you average a month?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Enough that I'm on Year 3 of doing this as a side hustle.

[@raydogloc8127]

@@freezedriedbusiness ever think of expanding your business?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

I've expanded before and couldn't balance it all so I scaled back.

[@raydogloc8127]

@@freezedriedbusiness how much did you spend a month on electricity? If you don’t mind me asking.

[@freezedriedbusiness]

It's usually around $4-$6 per cycle that I run in the freeze dryer

[@camerongeorge4246]

Do you need any license to sell freeze dried food?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Yes typically a cottage food license or food establishment permit

[@NANA-ty5jr]

Depends on your state. Not all states require it. Michigan where I’m from does not require one.

[@ThePatriotPirate]

Do you make enough doing this business that you do it full time with no other jobs outside of this?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

No I still have a full-time job although I think there's plenty of opportunity to make it a full time business if you put together a business plan. Just selling candy isn't going to get you very far. My advice is either develop a brand that sets you apart even though you may sell the same items OR research and develop something unique as a recipe and make a business out of it.

[@ThePatriotPirate]

@@freezedriedbusiness mind if I ask how much profit per month you’re currently able to make doing this? I’ve been working hard to minimize all my expenses so I need less and less to live on so curious if it could make enough for my needs

[@momsmushroomsjodyfoster5786]

What would happen if I freeze dried Elderberry gummies

[@freezedriedbusiness]

I’ve looked into Elderberry’s but haven’t tried, let me know how it goes if you do

[@kaitlin25cheer]

Do you think the market is over saturated or do you think businesses can still be successful starting in 2023?

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Great question! It’s a topic I plan to discuss in a video soon. The short answer is yes, it is much more saturated than 2-3 years ago when I started my business BUT it depends on where you live, your products, your story and many more factors. Think of it this way, how many small businesses do you see at a local market selling custom cutting boards, jewelry, flowers? Everyone is selling the same thing but in different ways that connect with different people. Yes you can still be successful in Freeze-drying!

[@karinemikesell8981]

thank you for all your videos. To sell in any business do I need more than a LLC? IN IDAHO

[@sarames9256]

I did bananas, some of them tasted good, others tasted like plain plantain chips :/

[@freezedriedbusiness]

I did a video on Bananas, if you want to take a look kzbin.info/www/bejne/m4GtZ4JjlNqmhJI

[@strengthandsplendour]

Jolly Balls 😅

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Gotta use creative names!

[@celestehusband1685]

Have you tried watermelon

[@freezedriedbusiness]

I have not, I've heard since there is so much water in Watermelon you end up with with wafer size pieces and there's not much flavor left. But try it and let me know.

[@brianschindler1511]

👍👍👍👍👍

[@arletdevisser4591]

Too much sugar in those ideas! Sugar is so bad...ugh! I want to focus on healthy foods.

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Yes, lots of sugar but it's what is selling the most for side-businesses and cottage food but I sell more fruit than anything in my business. These are just ideas that I found sell the most starting out.

[@KM-os8lb]

I agree. Have you seen the video from Living Traditions Homestead. They freeze dry cheese into several flavors of crunchy yumminess (for those that can tolerate dairy).

[@AmericanNightmare89]

Ugh! Why do Karen's like you exist??? 😅

[@jackhinkle8844]

Then keep scrolling

[@Reggaeshark.]

Too many unhealthy foods. Missing out the true benefits of nutrient rich foods

[@freezedriedbusiness]

So true but it’s what is selling the best and the quickest hence the top selling items. I actually sell about 70% fruit in the my freeze dried business than the sweets.

[@bloodlove93]

he's talking business not your diet einstein, and currently sugar after fd sells for more most other things fd,especially when you look at profit margins, fd steak and eggs meal is more expensive and time consuming for you,and vs something like skittles? no comparison, you fit tons in,no weird timing or swapping,low front end cost etc. and it also depends where you live, where i am i could easily sell fruit,but not fruit powders for smoothies or veggie powder for "green drinks" but if i traveled several hours to silicon valley I'd be doing the exact opposite probably. also depends on your business, I'm starting a fruit based business, branching into everything from fresh,gummies,shaved ice with homemade syrup,soooo much much, and tbh selling candy alongside fruit is a helluva lot easier sell than selling spaghetti or celery or whatever else you'd personally use one for if you had one.

[@YadraVoat]

Constructive feedback: Terrible lighting, wardrobe selection (especially the forehead-unflattering hat), camera angles, and background. Moreover the pacing of the video is unfocused and there are no chapters in the metadata, video description, or pinned comment, so I don't know where to jump to what I want to study. Content-wise, it seems all about sugary things, which is not what I was looking for. Best wishes, fellow traveler. 🙏

[@robertliddell2333]

Candy!! Now that’s useful for survival!

[@jasongrooming36]

Should call jolly ranchers happy herders.

[@freezedriedbusiness]

Hilarious!

[@ClassicKas]

Mine are happy cowboys 😂

[@mattsoffroad2637]

Starburst turned out better than taffy

[@freezedriedbusiness]

I thought it was similar to the jolly rancher texture but definitely more flavor.

[@robertliddell2333]

Cookie Dough!