NESCO Snackmaster Pro Review

The Snackmaster Pro was a contender for our Best Buy Award as it is inexpensive, easy to use and dries food with the best of them. We certainly like that the fan is on the top of the unit as it allows the base, which is where most of the mess ends up, to be washed as opposed to being wiped out. We also found the flexibility in the tray beds to be helpful when removing sticky foods.

An unassuming but effective design that will accommodate expansion should you need it.

Credit: Jenna Ammerman

Consistent and Accurate

Many dehydrator models suffer from inconsistent temperatures, and as a result, they have inconsistent food outcomes. The morsels will be unevenly dried, or worse, over-dried. This is not the case with the Snackmaster Pro. This machine has one of the more accurate thermostats that we've evaluated. We tested a number of different foods in these machines — bananas, apples, herbs, tomatoes, and beef. Most machines struggle with producing quality beef jerky. Not the Snackmaster. That's quite impressive considering the price point.

Checking the progress of drying food in the machine is a bit of a pain.

Credit: Jenna Ammerman

Ease of Use

The Snackmaster Pro has a simple design. Often simplicity is a good thing. However, when certain useful features are absent it can be a bit vexing. This is the case for the Pro. This machine lacks a timer, an on/ off switch, and a viewing window. In truth, most stacked dehydrators require the user to remove each tray for visual checks. However, the fan on top design makes this process a bit more awkward.

Complex trays like this provide ample places for food to get stuck -- ugh.

Credit: Jenna Ammerman

Clean-Up

As a general rule stack dehydrators are easier to clean than their shelf-style counterparts. The stack models' trays are the body of the dehydrator. Accordingly, they break down into manageable parts that can be held over the trash or put into the sink. The difficulty in cleaning has more to do with the complexity of the tray itself. The Snackmaster Pro has a complex tray design — not good. Conversely, this model has all of its electronics housed in the lid. Thus, the messiest part of the machine (i.e. the bottom) can be thrown into the sink with the trays.

Hard to clean machines can leave a bad taste in your mouth for preserving. Stackable models address this issue.

Credit: Jenna Ammerman

Value

Given the extremely competitive price point of this dehydrator and the quality results it yields, we argue that its a value item. Sure, it lacks some standard features that may put some consumers off, but it has others that will outweigh them for the right person.

If you're going to have a dial control, best to have them be discrete settings for accuracy and consistency.

Credit: Jenna Ammerman

Conclusion