How to Freeze Dry Candy: A Step-by-Step Guide to Preserve Sweet Treats

Do you know how to freeze dry candy? In the past few months, your children may have asked you out of the blue for freeze dried candy. Google Trends shows that people have been searching for “freeze dried candy” a lot more in the past few months. This made us wonder what was going on.

It seems that food, science, and slime-themed YouTube accounts may be spreading the trend around the world. So, of course, I bought a couple of packs of freeze dried candy to try out for myself. I also did some study on the freeze-drying process to see if there was a way to make it at home.

Want to know more about freeze dried candy and which company to check out? Here is what I learned, from how to make freeze-dried Skittles to how to freeze dry candy at home.

What is Freeze Dried Candy?

You might already know about it. You may have even tried it already. But only a small number of people really know what freeze-dried candies are. And I’ll tell you all about it today!

Now, I don’t like it when people say, “It’s freeze dried candy.” What the heck does that mean?!

During the process, the sweets are mostly frozen, and then they are dried. The unique way the sweets are dried gets rid of all the wetness, leaving behind pure sugar crystals. This changes how they look. 

The benefit of this method, though, is that it helps protect them and makes them last longer. Even though they look and feel different, their taste is pretty much the same.

Can I Freeze-Dry Food at Home?

At home, you can definitely freeze-dry things. Even though you might not be able to make a lot of things with a home freeze-dryer, these machines are becoming more and more common. There are also ways to freeze-dry without a machine made for the job.

Good for you if you have a freeze dryer! Freeze-drying is very easy. All you have to do is put your treats on the tray of the machine and let it do its thing.

Even if you don’t have a freeze drying machine, you can still do this, but it will be harder and the results might not be as good. In fact, the Incas were the first people to freeze-dry food (to keep potatoes from going bad), and they didn’t use vacuum pumps. If you want to know more about how to do this, keep reading!

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How to Freeze Dry Candy Without a Machine

You can choose between these two easy ways how to freeze dry candy without a machine:

Freeze Dry Candy in a Freezer

When you use a fridge, the moisture in candy can freeze. When the candy is brought to room temperature, the wetness should be separated from the rest of the candy so that it will melt away, leaving a crunchy, chewy treat.

• Put a sheet of parchment paper on a baking sheet and put your favourite wet candy on it. This will keep the candy from sticking.
• To make sure the candy is completely frozen, put the tray in the freezer for two to three weeks. Try to limit how many times you open the fridge and move the candy around. A deep freezer in the garage may be the best place for this.
• Take the candy out and put it in freezer bags to keep it cool and dry.
• Wait a few hours so it can come to room temperature.

Use Dry ice to Freeze Dry Candy

Using dry ice is a lot of fun, but you need to be careful. Follow the safety advice on the NYDOH website and make sure you have the right thermal gloves and other tools BEFORE you start.

• Put your favourite candy in freezer bags, but don’t seal them all the way. Put the bags in a cooler.
• For at least 24 hours on a day with no weather, cover the candy with dry ice. DO NOT close the cooler, or there will be an explosion like a supernova!
• Open the bags and put the candy carefully into new, clean bags.
• Store in a cool, dry place that your pets and kids can’t get to, and enjoy the taste adventure!

When homemade candy is freeze-dried right, it will keep the same colour it had before. If it isn’t ready yet, it might turn black. If that’s the case, keep it frozen for a few more hours until the colour comes back.

How to Freeze Dry Candy, Sweets, and Treats

First, you have to decide what candy you want to freeze-dry. Read more about what happens when you freeze-dry different kinds of candy in “What Happens When You Freeze Dry Candies?” below.

Slice the Treats into Small Bite-Able Chunks

Okay, so not every candy or treat needs to be cut into small pieces. In fact, these are already filled with most sweets and candies! But if you want to freeze-dry something bigger, like an ice cream bar, you should cut it into 1-inch or 1/2-inch pieces first. Small pieces freeze dry much faster and better than big ones because there is more surface area for the water to evaporate from.

Pre-Freezing is Very Important

If you are making sweets that can be kept on a shelf, you don’t have to do this step. But if you want to freeze something soft, like ice cream, to dry it out, you have to freeze it first. Since the whole process takes a long time to do without a machine, pre-freezing can save you a lot of work and time. Because the candy or ice cream has already reached a low temperature, adding dry ice speeds up the freezing process.

Create a Single Layer of Candies on the Freezing Tray

When putting the treats on a tray before freeze-drying, you must make sure they don’t touch each other. It will only change the shape of the treats, so all you’ll end up with are bigger pieces of rock candy. When the sweets are in a single layer, they are all exposed to the air, which speeds up the process of dry freezing.

Using a Freeze-Dryer to Speed up the Process

Using a good freeze-dryer will speed up the process by 20 to 25 hours, for sure. When the treats are done drying, you can take them out and let the air out by opening the vent on the back of the machine. The end product needs to be in a container that keeps air out, like a jar or a zip-lock bag. Once they are put in cases that keep out air, freeze-dried foods can be kept anywhere.

What Candies Can Be Freeze-Dried?

You can freeze-dry so many different kinds of candy that it would be easier to tell you what you can’t do. Any treat that is thought to be oily won’t freeze dry. You can’t freeze-dry things like chocolate chips. Because the process takes away all the wetness from a product, you’d end up with an oily mess if you did it to chocolate chips. 

Most other sweets work out just fine. Some of our choices are Skittles, Starburst, and Laffy Taffy. One exception to the rule that you can’t freeze-dry chocolate is milk duds, which are surprisingly good as a treat. Freeze-dried ice cream is another sweet treat we love. 

But we’ll tell you, not all of the food we try turns out to be good. Some kinds of freeze dried candy are better than others, but like picking a favourite regular candy, it all comes down to personal taste. Try it out and see!

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Why Choose a Freeze Dryer?

Having the ability to store food is helpful in many ways. Freeze-dried foods not only last longer, but sometimes they taste better, too. Freeze-drying keeps the structure of food better than ways like dry ice and dehydration.

Some dehydrators can cause nutrients to be lost if they get too hot. Since freeze-drying takes place in a controlled setting and removes moisture, most of the product is kept.

How Does a Freeze Dryer Work?

Freeze drying is a type of dehydration in which water is taken out of something by sublimating it into ice. This keeps the food’s structure better than usual ways of drying it out with heat. This is also called “freeze-drying.”

A vacuum pump in a freeze-dryer makes a negative pressure around the candy. This lets the candy’s moisture evaporate, leaving behind a hard, crisp candy. The key is how the freeze dryer works with negative pressure, which can’t be done with dry ice or deep freezing.

The freeze dryer cools the candy’s wetness before it freezes, turning it into a solid. Then, a vacuum pump is used to lower the pressure, and the water vapour directly sublimates in a vacuum. The food stays on the ice shelf when it freezes, so as it dries, its porous volume doesn’t change. Since almost all of the ingredients are still there, this is the best way to store food.

What do we make of this? Food that has been freeze-dried keeps more of its nutrients and tastes. If they are kept right, freeze-dried foods can last up to 20 years. Don’t think that the freeze drier can only be used for candy. You can freeze dry any food you want.

What Does Freeze Dried Candy Taste Like?

Skittles that have been freeze dried Candy that has been freeze-dried is sweeter and stronger than its original form. Because all the water has been taken out, the sugar and flavouring are stronger. Freeze dried candy is a great way to add flavour to sweets like cakes, ice cream, and yoghurt. 

When you take a bite of freeze dried candy, it will feel crunchy, foamy, and crispy. If you refresh the candy, it will taste, feel, and smell like it did before.

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What are the Best Candies to Freeze Dry?

Now that you know how freeze-dried candies are made, let’s look at some of the best ones to try.

Skittles are at the top of the list of must-try freeze-dried sweets. They are one of the most popular freeze-dried sweets and for good reason. They change from a tasty chewy treat to a puffed-up crunchy ball with a sweet and fruity taste that is even stronger. Next is salty chew, which is usually chewy and sticky but becomes light and airy and melts in your mouth after being freeze-dried. Let’s not forget how good freeze-dried marshmallows are. They taste a lot like the marshmallows in Lucky Charms cereal, so you can make your own cereal-marshmallow mix! Or, you could sprinkle a few on top of hot chocolate to make it taste even better. 

Whether you’ve never tried freeze dried candy before or it’s one of your favourite sweets, you can get a range of freeze dried candy delivered to your door in the UK by ordering from Candymail.

Conclusion

Candy that has been freeze-dried will keep its taste, structure, and quality for a long time. With the right tools and steps, you can still enjoy your favourite treats even if you made them months ago.

By following the steps in this guide, you can easily freeze-dry your candy at home and enjoy the taste for months to come.

It can also be used for other kinds of food besides just candy. It’s a great way to keep food’s taste and structure while also making it last longer. With a little practice and some simple tools, you can start freeze-drying your own food at home and enjoy the benefits of this method.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about How to Freeze Dry Candy

How Do I Freeze Dry Candy at Home by Using Dry Ice?

What you need to do is put the candy in a bag that can be flattened. You can buy these bags on Amazon. Then, put the bag in a big cooler with dry ice on top for about a day. To keep the cooler from exploding, don’t close it and wear thermal gloves to protect yourself. Dry ice can be bought at a food store. Last, take the candy out of the bag and put it in a new freezer bag. Put it somewhere cool. 

Is freeze dried candy healthier?

This is a pretty new idea, so there isn’t any proof that it is true or false. For now, I’d eat these candies the same way I do regular sweets: in moderation.

How long does freeze dried candy last?

Here it is: these sweets can easily last up to 25 years. Isn’t that crazy? But this number can change depending on how they are stored and how they are packed.

Can You Freeze Dry Candy in an Air Dryer?

The air dryer can dehydrate things more than it can freeze-dry them. Since the air dryer can’t freeze or make a vacuum, it can’t freeze dry candy. 

But some air dryers let you set the temperature so that the food can be dried out without being cooked. So, they can’t freeze dry candy, but they can dry it out and get it ready to store in the freezer.