17/08/2026
Dehydrated Vegetable Stock Powder
A simple, low-waste way to turn everyday kitchen scraps into rich, homemade vegetable stock powder. Save clean vegetable offcuts as you cook, dehydrate until crisp, blitz into powder, then season with a little salt and a touch of sugar to balance the flavour.
Good scraps to use: carrot peels and ends, celery leaves, onion skins, leek tops, garlic ends, mushroom stems, tomato skins, capsicum offcuts, herb stems, zucchini ends and parsley stalks. *Fill a freezer stash and once you have a big chunk you can dehydrate in batches!
Avoid: mouldy or spoiled scraps, heavily oiled vegetables, very bitter greens, or large amounts of cabbage and broccoli, as these can overpower the flavour.
Ingredients
4–6 cups clean vegetable scraps
1–2 tsp salt, or to taste
½–1 tsp sugar, optional
Method
Prepare
Wash and dry scraps well. Cut larger pieces into smaller, even-sized pieces so they dry evenly.
Optional flavour boost
For deeper umami flavour, dry roast scraps before dehydrating. Spread on a baking tray and roast without oil until lightly golden and fragrant. Oil is not ideal when dehydrating for storage, so keep this step oil-free.
You can also gently simmer scraps first for a more stock-like flavour, then strain well and dehydrate the softened vegetables.
Dehydrate
Spread scraps in a single layer across dehydrator trays. Dry at **55–60°C / 130–140°F for 6–10 hours**, or until completely dry, crisp and brittle.
Blitz
Once fully dry and cooled, blitz in a blender or spice grinder until fine. You can also blitz as you go if drying scraps in smaller batches.
Season
Add salt and a small touch of sugar, then blitz again. Taste and adjust lightly — the flavour should be savoury and concentrated.
Store
Transfer to an airtight jar and store in a cool, dry pantry.
To use
Add 1–2 teaspoons to hot water for quick vegetable stock, or sprinkle into soups, stews, sauces, rice, pasta water, gravies or marinades.
