I strongly recommend a food dehydrator. You will get your money back on this after one trip. It's so easy to use, and you can dehydrate just about anything. Make your own dried fruit, fruit rolls and leathers, veggie chips, hummus and bean dip spreads, and entire entrees. Make a chili, stew, or pasta dish, dehydrate it, and put it in an airtight container. It weighs little and will last for months... or years if frozen.
Make your favorite main dish as usual, only cut the pieces smaller so that they dry out more quickly. Dehydration can take from 4 to 14 hours depending on the food. To rehydrate most stews and pastas, places in pot with water 1-2 inches above food. Bring to boil and let sit 3-5 minutes, stirring. Food will be ready for consumption.
To make fruit leathers, blanch (place in boiling water for 3 minutes) all fruits with tough skins, place them in the food processor and blend. Add sweetener if desired. Pour onto dehydrator tray (either cover with wax paper or use fruit roll trays that come with many models) and turn on for 6-8 hours. Peel off and roll up.
To make veggie chips, slice zucchini, squash, carrots, potatoes, or peppers to about 1/4 " thick. Season with salt, salt free seasoning, or by soaking in vinegar and spices for about 5 minutes before placing on trays. Turn on for up to 6 hours.My favorites are protein filled quick spreads like black bean or hummus. Make the spread as usual, dehydrate, and then to rehydrate all you need is a little water. Voila- spread it on crackers, chips, breads, or tortillas for a quick and delicious lunch.
Dehydrators can be really expensive or super cheap. My local Costco had one for $29 just this month.
This way you can bring any food you need with you, and rest assured that it is vegan AND affordable.
