Cook without rehydrating first
Add Freeze-Dried Food Directly to Cooking
Many freeze-dried foods skip the rehydration step entirely: add them straight to a simmering soup, sauce or casserole and the dish's own liquid does the work. The one rule that governs every case is simple: the recipe must contain enough available liquid to rehydrate what you add.
Where Direct Addition Works
Soups
Broth is the perfect rehydration medium: add dried meat, vegetables and starch directly and let the soup soften them.
Sauces
Tomato, curry and cream sauces carry enough liquid for dried vegetables, powders and small meat bits to hydrate as they simmer.
Casseroles
Dried components mixed into a saucy casserole rehydrate during baking, but check the thickest piece with a fork before serving.
Good Candidates
- Dried vegetables (small, uniform pieces)
- Dried cooked meat and poultry in small pieces
- Vegetable, fruit and meat powders
- Dried pasta, rice or noodles in liquid-heavy recipes
- Dried herbs and seasonings
When NOT to Add Directly
- Foods that are not fully dry: they can still contain moisture and spoil the batch.
- Large, thick meat pieces in low-liquid dishes: they stay firm in the center.
- Very starchy foods added to a nearly-dry dish: they soak up the little liquid that exists and stick.
- Any recipe whose total liquid is barely enough for its fresh ingredients: there must be extra for the dried food.
The liquid test: if the finished dish would look dry with the dried food stirred in, it is not the right dish for direct addition. Add a splash of water, broth or sauce to create the liquid the dried food needs, or rehydrate it first.
Related Recipes
Meat, Added Directly to Soup
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The simplest way to use freeze-dried meat: add it directly to a simmering soup, stew or sauce and let the dish's own liquid rehydrate it.
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Combine freeze-dried vegetables, seasonings and optional broth powder into a jar mix that becomes a simple vegetable soup when you add hot water.
View Application