As the owner of a dog whose head, mouth and appetite for treats is quite large, I like to give him something that lasts a little longer than an inhalation.
Enter the sweet potato dog chew which isn't as long lasting as a wood baseboard for instance, but is longer lasting than a dehydrated liver treat or the roast you forgot on the counter.
I do these every once in a while especially if I'm already dehydrating something else - like oranges.
Having the dehydrator running is also a good way to help drown out the construction noise that's been happening behind my house since the summer and drowning out that noise helps me to forget that someone is building a 3 story home which has 8' tall windows on all sides that look into all the neighbouring yards which wouldn't have been a problem if they hadn't torn down almost all of the trees on the lot that would have afforded the rest of the neighbourhood a bit of privacy.
Sorry. That's been building up for a while.
What was I talking about? Was it dipshits? I feel like it was dipshits.
No, wait it was dehydrators.
Nope ... SWEET POTATO CHEWS.
That's right, that's what we're all here for.
Materials
- large sweet potatoes
- an oven or dehydrator
- knife or mandolin
- ruler
Instructions
The short version is:
- Cut your sweet potato into ¼" thick slices either cross or lengthwise.
- Dry them at 125-130 in a dehydrator for 10-13 hours.
- OR dry them at the lowest oven temperature possible for 3-4 hours.
- I used to guess how much ¼" was when I made these. Now I'm accurate. It works much better. Lay out 1 or 2 rulers so you can mark your sweet potato.
- Line your potato up with 1 or 2 rulers and mark ¼" along the entire thing using a sharp knife. If you look down the centre of my sweet potato you can see the score marks I made.
- Ditch the rulers, then cut straight down with a large knife or cleaver.
- This way you'll get consistent ¼" slices. Being consistent is important for the drying processs.
To reiterate - being consistent and accurate is important to getting a perfect product.
- Add the slices to a dehydrator set to 125-130F. If you only have an oven, set the oven to the lowest temperature.
- Dry for 8 hours in the dehydrator or 1.5 hours in the oven and then check them. The exterior should feel leathery, dry, but still fairly pliable. This is what gives them the "chewiness".
TIP
It's impossible to give you an absolute timeline for drying because conditions vary so much but count on:
3 -4 hours of drying in the lowest temperature oven
10-13 hours of drying at 130 in a dehydrator.
- Once they seem dry to you remove the sweet potatoes from the oven/dehydrator and let them cool.
- Once cooled stick them in a jar. If you plan to keep them long term do not open the jar for 1 week. Watch for condensation in the jar. If you see ANY then you need to dry them more.
If after a week there's no visible moisture, you're good.
But I still keep them in the fridge to be extra safe.
They're honestly the easiest dog treats you can make. All you have to do is slice up and dry a sweet potato. In some cases you will first have to buy the sweet potato I suppose but generally speaking, any dipshit could do it.
I would be mad at your neighbors too. Construction noise is always annoying, but removing mature trees (unless they are a threat to life or property) is just rude to every person and animal who enjoyed them. What a shame.
I have a similar issue with a neighbor adding a balcony to their second floor. It feels like I'm on a stage for their amusement now, until the trees leaf out and give me a small veil of privacy. It's really made using our firepit this autumn and winter feel too awkward. I'd add evergreen trees, but our side yard is only about 12 feet wide between the house and fence. I'm not sure what would thrive there (full shade, clay soil so damp all winter through spring and dry in August, zone 5B hardiness). I guess I have more plant research to do.
This is the reason I'm only happy with a minimum of 40 acres, but 150 is even better. I'm rather extreme when it comes to craving silence and privacy. Besides, being naked is better in the hot tub and I'm no exhibitionist.
"Dipshits" is too nice. This should be against zoning ordinances. I can't believe a 3 story mcmansion is allowed in your lovely neighborhood. I hate those people for you.
I really don't mind the design, but it's definitely in the wrong place on the wrong lot. The architect should have known this as well. ~ karen!
I used to do that, but hated the noise of the dehydrator. In your situation, it sounds like a plus!
For my 115 pound German Shepherd Dog (I know what it is to have a big headed dog!), I load Toppl (kind of like a Kong but better) with dried food, add water, then put his homemade canned food on top, cover with peanut butter. Then I freeze it. If I’m lucky, it lasts 30 minutes once Luka gets hold of it. Lol
He's beautiful! ~ karen
I freeze sweet potato chips for our spoo Baxter. Can’t open the freezer drawer for ANYTHING without him flying into the kitchen. He loves them. Also craves slippers, but leaves them intact. It’s a trading game with him 1 slipper for 1 sweet potato chip.
He's soo cute! ~ karen!
Now you know you can't sell - that's what will happen to your little beauty. Of corse, now you might HAVE to just to keep from prying eyes. I also hate that this is happening everywhere.
Just read that slicing and baking the slices before dehydrating is the best way to dehydrate sweet potato slices.
You can but there's no need. I would *maybe* do that if I was dehydrating them for myself to save and use in stews etc. But for dog chews it's just an extra step you really don't need to take. ~ karen!
Excellent timing. My GSD huffs all treats. It's hard to find anything he'll try to chew first. I'm going to try cutting them length-wise to see if there would be more to chew time. Thank you! The consensus of this thread is the description "asshats". What were they thinking?!
Yes, absolutely cut them lengthwise. I only cut them round when the sweet potatoes are quite big. And I blame my city for allowing these homes to be built where they shouldn't be, filling entire lots and towering over everyone else. The city of course allows it because of the increase in property taxes they can get on larger homes. ~ karen!
Dipshit isn't a strong enough word to describe some people. Not sure why anyone would want to build someplace where the house doesn't fit into the rest of the neighborhood. It's clear that they could care less...or they're just stupid. Anyway, I'll bet Phillip loves these treats - do they get sweeter once dehydrated - like maybe the way tomatoes do? I truly love how you treat him as one of the family the way animals should be cared for.
This is happening in our old neighbourhood of converted cottages too. Truly ugly, tall box-shaped houses going up on postage stamp sized lots. Disheartening, to say the least…
Thanks Chris! I'm not sure if they get sweeter once dehydrated - that's a good point. Sweet potatoes are fairly dry to begin with so I'm not sure it would make much of a difference but now that you've put it into my head I'm going to have to do a taste test. ~ karen!
Lol! I can just see the two of you playing tug of war with one of these. Each with their jaws clamped on one end of the treat. 😂
I just made these yesterday. Since I don’t have a dehydrator, I dried them in the oven for about two hours. I think I’ll stick them back in the oven for a couple more hours as they still feel moist.
Thanks!
You new neighbors sound like asshats.
OMGS I LOVE this! I think I love YOU!! *dipshits* LOLOLOLOL
Sorry to hear about your future neighbors. I always wonder how minds work, or don’t work.
Sadly, I don’t have a dehydrator and my oven sucks. Could you do these in an air fryer?
I actually have no experience with drying things in an air fryer, so I have no idea. :/ ~ karen!
I made these for my previous Westie. I peeled, sliced and then blanched them before dehydrating. If I remember correctly this helped them keep their vibrant orange color. I had to start making strips instead of disc shapes because she got one stuck in her throat and I was afraid she would choke. I don't make them anymore because my current Westie doesn't like sweet potato snacks. She prefers dehydrated venison and liver.
A very clever way to make non-expensive dog treats. Thanks for sharing the tips. Any idea what their "shelf life" might be? And could the taters be cubed before drying to make treats for small dogs? My son and DIL have some Griffons.
My big takeaway is that your neighbors suck.
BIG TIME!!!