Nesco American Harvest FD-37A Review

If you want to invest your money in a starter-dehydrating appliance without spending a fortune, the Nesco American Harvest FD-37A Food Dehydrator can be a perfect choice for you. With this machine, you will be able to enjoy the numerous benefits of drying your own food right at home and cut back on the expenses, which can be involved in fruit leather or rolls from the store. As any entry-level model, the Nesco dehydrator does not come with a lot of features. However, for those who have never had an experience of using a dehydrator before, this appliance will surely turn out to be extremely easy to use.

Being exceptionally budget-friendly, this Nesco FD-37A has also been designed to encourage keeping to a healthier lifestyle since it helps you to avoid the countless chemicals and toxins usually added to commercially produced dried products. Moreover, this appliance has turned out to be amazingly helpful to anyone who would like to lose extra weight since thanks to this unit you can dry some vegetables and fruits very quickly and turn them into tasty and calorie-free snacks instead of your usual snacks. It is a very practical way of encouraging your kids to eat greens as well.

As any kitchen appliance, however, this one does have several minor downsides. For example, some customers complained about a quite loud fan that may be rather annoying while the appliance is working. Concerning the general information, the Nesco FD-37A machine is made of plastic material and comes in white, features 400-watt wattage, and a one-year limited manufacturer’s warranty.

Distribution of Heat

Although horizontal heat distribution is shown to dry more smoothly than the vertical one, this very model seems to do amazingly well with the top-mounted fan sending hot air through and down all its trays. In fact, thanks to the fan-forced radial flow of air, constant tray rotation can be avoided extremely easily, so that in return it will help you to contain the maximum of hot air within the appliance and consequently make the drying process much quicker. Unlike other models of poorer quality, you will not even have to open the lid constantly to poke at the food since the radial flow of air provides greater control of how soft or crisp you want the dried food to be.

Capacity

Due to its expandable feature, the appliance can accommodate about seven trays per batch that is two more than the Ronco Electric Dehydrator of the same price range and one less than the well-known Presto 06300. Considering this, we can state that this appliance is absolutely suitable for small family gatherings or moderate use. In fact, several consumers found it better to dry a couple of types of vegetables and fruits at the same time and then keep them for later use. Although, the vertical heat flow appears to allow a certain level of flavor mixing while dehydrating different items at once, most of the users have not had such a problem with this Nesco FD-37A machine. The expandable feature is also extremely helpful to those who has little counter space since the appliance’s trays are stacked on the top of each other so that it does not take much room.

Other Features

Although this machine does produce a little noise while working, it is still quieter comparing to most other models currently available on the market. Moreover, this dehydrator is equipped with a 160-degree F preset temperature, which has usually been referred to as the ideal temperature for edible as well as non-edible items such as clay sculptures or potpourri. Such a temperature also allows you to dry more fragile products such as herbs or spices. However, since the appliance does not feature a timer, you will need to keep an eye on the food drying.

This particular model has a transparent top that allows you to check on your products easily, which lessens the risks of under or over-drying. In terms of cleaning this dehydrator, consumers will surely be glad to know that you will not have a hard time while washing it since the top-mounted fan has the added feature of avoiding any possible drippings on the fan. Moreover, the trays are absolutely dishwasher-friendly to facilitate cleanup.

Overall

In short, the Nesco American Harvest FD-37A machine is quite a good bargain for anyone either veteran or beginner, who is interested in investing in a food dehydrator. Being easy to use and wash up, the appliance is quite cheap, making it perfect variant for anyone who is not willing to spend much money. Since the unit is extremely compact and lightweight, it can easily be moved to any desired room in the house. This feature can be helpful to those users who want to get rid of the noise, which is made by the dehydrating fan. Being able to dry everything from turkey to fish and regular meat jerky, the appliance can be used even to prepare such snacks as dried apple slices, cantaloupes, banana chips, and even dried soup mixes.