The halogen oven is an excellent alternative to a convection oven. When a convection oven is a little more costly than a halogen, you can cook almost everything in a halogen oven. It is mainly designed for household usage, not for industrial or restaurant.
If you live in a mediocre or small apartment, then a halogen oven can be the best choice for you because the size of this oven is very handy.
Frequently I have been shot with the question of whether you can dehydrate food in a halogen oven. Of course, you can dehydrate food in a halogen oven. A halogen oven has a bulb and a hot air fan that helps dehydrate foods. You can also air-fry your food in a halogen oven.
What is the principle of dehydration in an oven?
Food dehydration typically means removing water or moisture excited in the food item. There have multiple methods of food dehydration. But in all methods, the heat is the common affair. You have to dehydrate food in the presence of heat, whether it be sunlight heat, oven heat, or fire heat.
High temperatures technically heat the water and then evaporate water from the food. Thus the food gets dry. That’s how dehydration works.
You can dehydrate your food by heating it in the oven, but not all ovens are designed to dehydrate foods. Moreover, some ranges are spatially intended to lock moisture in the food. To dehydrate food in the oven, you must know which ovens are designed for dehydration.
Mainly, ovens that have a fan can be used for food dehydration. I can suggest the top three ovens that may be helpful for food dehydration
- Air fryer oven
- Halogen oven
- Convection oven
What is a halogen oven?
The halogen oven is a countertop convection oven. These are functionally much similar to a convection oven. However, it has a bit of diversity with the convection oven. A large, heavy-bottomed glass container and a lid are provided.
That lid is the leading part of this oven for heating. The top withholds a halogen bulb for heating and an air circulator fan. They also provide two stainless steel stands that can hold food. It helps to set aside the fat content while cooking in a halogen oven.
To cook or grill without fat or oil is effortless with a halogen oven. Baking is also possible with a halogen oven. The table bellowed can help us understand the halogen oven’s advantages and disadvantages.
| Pros | Cons |
| It can be used as an air fryer | Sizes are limited |
| Allows food dehydration | Cannot afford a large amount of food |
| Cooks fat-free food | Energy intake is slightly higher than in a convection oven |
| Very good at baking | |
| Temperature and time can be controlled | |
| Easy to clean | |
| Very handy | |
| Budget-friendly |
Or you can check the link bellowed to find the best halogen oven
How to dehydrate food in a halogen oven?
Even though a halogen oven doesn’t consist of a food dehydrator, but can be used for food dehydration. The air-circulating fan of the halogen oven mainly assists in the dehydration process. That can evaporate water content from food.
Let’s see how effortless it is to dehydrate tuna in the halogen oven. First, take freshly cleaned tuna, and then sprinkle some salt. Up next, set the tuna into the stand of the halogen oven. Now heat it from 120° to 140° Fahrenheit for approximately 6 hours or until it turns crispy.
Remember, dehydration of food must run under shallow heat. Otherwise, food can burn due to high heat. My recommendation is not to use a halogen oven for food dehydration regularly, which may affect the oven’s lifespan.
What food can you dehydrate in a halogen oven?
Mostly we dehydrate foods for preservation. Water activity is responsible for the growth of microbes, so eliminating water can increase the shelf life of foods. For example, powdered milk is more stable than raw milk, dry chili is more durable than fresh red chili, or you can take dry tuna.
The list is enormous on the consent of what food can be dehydrated in the halogen oven. Almost all solid foods can be dehydrated in the halogen oven, such as lean meat, poultry, some fruits, veggies, spices, and so on.
What food can’t you dehydrate in an oven?
Technically you cannot dehydrate liquid foods in the halogen oven. Foods; that contain an excessive amount of water, such as milk, heavily weighted meats, some fruits, and valuable, rich in water content, lemon juice, and so on. They require a particular dehydrator that is absent in the regular household oven.
Final thought
Dehydrating foods in a halogen oven consumes lots of time and energy. We know halogen ovens are formed for small and mediocre families. It might not be supportive of rough use. It is compliant to dehydrate sometimes but not regularly.
