Yes. Some Indian dehydration plants dry carrot, cabbage and other vegetables, and several will blend a mixed vegetable product to your recipe. Some Mahuva onion plants run other vegetables when their dryers have spare capacity.
Volumes are much smaller than for onion and garlic. Supply depends on the vegetable season, so plan ahead and confirm what each plant has actually produced before.
What is commonly offered
- Carrot: flakes, dice, granules and powder. Used in soups, noodles, seasonings and ready meals.
- Cabbage: flakes and pieces, mainly for soups and instant noodles.
- Green beans, peas and capsicum: pieces or dice, often for mixed vegetables.
- Spinach, beetroot and tomato: mostly as powders. See our article on beetroot and spinach powders.
- Mixed vegetables: a blend of dried pieces in a ratio you set, packed together.
How these vegetables are dried
Most Indian vegetable dehydration uses hot air belt or tray dryers, the same kind of equipment used for onion. Vegetables are washed, trimmed, cut and often blanched before drying. Blanching stops enzyme activity that would otherwise cause browning and off flavours.
Some plants use sulphites to protect colour, especially in cabbage and light-coloured vegetables. In the UK and EU, sulphites above a set threshold must be declared as an allergen. If you need a sulphite-free product, write that into the spec and test for it.
Freeze-dried vegetables are a separate, more expensive product. Our article on air-dried versus freeze-dried vegetables explains the difference.
Seasons and supply
Carrot and cabbage are mainly winter vegetables in western and northern India. Plants usually dry them when fresh supply is good and prices are reasonable, then sell from stock. If you need a steady programme, discuss a booking before the season starts.
A plant that dries carrot one year may not do so the next. Ask for their last two seasons of production and for samples from actual stock, not a lab batch.
Points to agree for mixed vegetables
- The ratio of each vegetable by weight, with an agreed tolerance.
- Cut size for each component, so pieces rehydrate at a similar rate.
- Moisture limit for each component and for the blend.
- Colour standards for each vegetable, fixed with a sealed reference sample.
- Micro limits, which are often harder to meet for leafy and root vegetables than for onion.
- Pesticide residue tests for every component, not only the main one.
- Additives such as sulphites or salt, or a written statement of none.
Ordering in smaller volumes
Many buyers of carrot or cabbage need only a few tonnes a year. That is easier to manage if you add these lines to a container of onion or garlic from the same plant. Our article on mixing forms in one container covers how that works.
How we help
We identify the plants that have really dried your vegetables before, collect stock samples, and have each component tested at an NABL-accredited lab. To plan a mixed vegetable programme, ask for a free sourcing review.