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31
EN
FRUIT DEHYDRATION
Dried fruit is a superb food treat. Try it plain as fruit leather, or in ice cream cobblers and
pies. it‘s hard to imagine a better tasting more nutritious snack than dried fruit. Dried fruit
is naturally sweet, has no preservatives, and is inexpensive.
Your food dehydrator makes drying fruit easy. Wlth all fruits it is best to wash them
before beginning. After that, most fruits just need halving, coring or pitting and slicing
before placing them in the dehydrator.
You do not have to pre-treat fruits to get good results, but some fruits, such as apples,
pears, peaches, apricots and bananas tend to darken somewhat with drying or storage
beyond six to seven months. Although still edible when darkened, they tend to not
appear as tempting to the palate. If you don‘t mind the change in color of your dried
fruit, there is no need to pre-treat. Fruits like bananas turn brown without pre-treatment,
but at the same time they become very sweet and bursting with pure banana avour by
simply slicing and placing directly into the dehydrator. For drying times of fruits, refer to
the Fruit Preparation Table.
To avoid fruits from darkening, fruit pieces can be dipped in solutions of lemon
pineapple, or orange juice, or ascorbic acid prior to dehydration Dip the fruit in the
solution for two minutes. Drain on paper towels and place in drying trays.
Lemon, Pineapple or Orange Juice
Fresh or bottled lemon, pineapple or orange juices are the best because of their natural
sweetness. Pineapple and orange juice can be used full strength or diluted to taste. If
you use lemon juice, it is best to dilute it with 1 part juice to 8 parts water and soak
the fruit pieces for two minutes. Be aware that the taste of these juices can overpower
the taste of the fruit being dried and may not always prevent discoloration of food.
Experiment with the dilution and soaking times to suit your taste.
Ascorbic Acid
Crystalline ascorbic acid or products with ascorbic acid made for preserving fruits for
canning may be obtained from drug stores or from stores selling canning supplies. Most
grocery stores sell it with their canning supplies as well. Mix 1 tablespoon in four cups
of water and soak the fruit for about two minutes. Like lemon juice, the taste can be quite
overpowering so experiment with concentrations and soaking times.
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