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Source: https://outdoors.stackexchange.com/q/8189
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

<p>I've got a lot of backpacking trips lined up this summer, including one multi-week one. I'm considering picking up a dehydrator because:</p>

<ul>
<li>It probably would be more cost effective than buying freeze dried food.</li>
<li>I get more (total, in fact) control over the ingredients.</li>
<li>In addition to meals, I can make snacks like jerky and fruit leathers.</li>
</ul>

<p>On the meals side (breakfast, dinner) it seems like <a href="http://backcountrypost.com/threads/diy-dehydrated-backpacking-meals.1098/" rel="noreferrer">the re-hydration times are nearly half an hour</a>. Maybe half of that is just letting it sit, but depending on the climate you might need to keep the stove running on simmer for even that phase. </p>

<p>I'm comparing that to freeze dried food which is simply (in my experience) to add boiling water, wait ~7 minutes, and you're good to go. </p>

<p><strong>I'd like to know if anyone has any experience dealing with rehydrating dehydrated food and what kind of dent that puts into fuel use and meal times (compared to freeze dried).</strong> </p>

<p>For whatever it's worth, I typically use an <a href="http://www.rei.com/product/709002/msr-dragonfly-backpacking-stove" rel="noreferrer">MSR Dragonfly</a>. </p>

<p><hr></p>

<p>Update: I recently just got back from a trip where I dehydrated ground beef and pasta sauce in advance. I combined them both in a bowl with water (in the sun, lid on) for ~45 minutes, stirring. Boiled some pasta noodles, combined, and had a pretty awesome dinner. As indicated by the accepted answer below, re-hydration is a thing to deal with but it's certainly do-able. </p>