Freeze Drying Your First 500 lbs of Food - Batch 13 - Ground Beef, Lean, Coarse Ground
HTML-код
- Опубликовано: 13 сен 2024
- Freeze dryer batch #13 - 10 lbs of Ground Beef - lean, home ground. Started freeze drying this batch May 18th.
Want to support this channel? Buy me a coffee :-) www.buymeacoff...
First 500 lbs data spreadsheet link: docs.google.co...
Batch worksheet link: docs.google.co...
Cost of the what: About $35 for 10 lbs (after trimming the fat off)
Total batch time: 29 hours 30 minutes
Weight before drying: 10 lbs Weight after drying: 1490 grams (about 3 1/4 lb)
Power use: 22.61 kWh
Bagged into: 10 quart 7 mil Mylar bags with 300cc oxygen absorbers.
This list is about getting started on a 500 lb mixed pantry of freeze dried foods in 100 days.
(This may be a bit optimistic and perhaps it'll only be 400 lbs)
Goal of about 85 lbs per category. (100 lbs per category if we don't do the Meals/Dishes)
1) Meats:
2) Vegetables:
3) Fruits:
4) Dairy:
5) Grain / Starch:
6) Meals / Dishes:
Want to support this channel? Buy me a coffee :-) www.buymeacoff...
AFFILIATE LINKS & REFERRALS - I earn from qualifying purchases from the links provided
───────────────
As an Amazon Affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases from the links provided. By clicking on the links, you can explore the products and tools I use.
www.amazon.com...
---------------------------------------------------
PackFreshUSA
We have been buying oxygen absorbers and 7 mil Mylar bags from PackFreshUSA since early 2018. During all that time (1000's of bag and oxygen absorbers, and about 6 year before before we added this affiliate link) we have been happy with the products and service we have received from them.
I earn from qualifying purchases from the links provided. - packfreshusa.c...
Use the discount code "SchoolReports5" to get 10% off your first purchase when using the link.
---------------------------------------------------
Harvest Right - If you are thinking of buying a freeze dryer, please consider supporting us by purchasing through our link. It helps us and costs you nothing!
affiliates.har...
───────────────
Before buying a freeze dryer, perhaps research to find out more about the downside of the machine; some people have problems with their machine and it's big and heavy and hard to return!
When trying to decide what to freeze dry you can start by asking why.
Start by asking yourself this question. Why are you freeze drying food? Knowing this should help you decide what you should freeze dry first.
I'm freeze drying because:
Just to freeze dry leftovers?
You want to make your own food for camping/backpacking?
For if/when the SHTF?
For a short term emergency?
You have your own garden and want to freeze dry the food?
You love Costco but don't have a family of 6?
You are good at finding the food sales but only have 1 freezer?
When you cook homemade chili just for yourself you make 10 gallons? Because you have 3 full freezers and are worried about power outages?
If I knew then what I know now, I would have freeze dried things in a different order. Or maybe not, because I started freeze drying because we had 3 full freezers, I was thinking of getting another one, and I decided I should buy a walk-in freezer instead. I started looking into walk-ins and realized they were expensive to buy (even used ones) AND expensive to own and operate. Then I found out Harvest Right was making home sized freeze dryers. One of my first thoughts was "I like Mountain House!" I have used their food for backpacking almost 45 years and we even kept some in our travel trailer, for just in case.
Freeze dried food will stay fresh for many years and be ready and waiting when you need it.
We do videos showing how we are using our Harvest Right Freeze Dryer to freeze dry food for long term storage. (We have the medium size machine that we got in August of 2017) We talk about how to load and unload the freeze dryer, how to know if the food is dry, is it better to freeze dry raw food or cooked food, and do a few taste tests. Freeze dried food is also great for prepping or just for camping and snacking!
First 500 lbs data spreadsheet link: docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ieekdk5aH_2OWLUealeOLurU9_zl03BfFEg_qhAgcaA/edit?usp=sharing
Batch worksheet link: docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/13DCB2hXo9_ZYrhIUicLk2IrEaQGszwbaJTcEH8wJxk4/edit?usp=sharing
Want to support this work? Buy me a coffee :-) www.buymeacoffee.com/DanZm
I'm having huge fun watching your videos. I've learned so much from the hard work you're both doing and I even found a chef store in my area. Thanks for teaching and sharing. Wishing you all the best!
Thanks for watching! Chef'Store😃
Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge. You are giving us a great education!
Thanks for watching.
I love this channel thank u love your method.
Thanks for watching and for commenting!
I tilt the rack just a bit to let the water run off while the freeze dryer is defrosting so the rack is dry when its finished.
If you are thinking about getting a freeze dryer and watching this video, don't give up. thinking it's too complicated. Half of what this man is doing is unnecessary. You don't have to rotate pans part way through and you don't have to measure the temperatures. Just put it in and let the machine do it's thing. If it isn't done when you take it out you simply put it back in and add a few more hours to your dry time. >. I'm not sure why he is doing all of this unless it's just to show us what takes place.
Freeze drying is _very simple_ and I point out that in many videos. I also do show _non-required_ but useful (to me) steps in the videos. It's also true that the trays don't have to be rotated, but the trays do not heat or dry evenly so I do.
If people trust the machine to tell them when it's dry, then they'll have no idea if it's dry or not and they're just guessing. I'm not a fan of guessing if the food is dry. The machines have no way of knowing if the food is actually dry. *_Period._* The machines are just to easy to "fool." The automation in our machines can only take it so far. If we loaded the trays the way the testing was done during programing the automation it would probably do better. But the machines are still very easy to "fool." For those who use "touch" to decide it the food is dry - No human can tell if things are dry by touch. Humans do not have moisture receptors - we can't feel moisture,
I'm not trying to convince anyone of anything, I'm just trying to show what I do, tell why, and show resources to back it up when I can.
@@SchoolReports I have just ordered my freeze dryer and I am doing a lot of research while I wait for its delivery, and the major question I have is how on earth you can know for sure that the food is completely dry. In this video, you have addressed that, in that you have to weigh it when the machine says it is done, give it another two hours, and if the weight is the same, then it really is done. So I presume you keep adding two hours at a time until you get two readings of where the weight is the same ? No one wants spoilt food after so much work.
Absolutely awesome!
Good stuff, I gotta get back into the game. Took about a 3 week break. Gonna start doing a bunch of proteins
Thanks. We have taken breaks of up to 5 weeks during the past 4 3/4 years. We've only been averaging about 110 batches per year.
Wouldn't it be simpler to add the thermometer BEFORE freezing, and not need the drill?? Just asking.
Good question, thanks for asking!
There is no reason (that I know of) that the thermometers couldn't be frozen in the slabs of food. I Have tried it and it worked fine, but it took more planning ahead for me. We often have many dozens of the blocks (up to 150+ blocks) in the freezer waiting for the freeze dryer, so we would need 1.2 zillion thermometers.🤣
With the way we prefreeze in the small pans we use, we need 10 blocks per freeze dryer load (8 whole blocks and 4 half blocks) but only 4 thermometers max. Another viewer suggested using stainless steel nails and prefreezing them in the blocks and then pulling them out and putting the thermometers in before putting them into the freeze dryer. I'm trying this with some stainless steel rods instead of nails. (video soon) One of my long time mottos to live by has been "Laziness is the mother of invention." If this ends up being quicker and easier than drilling, I'll switch!
👍👍👍👍👍
Hi, I have watched many of your videos and love the dividers you use. could you please let me know where I could get them. Thank you very much!
Thanks for watching and commenting!
The divider is something I designed and 3D printed to fit our pans. Here is the design and print video if you are interested; ruclips.net/video/3KLblPCTpHk/видео.html They were printed with ABS then vapor/acetone smoothed to seal them. It would probably be pretty easy to make dividers using foamcore or cardboard and then covering it with plastic wrap, for those without a printer. The pans are just some pans we bought at a local Dollar store. They were called 8x8" pans, but the bottoms are about 7x7", a perfect fit for our freeze dryer trays.
Another viewer used a laser cutter to make their dividers.
wow I just saw the video, amazing what you can do. Unfortunately I dont have a 3D printer, so I will have to figure out how to create my own. Thanks again!
Great videos; learning a lot from you. I also use a plastic french fry scoop similar to yours, but it is just a bit (1/2”?) wider than my medium trays. Did you cut yours to fit? If not, where can I get one the same dimensions as your scoop, as it seems to be the perfect size for the medium trays. Thanks!
Thanks for watching!
The scoop is something that I "adjusted" starting with a scoop I got from Amazon. Maybe the same one you have. (link in the description) This is how I changed the scoop - Food Scoop For Freeze Dryer Tray ruclips.net/video/trs26E42Zho/видео.html
It could be done without a 3D printer by heating up the cut off pieces with a heat gun (could be done over a toaster or in an oven) and I was able to easily flatten them. It would then be very easy to sand them to fit the side of the scoop and glue them on.
Thanks for the info!
I almost held my breath as you were drilling into the ground beef, afraid you were going to put a hole in your trays!😳
Ditto! 🤣
I always assumed I would drill my hand, not the tray! One of the viewers suggested freezing stainless steel rods in the food instead of drilling and I've pretty much stopped drilling.
Stainless Steel Rods for Thermometers - ruclips.net/video/Vtr786DcVi0/видео.htmlsi=8LY4cInGZZCAIYJ9
Hello! I am loving catching up on the videos in this series! I had another dumb question. I have been using a serrated knife to cut my rolls of parchment paper. I try cutting the inch out of the middle. Mine definitely do not look nice like yours and my way is a bit of a struggle. You mentioned you made a video on it but I have not found it yet. I will keep looking, but do you remember which video or your simple method? Thanks. ~Sharon
Ha! You're terrible at dumb questions; I've seen them before and that's not what they look like! 🤣 I tried my biggest knife first; it didn't do well.
Chop Saw!
Cutting Parchment Paper for our Freeze Dryer Trays ruclips.net/video/1fKKvZ8gDtQ/видео.html
@@SchoolReports Haha! You are too much of a gentleman to allow me to say I have a dumb question! 😊❤️ ~Sharon
@@GradeBmoviefan Thanks! But, no, really, this is the internet, If seen dumb questions. Really dumb questions!
SchoolReports 🤣
Where did you get the tray dividers or did you make them?
Thanks for watching and commenting!
The dividers are just something I made. The dividers are designed to fit the pans we got at a Dollar Tree store. The pans are a near perfect fit ** for our medium freeze dryer trays. (Turns out they have them online too www.dollartree.com/cooking-concepts-square-cake-pans-75-in/10065 ) The file is on Thingiverse. www.thingiverse.com/thing:3848619 (Some people feel that it's wrong to have food touch plastic - it's low on my personal risk list) I've updated the Thingiverse listing to include a new version of the divider that is slightly narrower at the bottom to fit more of the pans.
** Clarification on the 2 1/2 pans per tray; it only works IF the divider is the thickness I use. (or thicker) The freeze dryer trays actually
fits about 1/2" less than 2 1/2 pans; that's one reason I made the dividers that thick, that and to fit the magnets.
For those without a 3D printer, here's my best ideas for getting some 3D printed dividers. Lots of areas have Maker's places with people that would love to do it for you. Or, better yet, some schools have 3D printing labs. Check with a the local charter school that has junior high or high school age students. I taught 3D Design and Printing for 3+ years at a local 6th - 8th grade charter school. We loved it when we could find/were given a real-world project with a real need.
I did make a couple of the dividers without using the 3D printer a short time ago. It turns out it's an easy craft project and my sister says they are working well. (I will be making more non 3D printed ones, they're easy, cheap, and work!)
Making Dividers for My Pre-freeze Pans Without Using a 3D Printer (For Our Medium Freeze Dryer) ruclips.net/video/XNsbWn29xdE/видео.html
Stay tuned. 😁 I'm going to show another way using 1/2 thick cutting board. (For people with more tools and/or skills)
I alwsys use defrost button for 2 hrs. It would save me money to use fan. About how long does it take to defrost with fan.
Sorry i jumped the gun with my last question. I really should wait til end of viedo before asking questions. 😃
With defrosting by using the fan it usually takes about 2 to 4 hours. Our fan is always in the door except when the machine is running. However, if I'm in a hurry (almost never) to get the next batch in, after the fan has been blowing for a 1/2 hour or so, I just pull out the remaining ice to speed it along. I did this and will be showing it at the beginning of batch 515 - Mixed Berries, Frozen.
@@SchoolReports thank you
Did you happen to do a video of rehydrating the hamburger?
I haven't been rehydrating anything from this series yet. I have rehydrated hamburger in past videos, both raw, and cooked, and they have done well.
I do plan to do a lot of rehydrating videos with this food after I finish the 50 batches.
Where did you get the dividers for your trays? 5:12
Thanks for watching and commenting!
The dividers are just something I made. The dividers are designed to fit the pans we got at a Dollar Tree store. They were called 8x8" but the bottoms are about 7x7", 2 1/2 pans are a perfect fit ** for our medium freeze dryer trays. (Turns out they have them online too www.dollartree.com/cooking-concepts-square-cake-pans-75-in/10065 ) The file is on Thingiverse. www.thingiverse.com/thing:3848619 (Some people feel that it's wrong to have food touch plastic - it's low on my personal risk list) I've updated the Thingiverse listing to include a new version of the divider that is slightly narrower at the bottom to fit more of the pans.
** Clarification on the 2 1/2 pans per tray; it only works IF the divider is the thickness I use. (or thicker) The freeze dryer trays actually
fits about 1/2" less than 2 1/2 pans; that's one reason I made the dividers that thick, that and to fit the magnets.
For those without a 3D printer, here's my best ideas for getting some 3D printed dividers. Lots of areas have Maker's places with people that would love to do it for you. Or, better yet, some schools have 3D printing labs. Check with a the local charter school that has junior high or high school age students. I taught 3D Design and Printing for 3+ years at a local 6th - 8th grade charter school. We loved it when we could find/were given a real-world project with a real need.
I finally made a couple of the dividers without using the 3D printer a short time ago. It turns out it's an easy craft project and my sister says they are working well. (I will be making more non 3D printed ones, they're easy, cheap, and work!)
Making Dividers for My Pre-freeze Pans Without Using a 3D Printer (For Our Medium Freeze Dryer) ruclips.net/video/XNsbWn29xdE/видео.html
Stay tuned. 😁 I'm going to show another way using 1/2 thick cutting board. (For people with more tools and/or skills)
Perhaps you’ve said this before and I’ve missed it, but why don’t you put the thermometers in the meat before it’s frozen? Why wait until it’s frozen and you have to drill it out?
I don't think anyone has asked this exact question, but similar questions. It would work great (probably better) to put them in before freezing, however we sometimes have had more than 20 batches of food in the freezer awaiting their turn in the freeze dryer.
Just today I started a test suggested by another viewer. I put a stainless steel rod in the food before prefreezing, which I took out before freeze drying and replaced with the thermometer. I think this will work better than drilling, but I'll have to get better at planning ahead!
What is this chef store place?
CHEF'STORE is the restaurant supply store for foodservice professionals and open to everyone. It's chain of more than 80 stores, with most in the west. www.chefstore.com/locations/
I cooked 85% ground beef from Costco in skillet and rinsed meat with hot water. Freeze dried it and put in mason jar. About a weeek later I opened and it had a bit of an off odor. Not very appetizing. Same thing happened with sliced ham. Do you have that issue with your meats?
Thanks for watching and commenting!
I have yet to experience that with our food and we have used meats stored almost 6 years. (We don't wash our cooked meats after cooking, but that's a separate issue)
What method did you use as your _Dry Check?_
Did you have oxygen absorbers in you jars?
Did you keep your jars in an area with no light?
Putting Lots Of Fat In The Freeze Dryer - ruclips.net/video/43ieIl3EB8k/видео.html
Rehydrating 4 1/2 Year Old, Freeze Dried, Raw Hamburger Patties - ruclips.net/video/gL_fUza_wfI/видео.html
Rehydrating Freeze Dried Ham - ruclips.net/video/Y1Gea8bVZ50/видео.html
Rehydrating 4 1/2 year old Ham Slices - ruclips.net/video/4VYLE8IX_vA/видео.html
I would guess that raw, freeze dried meat may have a longer shelf life than cooked freeze dried meats. But it's just a guess based on some rancidity papers I've read, I have no data.
The main mechanisms for the fats to go rancid involve water and/or oxygen and can be triggered by light and accelerated by higher temperatures, including cooking. It would seem that freeze drying some foods raw that have fat _might_ be a good way to go. (Or maybe cooking at lower temperatures? 145ºf?) We are already removing the water, oxygen, and light.
There are plenty of scientific and industry papers out there about food rancidity, and I've found them to be very interesting and informative; here's one - Chemists define roughly two ways a product can turn rancid: (Super simplified ) 1. Oxidative rancidity: Reaction involves oxygen 2. Hydrolytic rancidity: Reaction involves water Rancidity of Food: Introduction, Types, Factors and Prevention of Rancidity | Food Chemistry | Biotechnology www.biotechnologynotes.com/food-biotechnology/food-chemistry/rancidity-of-food-introduction-types-factors-and-prevention-of-rancidity-food-chemistry-biotechnology/14100
Cooked vs Raw: In general I prefer to have as much of my stored food as possible already cooked and ready to eat, except for those we could eat raw anyway. That way, even if cooking or rehydrating later is not an option (for whatever reason), the food would still be able to provide immediate calories and nutrition.
Remember, I'm just another idiot on the internet. I could be wrong. The #1 joke at our house is "But, I saw it on the internet!" Consider looking at what commercial companies are doing. That's where I look to for guidance. If they can do it, we probably can too. (with method adjustments)
@SchoolReports Wow, thanks for your response. I will definitely check out all the links. I think your questions are answering my questions lol. Love your videos!!
I noticed you did not drain fat off. How long will this last in storage? Thank you for your videos. Learning alot.
There was no fat to drain.
I only have 4 3/4 years of personal experience with OUR freeze dried items, so I only KNOW it's good for 4 3/4 years. However, I'm not worried because commercial companies like Mountain House has freeze dried ground beef that's good for 30 years and has plenty of fat. (15 grams of fat in a 37 gram dry serving) mountainhouse.com/collections/freeze-dried-meats/products/ground-beef-10-can
I think we're good as long as we remove almost all the fat, remove the water, (freeze dry) remove the oxygen, (oxygen absorbers) limit the light, (Mylar bags or cans/store in dark place) and store in a cool, dry place.
@@SchoolReports so 40% fat which seems crazy...
@@ddhrsa Yeah, 40 % of the dry weight!
If I calculated it correctly it works out to about 7% of the pre freeze dried weight. (or rehydrated weight)
I'm having a hard time keeping up with you . But I'm Freeze drying along with you.
Thanks! I'm having a hard time keeping up with the editing. 😊 (Do you want a heads-up about the upcoming batches?)
@@SchoolReports yes please 🐸
@@froggy2519 Next 3 videos: Corn, frozen - started 5-20, Berries, frozen, mixed - Started 5-22, Yogurt, peach & strawberries - starting in a few hours.
@@SchoolReports thank you very much.
I had no idea that much went into freeze drying
It only really seems like a lot when you slow it down like this to document it. It feels WAY more simple when I'm just freeze drying and not trying to video the whole thing.
@@SchoolReports as strange as this may sound, the process seems very calming. I’m new to everything involving long term food supplies. This seems to be what I’m looking for and from the looks of it seems more cost efficient. Anyhow I thoroughly enjoyed the video and have subscribed
@@johnny51984 Thanks for watching. I glad to hear that's the way you were seeing it. I do find it relaxing/calming and rewarding when I'm doing it; It's the video part of it the makes it a bit hectic to keep up with the schedule.
Question…I’ve seen several posts about how to prepare the meat before freeze drying. I’m new to this so with all the info I’m so confused. Why do so many deem it necessary to boil the meat? We have a septic tank so rinsing isn’t an option. I saw you braise/summer the meat in the oven-which seems easier of all options. How concerned are you with the fat/rancidity issue with meat?
First, remember, I'm just another idiot on the internet. Don't listen to me. Research.
(I mean research from science papers, a few are listed below. This is where I started.)
But, I won't boil the meat. Yuck! Why not just use tofu. Also yuck. Just start with lean meat.
I assume they are very afraid that ANY amount of fat will make it go rancid super fast, so they are trying to get rid of all the fat. (Without knowing how much fat is in what) And in the next batch they freeze dry ice cream and think nothing of the fat in it. Or cheese, etc.
It was seeing some of the non-research freeze dry channels that first got me to start posting my own videos. Some of the information out there just makes me wonder where it comes from, and makes me sad.
I've even seen one video where the person states, as a fact, that if you put an oxygen absorber in a bag with your baking soda could make it EXPLODE. I'd love to see the science behind that. I looked at the chemistry and I just didn't see how. If you heat baking soda it decomposes into sodium carbonate, water and carbon dioxide and can put out fire. I realize that some things like baking soda don't need oxygen absorbers, but explode? I don't think it would be too much to ask for them to share the scientific paper/article.
I only have 4 3/4 years of personal experience with OUR freeze dried items, so I only KNOW it's good for 4 3/4 years. We do try to use the leanest cuts of meat we can get.
However, I'm not worried because commercial companies like Mountain House has freeze dried ground beef that's good for 30 years and has plenty of fat. (15 grams of fat in a 37 gram dry serving. I worked it out once, and I think it worked out to about 93% lean before freeze drying) mountainhouse.com/collections/freeze-dried-meats/products/ground-beef-10-can
Chemists define roughly two
ways a product can turn rancid:
(Super simplified )
1. Oxidative rancidity: Reaction involves oxygen
2. Hydrolytic rancidity: Reaction involves water
Rancidity of Food: Introduction, Types, Factors and Prevention of Rancidity | Food Chemistry | Biotechnology
www.biotechnologynotes.com/food-biotechnology/food-chemistry/rancidity-of-food-introduction-types-factors-and-prevention-of-rancidity-food-chemistry-biotechnology/14100
Food spoilage - Rancidity and food chemistry. September 14, 2017 Storing Food - chemical reactions, fats, food enzymes, preservation foodcrumbles.com/food-spoilage-rancidity-and-food-chemistry/
Prevention of Hydrolytic and Oxidative Rancidityand Nutrient Losses in Rice Bran During Storage digitalcommons.lsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=7859&context=gradschool_disstheses
Rancidity www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-sciences/rancidity
Thank you so much! My husband and I enjoy your videos and, as of late, the shirts 😂. All of your bits of information are truly helpful with the science and common sense approach.
How did you cut that parchment roll?
You think they would make it to fit a 1/2 sheet pan.
Cutting More Parchment Paper for our Freeze Dryer Trays ruclips.net/video/td9lV6ftWhQ/видео.html
@@SchoolReports perfect!
Why do you dry your freeze dryer? Is it because it is an older model. Please pontificate.
🤔 Sorry, I don't know what you mean by "dry your freeze dryer." (Time stamp?)
We (my sister and I) run both my older machine and her newer machine the same.
@@SchoolReports When you take the cloth and swab the inside of the machine looking for moisture. Thanks for your videos….you must be an engineer…lots of small detail!
@@dhranch777 Thanks! (I though you might be referring to the fan we use for defrosting)
Realistically, a few drops of water aren't going to make much difference. I mostly only do this when I'm starting another batch just as soon as it's defrosted because there is often puddles on each shelf and the top. It could be ignored, but any water left on the rack shelves will be sublimated as soon as the heaters are turned on, which will slow down the freeze drying process a little. I guess mostly it gives me a chance/reason to check to make sure everything is still clean.
Where did you get your little grabber?
The grabber thing is something I've had for decades and I have no idea where I got it, but It's similar to this one: General Tools 70396 Lighted Steel Claw Mechanical Pick-Up Tool, 24-Inch amzn.to/39QbCDP
Someone else said they found one at a dollar store.
I clean the inside part using a straw cleaner ruclips.net/video/8zUWQuffc5c/видео.html
@@SchoolReports thank you
How do you get so much food in there. When try this it is never completely done.
With this batch of cooked ground beef there was only 6 3/4 lbs of water, so it wasn't a problem. I usually have to add additional final dry time to most batches, sometimes a lot of extra hours.
@@SchoolReports I must be doing something wrong with the settings on my machine.
@@edemup44 Which machine do you have and which firmware is it running?
How did you cut your roll?
I use a chop saw. Cutting Parchment Paper for our Freeze Dryer Trays ruclips.net/video/1fKKvZ8gDtQ/видео.html
I was just curious, why don't you freeze the meat right on the harvest right trays?
I could put it directly on the trays and I have done it that way, but hardly ever. When I'm preparing most things the trays are still in the freeze dryer.
I prefreeze things in the other pans because: 1) it saves freeze dryer time, 2) I have the older, tilted machine which means I can't pour liquids into the trays in the machine, 3) I make very large batches of food when I cook so I may have 5 freeze dryer loads (or more) from a single batch, 4) prefreezing slightly lightens the load of ice in the freeze dryer 5) by prefreezing in the small, 2 cup pans, I have pre measured quantities when I do the final bagging 6) we have a lot of freezer space available.
We have had up to 15+ batches of prefrozen items waiting for the freeze dryer, and 15 sets of trays would be a bit spendy.