Why Blanch Vegetables
Before Dehydrating?

Blanching vegetables before dehydrating may seem like an extra step, but it’s the key to longer-lasting, better-tasting results. By briefly dipping vegetables in boiling water, you stop enzyme activity that causes spoilage, help lock in vibrant colors, and ensure your food dries evenly.

✅ Quick Answer: Why blanch vegetables before dehydrating?
Blanching halts enzymes that cause spoilage, preserves flavor and color, and helps vegetables dry more evenly. This prevents hidden moisture pockets that can lead to mold, making your dehydrated food safer and longer-lasting.

This small step makes a big difference in flavor, texture, and safe long-term storage—especially for veggies like broccoli, carrots, beans, and peas.

Fresh broccoli florets being blanched briefly in a pot of boiling water on the stove

3 Essential Reasons to Blanch Veggies Before Dehydrating

  1. It’s important that we slow down the food-spoiling process and that's caused by the enzymes in the vegetables. Blanching helps to stop the enzymatic process, causing our food to spoil. Blanching helps to preserve the flavor, and the nutrients of the vegetables. 
  2. Blanching aids in the actual food dehydrating process. I’ll go more into that shortly on this page.
  3. Blanching makes it easier to peel and remove the skin from the vegetables.

The Surprising Way Blanching Keeps Veggies Vibrant

baby carrots on a wooden table

As stated in the FAQ section at the top of the page (go read 'em!) another reason we blanch vegetables before dehydrating is that blanching helps keep the beautiful color of your vegetables.

Your zucchini and broccoli will remain bright green! Your carrots will remain a vivid orange! You get the picture.

Blanching also helps retain flavor.



Blanching Explained: Why It’s Different From Cooking

Blanching simply means dipping foods into small amounts of boiling water for a short time.

Remember, we're not cooking the food here—so a "short time" really only means less than a minute!

How Tiny Skin Cracks Speed Up Drying

For vegetables that have relatively thick skins (that we want to keep/eat), blanching creates tiny cracks in the skins.

These tiny surface cracks help dehydration to occur at a much deeper penetration level that’s more than just surface-skin deep.

The #1 Reason Blanching Prevents Moldy Veggies

For proper long-term storage, you must make sure the food you dehydrate has been “dried to the core,” if you will.

Why? You don’t want to end up with moist centers! A moist center will create a breeding ground for mold. And sometimes moist centers are simply NOT visible in large pieces of vegetables with thick skins.

Go and read the 'blueberry' FAQ where case hardening is explained.

Of course, we can ease that problem by cutting our vegetables into similar-sized strips before dehydrating.

After Drying: The Crucial Storage Step You Can’t Miss

We've spent time drying our foods, so don't forget to add an oxygen absorber and a desiccant package inside the food vacuum sealer bags before drawing out the air and sealin' it up!

A NOTE HERE about DESICCANT PACKETS

Use them in conjunction with Oxygen Absorbers.
Here's How and Why...

Best Oxygen Absorbers for Fresh, Safe Long-Term Storage

NOTE:
50cc are perfect for small jars and containers. Ideal for keeping spices and smaller dried foods fresh.
100cc are great for quart-sized jars and vacuum-sealer bags. The most versatile size for everyday use.

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50cc Oxygen Absorbers

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100cc Oxygen Absorbers

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300cc Oxygen Absorbers

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Oxy-Sorb 2000cc Oxygen Absorbers

2000cc Oxygen Absorbers

  • Oxy-Sorb Oxygen Absorbers
  • Pack of 10
  • I use these for airtight bins and buckets

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As stated, make sure to add an oxygen absorber and a desiccant package to your dehydrated food packages BEFORE vacuum-sealing.

Oxygen absorbers do what their name implies: they absorb oxygen. They help inhibit mold growth - an essential factor for long-term food storage!

Free eBook: Master the 6 Simple Steps of Safe Dehydration

six stwps

If you’re just starting out on your food-dehydrating journey, make sure you get our free eBook, “Six Simple Steps.” It takes you through the six necessary steps to dehydrate food safely at home.

Look, before the next big thing comes down the pike, akin to COVID-19—Ebola, or Poxes—and the like, make sure your food pantry is full.

Avoid a dismal shopping experience, staring at those empty sorry-looking shelves at the grocery store.

Go Deeper: My Complete Dehydrating & Storage Guide

Easy Food Dehydrating & Safe Food Storage paperback cover

Take a deeper dive into mastering food dehydration and storage. Check out our ultimate guide - Easy Food Dehydrating & Safe Food Storage.

This comprehensive book is available in multiple formats - eBook, paperback, and audiobook - so you can learn in the way that suits you best.

Inside Easy Food Dehydrating & Safe Food Storage, I cover all aspects of dehydrating fruits, vegetables, meats.

Get all the details on pretreatment, testing for doneness, storage times, best practices for vacuum sealing, using oxygen absorbers, and ideal storage containers and conditions.

I even include recipes for making tasty meals, snacks, and desserts from your dehydrated foods.

Whether you're a total beginner or a seasoned pro, Easy Food Dehydrating & Safe Food Storage takes your skills to the next level. You'll save money, reduce waste, and enjoy nutritious homemade dried foods all year long... whatever the reason or season!

Now that you know why blanching vegetables before dehydrating is so important, you’re well on your way to creating safe, colorful, and flavorful dried foods that last.

And to help you put your dehydrator to work, don’t miss the free 5 Dried Food Recipes You'll Actually Love PDF below. Inside, you’ll find my favorite tried-and-true recipes like carrot soup, minestrone, split pea soup, spicy beef jerky, and even banana cinnamon rolls!

Frequently Asked Questions

hy should I blanch vegetables before dehydrating?

Blanching slows spoilage by halting enzyme activity, improves texture and color, and helps food dry faster and more thoroughly.

Do I need to blanch all vegetables?

Not all! Focus on veggies like green beans, broccoli, cauliflower, peas, and carrots. Leafy greens or onions usually don’t need it.

Why does blanching help with case hardening?

It softens the skin and creates tiny cracks, allowing moisture to escape more evenly—preventing hard exteriors with moist middles.

What’s the best blanching method—boil or steam?

Boiling is quicker, but steam blanching retains more nutrients. Either is effective as long as time and temp are correct.

Now that you know why blanching matters, you’ll be one step ahead in safe, long-term food storage. 

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