How to Dehydrate Carrots (+Video)

You can dehydrate carrots for long-term storage, and do it in more ways than just coins (including the carrot tops!) Check out all of the options available to you to stock up your pantry today!

Whether you use frozen carrots, shredded carrots from the produce department, carrots from your garden, or carrots you got from the grocery store, or even canned/fully cooked carrots, you can make shelf-stable carrots for your pantry!

How to Dehydrate Carrots

Step 1. Wash, Peel, Remove Greens

Or wash and peel. It's your choice in how you think about it, but peeling is recommended, especially for commercially grown root vegetables before preserving (necessary for canning, especially).

Step 2: Cut

Whether you want shreds, coins, or dice, prep them the way you prefer. You can do baby carrots whole, but they will take quite a while to dry.

You can use a knife, a mandoline, a safety mandoline, a food processor, a grater - anything that you would normally use to prepare carrots can be used to get them ready for dehydrating.

Step 3: Blanch

All root vegetables should be blanched before dehydrating. You aren't boiling the nutrients away, but you are stopping the enzymatic process that causes the vegetable to degrade over time.

• Shreds: 2 min
• Coins or cubed: 4 min

Learn more about why blanching is important in this Blanching for Dehydrating guide.

Steam blanching is acceptable for the same amount of time.

Use the blanching water to create a soup for dinner, or pour onto your garden plants! Don't waste it!

Step 4: Dry at 125F / 52 C

Place on dehydrator trays and dry for anywhere from 8-18 hours, depending on how you prepared the carrots, your home's humidity, the power of your dehydrator, etc.

• Shreds - 6-10 hours
• Coins and cubes - 8-18 hours

Step 5: Test for Dryness

Pick a few pieces to test from different trays and allow them five minutes to cool.

Carrots are dry when their surfaces are leathery, and they break easily. You may not hear a snap, but they should break easily with no bending. Make sure to wait until

Step 6: Condition

Don't miss this important step! Conditioning allows you to catch any areas of moisture before they turn into mold.

Step 7: Store

Storage in an airtight container is all that is needed. You can vacuum seal manually, or with an O2 absorber if you plan on keeping your carrots in long-term storage for more than 6+ months (meaning you won't be opening it). Or you can use a moisture absorber if you are in and out of the jar a lot and live in a humid climate.

Otherwise, nothing else is needed.

LEARN MORE: How to Dehydrate Carrot Tops for Green Powder

Oven Directions

Follow the preparation instructions above

1. Place on cooling racks on cookie sheets. Line with parchment paper if needed.
2. Heat oven to the lowest temperature it goes
3. Crack door slightly with a heat-proof utensil (wooden or silicone spoon)
4. Allow to fully dry.
5. Condition
6. Store.

Notes on oven dehydrating:

• Ovens often don't get low enough to effectively dry. So be sure to keep a close eye out on items burning instead of drying.
• A cooling rack on a cookie sheet is recommended to get the food up off the solid hot surface of a cookie sheet.

How to Rehydrate Dried Carrots

Rehydration can happen in a number of ways to prepare dehydrated carrots for a meal.

• Water Soak - this is my favorite method as it is the least hands-on. You can soak for an hour or two or leave in the fridge overnight.
• Simmer in a pan on the stovetop with water
• Pour boiling water over bowl of dried carrots and let steep for 15-30 min

More Dehydrating Ideas

• Carrot Tops
• Parsnips
• 200 Best Dehydrating Recipes