We tried it this past weekend. They turned out awsome!!! I didn't even have to pre-freeze and it took less then 30hrs (hard to say for sure, added time because it was going to be done in the middle of the night). Thank you so much for sharing. :)
I really don't think you would be happy with those results. If the cherry tomatoes did hydrate they would be mushy just as they would be if you froze them and thawed them out.
Mr.John, have you tried this trick with blueberries by chance? I am just wondering as I have a few packages of blueberries and dreading trying to poke holes in all those berries but I want them whole and not chopped..
I just picked and froze Concord grapes, whole, cuz I didn’t have time to make juice for jelly,….I hadn’t seen your video yet….nor did I own my FD yet, lol…..do you think I can still put into FD? From freezer wo par boiling?
Another great great vid. Something that you may want to look into is getting a spider strainer type of a tool where you can get greater amounts of food out of your pot much quicker than a slotted spoon. You are the man.
I think a spaghetti pot would work better so they could all be taken out at once. Doing it with a spoon as you did meant that a good many of the grapes were blanched too long and I believe that destroys some of the nutrients.
Thanks for the suggestion. I think the way I did it is better because not all the grapes float at the same time, thus I scooped them out as they came to the top. Floating grapes is critical because it indicates that the skins have softened enough to let the FD do its job. If I used a spaghetti pot and took them all out at once then the grapes that floated first would have stayed in much longer then the last ones that come to the top. Small batches when blanching is the key so that you can keep up with the floating grapes. I hope this helps.
I just did grapes, cut in half, frozen and ran them for two full cycles. They are still a little gummy and I had decided I wouldn’t try again. Then you did this video and I think I’m going to have to try again using this method!
Me too! I did one batch of cut in half red grapes and they were very sticky so I didn’t plan to try again. I was quitting too soon! Can’t wait to give this method a try.
Me too! I had given up on the grapes, headed to Sam's right now to get grapes to try again. Thanks! The float after blanching was cool, had no idea. Do you think this would work with blueberries? That's another one I haven't had much luck with.
So, the green grapes you said you were putting in the freezer until solid, but the red grapes you said were going straight to the freeze dryer--is this correct? Do you not freeze them before putting them in the freeze dryer or not?
Thanks for watching at 12:13 I say OK stick that in the freezer, I will do the rest off camera. I had to watch it again to make sure I didn't miss speak but I did say I stick them in the freezer. (I always pre freeze everything I do)
Have you tried to freeze dry grapes by cutting in half or poking holes? Takes about 70 to 90 hours to get sub par grapes. Many people have complained and said they would never do them again. This process is easy, short cycle and the grapes come out great
@@JohnInBibs You are so right ---- Hours and Hours of prep time slicing grapes and it is a game changer blanching the grapes. It is 1:19 in the morning and I am going to go out into the kitchen and do some grapes.
@@wd1501 Please make sure to share your fantastic results, it is kind of hard to get the word out when the accepted standard is to cut in half and poke holes. I am positive you will get great results, just be sure to scoop them out as soon as they float and ice bath them to cool them down quick.
Both good questions, that I don't have an answer for. I would guess that grapes are about 90 percent water so 10lbs fd is probably about 1lb dry. My electric has gone up about 50.00 a month and I pretty much run the FDr 5 days a week
I would say that the red ones were softer because they were near the end of their marketable shelf life, which explains why they were marked down to 99 cents per pound.
Cutting isn't a problem-get two plastic lids from food containers, put grapes between them, and run a knife between the plates. Works great. That's how we did our first batch, didn't take nearly as long as the blanching process in this video. I'd like to try blanching because I think the grapes will be more like the commercial grapes I had that made me want to try them. The skins on the red grapes are thicker and tougher than I'd like and you end up with a mouth full of the little pieces of skin after you are done eating. Blanching might soften them a bit first. No issues with green grapes this way FWIW.
@@JohnInBibs I did Gala Apples, sliced in eights. Sprinkled some with brown sugar & cinnamon, some plain and some with just cinnamon, all are good but I like the brown sugar and cinnamon best. Next time I will slice them in 16th. Great crispy snack.
Have you ever tried blanching blueberries before freeze drying them? We had some trouble with blueberries drying all the way and wondered if that would work.
I just did grapes the other day (cut in half, no blanching) and they turned out chewy still. I also tried cherries as well (pitted) and they came out chewy too. Do you think cherries would do better blanched as well - and should you blanch them first and then pit them - or the other way around? I'll give your method a try and see if my grapes come out better. We did plums in the same batch as the grapes, sliced like apples and they came out fantastic!
John In Bibs very cool! We are growing a big garden and I want to preserve or did with the freeze dryer instead of just canning. Can't wait. Good day it was worth it for the freeze dryer?
Thank you I was having a HORRIBLE time getting grapes to freeze dry and I have tried everything! The Amish sell them for about .25 cents a pound here but you must buy an entire FLAT! that is 15 pounds of grapes LOL
Wine... that gives me a idea. I make wine. I wonder if the grapes can be freeze dried and reconstituted now and used in a batch of wine. 🤔 hmm powered and add water to make juice. I will try.
I know, I know.. I said in the today’s video I was going to watch this “in a minute” and here I am several hours later. Here’s why: I watch RUclips through my Roku on a 10yr old TV. I have no way of leaving comments or clicking links & have to pick up my phone for this part. I don’t like watching on my phone and figured I could find this vid searching your channel.. and got lost in other vids along the way 🤣. I want to thank @wd1501 for suggesting the spider strainer. Didn’t know what they were called and added one to my Amzn list of things to get. I am surprised that there have been over 12k views of this vid but only 111 comments have been made. I know analytics pushes your vids out to more people with more comments, likes as well as views. Dismayed with 12k views and only 694 likes though. It’s like people aren’t aware that with just viewing the video analytics will push more of your videos into their feed. A like or comment won’t push more than just the view will, so there’s really no extra cost to them to give a thumbs up (regardless of whether they actually liked it or not). Feel bad that with 14k+ subs you’re not getting more thumbs up, etc. If you haven’t figured it out by now, I leave long messages 😂, you should see my Googl reviews. I’m just now giving reaction to this vid’s content. It appears Blanching is the key to freeze drying fruits with skin. Even asparagus FD’s better with blanching. It’s an extra step but definitely worth it. I appreciate your providing this informative vid and insights!! Thank you!
Thank you for the nice comment. I hope your detour thru my channel was enjoyable! The spider strainer is still in my wish list on Amazon, but sadly I keep putting off ordering it. It would definitely be better then the slotted spoon. I agree with your likes vision. It doesn't cost anything to press that thumbs up and it really helps youtubers grow their channel. I try not to ask for the thumbs up or subscribe buttons to be clicked because I am worried that people don't really like to be reminded how important that function is. I would love to have 100,000 subs. But I realize that I am an older man that kind of attracts viewers from my age range. I've been told that I should show my face (which would increase subs). But I am also uncomfortable doing that as well. I enjoy my freeze drying hobby and enjoy making the videos so I figure that is what is important. Hopefully my regular viewers enjoy watching them and will tell others about the channel. Thank you again for taking the time to write your comment. It must take a lot of effort to write that on a cell phone and is greatly appreciated!
@JohnInBibs I disagree with the idea that showing your face would increase subs, but then perhaps it’s just me. There’s this one gambling Tuber I sub who has 2 or more people who contribute their voices to his videos who never show their faces and he’s increasing subs daily. His son who runs the channel only started showing his face recently. I’ve seen that you have a beard, you accidentally(?) got it in the shot. Only someone like myself may have noticed it. Another Tuber has said “nobody wants to see my face.” His grandmother contributes to his channel and has only made appearances because he doesn’t pay attention to how much the camera records. He’s only shown his face on perhaps 10 of the thousand videos of his, and I think only because I brought it up. Now that he has, I would rather not see it LOL! There are plenty of Tubers who don’t show their faces who have thousands of subs, but yes it seems like the ones that do have 100’s of thousands. But then I think it’s their content that drives those subs, not to mention those that are interviewers and Have To show theirs. Your videos are informative enough, I appreciate how much you show, though you don’t mention how long the FD’ing takes, that’s usually the information potential new freeze drying purchasers want to know. I wasn’t aware of your age, I can kind of tell by your hands, but not knowing is part of the “mystery” 😉.
I also was thinking that you should try a spider strainer, too. I bought a 3 in a pack from Amazon.com. They come in three different sizes and, I feel, would make your scooping out a whole lot easier! Love your videos, John. God bless you. D
We tried it this past weekend. They turned out awsome!!! I didn't even have to pre-freeze and it took less then 30hrs (hard to say for sure, added time because it was going to be done in the middle of the night). Thank you so much for sharing. :)
Thank you
Thanks.
Thank you. This explain why my grapes were still chewy after 42 hours. I didn’t know I have to blanch them. Going to try your method this weekend.
Thanks!
Thank you so much!
Great video, Thanks!
for sharing :)
Thank you too!
Do you think this method would work with
Grape tomatoes? And hydrate well?
I really don't think you would be happy with those results. If the cherry tomatoes did hydrate they would be mushy just as they would be if you froze them and thawed them out.
Mr.John, have you tried this trick with blueberries by chance? I am just wondering as I have a few packages of blueberries and dreading trying to poke holes in all those berries but I want them whole and not chopped..
Sorry, I have not. I keep meaning to but never do it LOL
can I do the same with blueberries?
I just picked and froze Concord grapes, whole, cuz I didn’t have time to make juice for jelly,….I hadn’t seen your video yet….nor did I own my FD yet, lol…..do you think I can still put into FD? From freezer wo par boiling?
Interesting, Thank you
Thanks for the tutorial.
Can you do blueberries the same way?
I don't know
What does the blanching process do?? Can you reconstitute these ?? Great video. Thank you.
Is boiling really needed?
What does the blanching do to make it whet you don’t have to slice? Would halving them make the freeze drying quicker?
Another great great vid. Something that you may want to look into is getting a spider strainer type of a tool where you can get greater amounts of food out of your pot much quicker than a slotted spoon. You are the man.
Thank you for your very good video. Can you tell me the temperature settings of the device during the freezing and drying stages?
I use factory settings and have never changed them in the 5 years. I do add extra dry time, I always Freeze dry for 40 plus hours.
Thanks
Are they sticky on the outside at all?
yes until they cool down
I think a spaghetti pot would work better so they could all be taken out at once. Doing it with a spoon as you did meant that a good many of the grapes were blanched too long and I believe that destroys some of the nutrients.
Thanks for the suggestion. I think the way I did it is better because not all the grapes float at the same time, thus I scooped them out as they came to the top. Floating grapes is critical because it indicates that the skins have softened enough to let the FD do its job. If I used a spaghetti pot and took them all out at once then the grapes that floated first would have stayed in much longer then the last ones that come to the top. Small batches when blanching is the key so that you can keep up with the floating grapes. I hope this helps.
I just bought a bunch of grapes to try. So glad im watching your video before doing them because i hadnt planned on blanching first!
Fantastic, when you get the great results by following the video will you come back and post for others to see? Thanks!
Which ones did you like better the green or the red?
I am partial to the green ones but both are out of this world
so if you used say Concord grapes and after fd ing them you ground it to a powder,it should be instant grape juice ???
I've never tried that, sounds feasible.
I just did grapes, cut in half, frozen and ran them for two full cycles. They are still a little gummy and I had decided I wouldn’t try again. Then you did this video and I think I’m going to have to try again using this method!
Give it one more try, I believe you will like this way
YES ME 2!!! Going to morrow to get more grapes to try this way!
Me too! I did one batch of cut in half red grapes and they were very sticky so I didn’t plan to try again. I was quitting too soon! Can’t wait to give this method a try.
@@kayeredwine9685 yes!!! This works awesome 👌
Me too! I had given up on the grapes, headed to Sam's right now to get grapes to try again. Thanks! The float after blanching was cool, had no idea. Do you think this would work with blueberries? That's another one I haven't had much luck with.
I am trying this today. Thanks for the video. Why do you weigh your trays?????
I weigh my trays to stay under the maximum weight recommended by Harvest Right
@@JohnInBibs thanks. I have actually never paid any attention to that 🤦🏼♀️
I never knew that they were blanch and float like this! This is amazing! Thanks for the video. ❤️ ~~Sharon
Thanks for this. I have to try it. I'm also going to try it with a few other things that don't freeze dry well.
Perfect show and tell on the blanching.
Thanks!
So, the green grapes you said you were putting in the freezer until solid, but the red grapes you said were going straight to the freeze dryer--is this correct? Do you not freeze them before putting them in the freeze dryer or not?
Thanks for watching at 12:13 I say OK stick that in the freezer, I will do the rest off camera. I had to watch it again to make sure I didn't miss speak but I did say I stick them in the freezer. (I always pre freeze everything I do)
@@JohnInBibs thanks-just wanted to confirm:)
Would this work with cranberries?
I don't know... I wonder if it would 🤔
You're my hero! Thank you!
I wonder if this would work with blueberries. It seems like it would be same results.
Did you ever try it with blueberries? How was it?
These are great! Thank you for all your awesome recipes!
Thank You blanching this way is certainly the way to go
Why are you blanching the grapes?
Have you tried to freeze dry grapes by cutting in half or poking holes? Takes about 70 to 90 hours to get sub par grapes. Many people have complained and said they would never do them again. This process is easy, short cycle and the grapes come out great
@@JohnInBibs You are so right ---- Hours and Hours of prep time slicing grapes and it is a game changer blanching the grapes. It is 1:19 in the morning and I am going to go out into the kitchen and do some grapes.
@@wd1501 Please make sure to share your fantastic results, it is kind of hard to get the word out when the accepted standard is to cut in half and poke holes. I am positive you will get great results, just be sure to scoop them out as soon as they float and ice bath them to cool them down quick.
How much does 10 lbs weigh after the process is complete and what's the cost % increase or additional cost in energy usage.
Both good questions, that I don't have an answer for. I would guess that grapes are about 90 percent water so 10lbs fd is probably about 1lb dry. My electric has gone up about 50.00 a month and I pretty much run the FDr 5 days a week
Thank you for doing this ! Can't wait to try it
I would say that the red ones were softer because they were near the end of their marketable shelf life, which explains why they were marked down to 99 cents per pound.
Amazing! I can’t wait to try
Excellent! How did I miss this one before? Next grape sale this is happening. 🙂
What if the grapes are a lot larger? Will it still work well or would I have to do them different?
Do you sell these?
Sorry no I don't
I'm am so trying this. Would sure beat cutting them. Thank you
Cutting isn't a problem-get two plastic lids from food containers, put grapes between them, and run a knife between the plates. Works great. That's how we did our first batch, didn't take nearly as long as the blanching process in this video. I'd like to try blanching because I think the grapes will be more like the commercial grapes I had that made me want to try them. The skins on the red grapes are thicker and tougher than I'd like and you end up with a mouth full of the little pieces of skin after you are done eating. Blanching might soften them a bit first. No issues with green grapes this way FWIW.
What temp did you do them at?
I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong I've tried to do cherries and grapes now and I cut them in half and they just stay chewy
Also when you boil them do they lose any flavor?
They taste like candy. Technically they don't come to a boil before they float. Normal settings on freeze dryer
@@JohnInBibs on mine when I start my freeze dryer it says to set the temperature to 80 or 90 degrees
@@JohnInBibs I have some in freeze dryer now and the temperature is set to 95 degrees
I wonder if cranberries would work by doing this? Has anyone tried??
watching you blanch the produce and scoop them out. some reason fish in a barrel comes to mind lol
LOL 😆. I was thinking bobbing for apples but probably not a good idea with boiling water
@@JohnInBibs 🤣🤣🤣
😂
I did grapes the other day and they didn’t turn out so I will try your method.
You will not be disappointed!
@@JohnInBibs I did Gala Apples, sliced in eights. Sprinkled some with brown sugar & cinnamon, some plain and some with just cinnamon, all are good but I like the brown sugar and cinnamon best. Next time I will slice them in 16th. Great crispy snack.
@@donnastafford9799 Sounds delicious!
outstanding !
Have you ever tried blanching blueberries before freeze drying them? We had some trouble with blueberries drying all the way and wondered if that would work.
Sorry I have not. I need to try that
mine didn't dry when I tried it. They just turned into big raisins
hmm thats strange, my blanched grapes always come out fantastic
@@JohnInBibs I never blanched mine. I just cut them in half. Going to try it your way now. And oranges too
i love your videos!
That looks good! How much does one of those freeze dryers cost?
A lot
👍👍👍👍👍
Do you always prefreeze??
Yes always.
I’ll try this next time to compare the difference
I just did grapes the other day (cut in half, no blanching) and they turned out chewy still. I also tried cherries as well (pitted) and they came out chewy too. Do you think cherries would do better blanched as well - and should you blanch them first and then pit them - or the other way around? I'll give your method a try and see if my grapes come out better. We did plums in the same batch as the grapes, sliced like apples and they came out fantastic!
I have never tried blanching cherries. I bet it would work but getting the pits out after might be an issue
Always enjoy your videos John!
I have only done ✅ grapes 🍇 your method! I cannot compare but I can say 3# gone in a day! Soo deeelious!
This reminds me of the hot air balloons at the festival in Albuquerque!
I want one! One day soon! Do you have the oil free pump? Liked and subscribed.
Thanks for the sub. I have the oil pump. Couldn't justify the extra expense as I am mechanically inclined
John In Bibs very cool! We are growing a big garden and I want to preserve or did with the freeze dryer instead of just canning. Can't wait. Good day it was worth it for the freeze dryer?
For sure, best investment I ever made
Thank you I was having a HORRIBLE time getting grapes to freeze dry and I have tried everything! The Amish sell them for about .25 cents a pound here but you must buy an entire FLAT! that is 15 pounds of grapes LOL
Wow, what a bargain!
@@JohnInBibs yes sir it really is! So I wanted to try saving some. TY
I'm uhhh, "told" these are really good in wine.....
LOL
Wine... that gives me a idea. I make wine. I wonder if the grapes can be freeze dried and reconstituted now and used in a batch of wine. 🤔 hmm powered and add water to make juice. I will try.
@@fredsanford4116 did you ever try this? Curious...
Freeze Dried Grapes.
Do you just eat the grapes for snacks, or have you tried to reconstitute them?
Just snacks and they don't last long!
I know, I know.. I said in the today’s video I was going to watch this “in a minute” and here I am several hours later. Here’s why: I watch RUclips through my Roku on a 10yr old TV. I have no way of leaving comments or clicking links & have to pick up my phone for this part. I don’t like watching on my phone and figured I could find this vid searching your channel.. and got lost in other vids along the way 🤣.
I want to thank @wd1501 for suggesting the spider strainer. Didn’t know what they were called and added one to my Amzn list of things to get.
I am surprised that there have been over 12k views of this vid but only 111 comments have been made. I know analytics pushes your vids out to more people with more comments, likes as well as views. Dismayed with 12k views and only 694 likes though. It’s like people aren’t aware that with just viewing the video analytics will push more of your videos into their feed. A like or comment won’t push more than just the view will, so there’s really no extra cost to them to give a thumbs up (regardless of whether they actually liked it or not). Feel bad that with 14k+ subs you’re not getting more thumbs up, etc.
If you haven’t figured it out by now, I leave long messages 😂, you should see my Googl reviews. I’m just now giving reaction to this vid’s content. It appears Blanching is the key to freeze drying fruits with skin. Even asparagus FD’s better with blanching. It’s an extra step but definitely worth it. I appreciate your providing this informative vid and insights!!
Thank you!
Thank you for the nice comment. I hope your detour thru my channel was enjoyable! The spider strainer is still in my wish list on Amazon, but sadly I keep putting off ordering it. It would definitely be better then the slotted spoon. I agree with your likes vision. It doesn't cost anything to press that thumbs up and it really helps youtubers grow their channel. I try not to ask for the thumbs up or subscribe buttons to be clicked because I am worried that people don't really like to be reminded how important that function is. I would love to have 100,000 subs. But I realize that I am an older man that kind of attracts viewers from my age range. I've been told that I should show my face (which would increase subs). But I am also uncomfortable doing that as well. I enjoy my freeze drying hobby and enjoy making the videos so I figure that is what is important. Hopefully my regular viewers enjoy watching them and will tell others about the channel. Thank you again for taking the time to write your comment. It must take a lot of effort to write that on a cell phone and is greatly appreciated!
@JohnInBibs
I disagree with the idea that showing your face would increase subs, but then perhaps it’s just me. There’s this one gambling Tuber I sub who has 2 or more people who contribute their voices to his videos who never show their faces and he’s increasing subs daily. His son who runs the channel only started showing his face recently.
I’ve seen that you have a beard, you accidentally(?) got it in the shot. Only someone like myself may have noticed it.
Another Tuber has said “nobody wants to see my face.” His grandmother contributes to his channel and has only made appearances because he doesn’t pay attention to how much the camera records. He’s only shown his face on perhaps 10 of the thousand videos of his, and I think only because I brought it up. Now that he has, I would rather not see it LOL!
There are plenty of Tubers who don’t show their faces who have thousands of subs, but yes it seems like the ones that do have 100’s of thousands. But then I think it’s their content that drives those subs, not to mention those that are interviewers and Have To show theirs.
Your videos are informative enough, I appreciate how much you show, though you don’t mention how long the FD’ing takes, that’s usually the information potential new freeze drying purchasers want to know.
I wasn’t aware of your age, I can kind of tell by your hands, but not knowing is part of the “mystery” 😉.
I also was thinking that you should try a spider strainer, too. I bought a 3 in a pack from Amazon.com. They come in three different sizes and, I feel, would make your scooping out a whole lot easier! Love your videos, John. God bless you. D