I used to be scouting out for the best deals, feeling EMPTY.
Most reviews either have a hidden agenda, or it’s just straight-up copy and pastes without going into further detail.
Some didn’t even answer my question about whether I should buy the product or not.
There are only a few posts about Elite Gourmet food dehydrator reviews, but I wish I had come across one earlier when I was unsure about the product.
Average Prices of “Quality” Food Dehydrator
Most people I met using a food dehydrator tend to be campers or health fanatics. Yes, there are some outliers here and there, including many people using it to make their beef jerky.
But what should you exactly consider before buying a food dehydrator?
Your average food dehydrator is NOT cheap.
They are not overly expensive either, where the price ranges between $60 – $200.
If it is your first time in this space and you are still hesitant to spend a few hundred dollars, then you can check some bare-bones $45 recommendations below.
Image 1.1 A compact-size food dehydrator
Those might not be the best to use in the long term,
But it’s an excellent place to start if you are on a frugal budget.
That’s why we believe it’s essential to set clear expectations immediately to prevent any surprises or hidden costs later on.
Usually, what makes a food dehydrator to be more expensive is the added features.
Tiny machines that require you to use only fruits, vegetables, or herbs start at an affordable price of $60.
They are suited for smaller kitchen spaces & single individual use.
Image 1.2 Dehydrating a Beef Jerky
But if you plan to cook for a family and beef jerky is a substantial part of your life, this type of food dehydrators are likely to be made of strong stainless steel material to help you easily clean stains that results from dehydrating the jerky.
At the same time, they are priced higher since you can prepare everything in one bulk. That alone is enough to last your family one week’s worth of beef jerky.
Read This: Best Food Dehydrator for PLA Filament (3D Printing)
What makes Elite Gourmet’s Dehydrator different?
Elite Gourmet’s food dehydrators receive their fair share of praises and negative feedback.
This is where we discuss it in detail without hiding anything from the reader, no matter how bad a controversy may appear (if there is such one)
Their food dehydrator WILL strongly recommend you to read their manual, where they explain the essential functions.
Luckily it’s not as thick as a 50-page school textbook.
It includes helpful pictures on how to use the machine.
We estimate that it would only take you between 7 – 10 minutes of your time.
However, as our team of researchers looked around the different feedbacks, we found three models of the food dehydrator, which will be discussed each on each characteristic below.
Advantages vs. Disadvantages of Elite Gourmet
1.Elite Gourmet Food Dehydrator EFD313B
| Advantages (Pros) | Disadvantages (Cons) |
| *Specialized in dehydrating beef jerky
*Largest tray capacity |
*Most expensive model |
Unlike their other models, only this one appears to have a digital panel system.
The exterior of the food dehydrator isn’t overly hot to the touch. You won’t risk being burned.
One customer shared that the bottom part is where it is the warmest.
It is advised to use gloves when staffing the panel to avoid any risk of 1st-degree burn.
However, this machine is the most expensive of the three models, near the $100 price range.
One reason is their extensive technological features that are absent in other models.
If you are looking for a minimalistic model without a digital panel display, fewer trays, and not the highest temperature setting, then you can check some of our recommendations below.
This might not be the top choice if you have a limited amount of spending capacity,
Nonetheless, suppose you are more of a tech-savvy person who prefers to have the temperature displayed in precise numbers, with the hottest setting included (important for beef jerky). In that case, you might check if this product fits your needs.
What Makes This Model Different: Their 160ºF highest temperature setting makes it perfect for beef jerky.
2. Elite Gourmet Food Dehydrator EFD3321
| Advantages (Pros) | Disadvantages (Cons) |
| *Transparent see-through container
*Slightly less expensive than the first model. |
*Inaccurate temperature |
One benefit that this model emphasizes is its safety mechanism.
The machine won’t work unless you stack the tray properly.
This prevents any accidents from occurring because of incorrect placement.
Another part of its security protection is the stackability function; this makes it almost impossible to put the tray upside down.
However, many customers shared that the temperature is inaccurate. It takes much longer.
Many buyers feel misled by this and are thinking twice about whether to return the product or file a complaint.
Image 1.4 Customers sharing inaccurate temperature
“Everything takes double the time!”
To put things into perspective, Herbs takes twice longer. Some dehydrators typically take about 5-7 hours, but for this model, it took nearly 12 hours.
When thin apple slices were tested, drying took 24 hours to complete, whereas the industry norm is between 9 – 12 hours.
Another problem that was raised was the inability to control the temperature.
Some shared that the light which indicates the current temperature is not precise.
“Cancer Warning!”
If there was one review that stood out amongst all, it was one from a customer sharing that the item came with a cancer warning.
While this isn’t 100% confirmed, many people questioned why the company didn’t mention it earlier on their product.
What Makes This Model Different: Allows you to see changes in dehydrated foods immediately
3. Elite Gourmet Food Dehydrator EFD319
| Advantages (Pros) | Disadvantages (Cons) |
| *Most Affordable
*Lightweight & Compact *Works best in small kitchen spaces |
*Can’t cook beef jerky |
This is the most miniature model yet that focuses on dehydrating fruits, herbs & vegetables over beef jerky.
It is best if you are on a tight budget.
Especially, when your goal is just a functional food dehydrator to use instead of beauty.
However, its small-scale size would naturally share its limitations. For one, some customers shared that they were greeted with a strange, unpleasant smell during their first use of apple slices.
One solution is to run it for a few hours empty to let the scent fizzle out.
Another minor incident that some buyers encountered was a missing manual.
If there appears to be none attached, you can check it online and download it on PDF. While this might seem like a minor issue, a handful of people encountered the same situation.
If you want to move forward with dehydrating a beef jerky with this model, you still can, but it comes with a few warnings.
First of all, it needs to be cut up into paper-thin slices.
It should be small enough not to touch the tray above, and at the same time, you can only place so much beef jerky in an 11.4-inch tray.
Another important thing is that once you prepare a beef jerky, your food dehydrator is on the tail-end of its lifespan.
It would probably last for one more use or two before you need to buy another one.
“Plastic trays are fragile!”
This is the conclusion we gained after scoping out different customer feedback sharing that the plastic tray is made of a fragile quality.
They are good enough to dehydrate vegetables, herbs, and fruits since they don’t last extensive temperatures for an extended period.
Image 1.5 Customers sharing cracking trays
The beef jerky, on the other hand, needs both of those:
The hottest temperatures possible and a lengthy cooking period to achieve the desired crispiness.
The result? Trays of the product show cracking signs in just one use after baking beef jerky.
Some tray chunks have been falling off, rendering the dehydrator unusable unless you purchase a new set of trays.
This is why we strongly advise against dehydrating a beef jerky for your food dehydrator’s sake.
What Makes This Model Different: Made for small kitchen spaces. Beef jerky is not advised to dehydrate here.
Alternatives to Elite Gourmet:
If you concluded that Elite Gourmet’s food dehydrator is not for you, no worries, we won’t force you to buy anything. We included some of the alternatives here to help you make an unbiased buying decision.
1. Cosori Food Dehydrator
If there is one alternative that meets all the checkmarks where Elite Gourmet is missing, it would be this.
It has an average size with only six trays available.
It dehydrates both beef jerky and fruits well, not having you worry about tray quality concerns.
However, they are not made in the U.S.A. But this doesn’t mean that Cosori neglects its product quality. As of the date, there are more than 11,929 customers who have vouched for the caliber of the brand.
2. Chefman Food Dehydrator
If you are really on a strict low budget and want to dip your toes into what this food-dehydrator trend is all about, then you could consider this machine.
“They are not dishwasher safe!”
According to their user manual, Chefman’s trays are not dishwasher safe.
It is advised to hand-wash them through warm water. Many customers raised that beef jerky won’t work well with this product. It also smells like the first hour, so you might be forced to run a trial operation first without anything inside.
This is a prerequisite to getting rid of the smell before you begin dehydrating your food.
While it may not be the best product in terms of quality, this works best if you are still unsure whether a food dehydrator is suitable for you or not.
Instead of spending hundreds of dollars on something you might not feel passionate about, Chefman’ showcases a quick glimpse of what it is like in the world of food dehydration.
3. Excalibur Food Dehydrator
One main thing Elite Gourmet’s food dehydrates don’t have is the use of Poly-screen trays.
Excalibur exemplifies this aspect as it not only prevents small fruits & vegetables from accidentally falling through but at the same time, you can rest assured that your food will not stick accidentally along other trays.
However, this is the most expensive among the three alternatives. This might not be the best option for people on a budget. Nevertheless, this is great if you are looking for a food dehydrator that will last a couple of years,
The Final Verdict – Our Top Picks
If you decide to move forward with Elite Gourmet, then their first model of EFD313B is what we would recommend. While this may not be the cheapest option, it will undoubtedly pay for its worth.
But with Elite Gourmet alternatives, we’ll stick closely with Cosori’s food dehydrator.
During our research, we found that they are the most proactive in responding to customer complaints.
In one instance, they even offered to send a free dehydrator after sending a defective one to their customer.
If there is one takeaway with this recommendation, we’ll align with a company that cares for its customers, even if it might be slightly more expensive than the competition.
