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Drying Fruits (2003)

nchfp.uga.edu

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Re: Drying Fruits (2003)

#31

Post by checkyoursudo »

mithr wrote: post #29
dfxm12 wrote: post #2

Raisins are just grape jerky :) Arrange pretreated fruits on drying trays in single layers, pit cavity up. Dry at 140 degrees F (60°C) in an oven or dehydrator. Does anyone have an oven that can maintain such low temps?

The Anova Precision Oven is one, it goes as low as 77F (25C).

Much lower than that and you are getting into dual use oven/refrigerator mode!

Re: Drying Fruits (2003)

#32

Post by fuzztester »

I've had a specific kind of dry dates in India in childhood. They taste pretty good. Unlike the "wetter" ones (which are not really wet, but with more water content), you can keep them in your mouth for a while, thereby getting the taste for a longer time. They are lighter brown in colour than the fresh ones.

Images:

https://www.google.com/search?q=dry+dates+india

Re: Drying Fruits (2003)

#33

Post by goda90 »

We bought a countertop dehydrator to handle the excess tomatoes I grew one year since I didn't want to try pressure canning sauces. I think our favorite uses are for apples, strawberries and bananas. We've had some good experiences with cucumber that resulted in tangy chips that were great to dip, but I think that was dependent on my garden producing weird, oversized cucumbers.

Re: Drying Fruits (2003)

#34

Post by amenhotep »

danuker wrote: post #25
hedora wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For dehydrating food, you'd also want it to have a fan + turn over air pretty rapidly. That speeds up the process, which matters even more if it's monopolizing your oven! A "food dehydrator" mode would be much more than at least half of the dozen modes our oven does have; I wonder why they omitted it, or if one mode could be tricked into that use case. It definitely has a fan to actively vent hot air from the oven ca…

Firmware on an oven? My cheap dehydrator has a thermostat and a on/off switch. My cheap oven also has a timer. How is software warranted on an oven?

Ovens are one of the few appliances where I can see some sense in smartifying them, honestly. Turn it on to preheat before getting home (or if you're just too lazy to get up), have it send alerts to your phone when the timer goes off so you don't miss it due to being on the other side of the house or having your headphones on, check how long's left on the timer before deciding whether to start watching a new episode, stuff like that. There's a combination of long cycle time + necessity to respond urgently that creates an actual use case that isn't there for eg toasters or dishwashers.

Re: Drying Fruits (2003)

#35

Post by tomcar288 »

shpat wrote: post #8

Here’s the fact sheet they reference[0] with nutrient loss info. Interestingly, vitamin C seems to suffer the most. [0] https://nchfp.uga.edu/how/dry/csu_dry_vegetables.pdf

as far as vitamin and mineral intakes, vitamin C is the thing you need to worry about the least because it's so highly abundant in so many fruits and vegetables. I've calculated VitC density in foods and normalized it to calorie intake: It's incredibly abundant in many real foods.

Re: Drying Fruits (2003)

#36

Post by dylan604 »

amenhotep wrote: post #34
danuker wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Firmware on an oven? My cheap dehydrator has a thermostat and a on/off switch. My cheap oven also has a timer. How is software warranted on an oven?

Ovens are one of the few appliances where I can see some sense in smartifying them, honestly. Turn it on to preheat before getting home (or if you're just too lazy to get up), have it send alerts to your phone when the timer goes off so you don't miss it due to being on the other side of the house or having your headphones on, check how long's left on the timer before deciding whether to start watching a new episode,…

>Turn it on to preheat before getting home

I know so many people that shove used pots/pans in the oven when they just can't face doing the washing. Turning the oven on when you're not home just sounds like a recipe for disaster.

Re: Drying Fruits (2003)

#37

Post by dylan604 »

goda90 wrote: post #33

We bought a countertop dehydrator to handle the excess tomatoes I grew one year since I didn't want to try pressure canning sauces. I think our favorite uses are for apples, strawberries and bananas. We've had some good experiences with cucumber that resulted in tangy chips that were great to dip, but I think that was dependent on my garden producing weird, oversized cucumbers.

I grow a lot of catnip. A few weeks ago, I dried enough to fill up an empty 40oz peanut butter jar. My cats won't touch the store bought stuff anymore. The stuff I dried is so fragrant that the cats magically show up like the "runs can opener" meme. Makes me want to become a catnip dealer at my local farmer's market.

I've tried bananas, but honestly, the whole slicing part and keeping them whole slices is just too much effort for me. Do you have a tip on how to keep it from being so frustrating?

Re: Drying Fruits (2003)

#38

Post by nsenifty »

dfxm12 wrote: post #2

Raisins are just grape jerky :) Arrange pretreated fruits on drying trays in single layers, pit cavity up. Dry at 140 degrees F (60°C) in an oven or dehydrator. Does anyone have an oven that can maintain such low temps?

Bosch ones (at least the one I have) can even be set to 100F. I haven't actually tested how well it maintains such low temps, but I use it for proofing.

Re: Drying Fruits (2003)

#40

Post by anon____ »

dfxm12 wrote: post #2

Raisins are just grape jerky :) Arrange pretreated fruits on drying trays in single layers, pit cavity up. Dry at 140 degrees F (60°C) in an oven or dehydrator. Does anyone have an oven that can maintain such low temps?

You can just prop the door slightly open, and use convection, if possible. It sounds energy inefficient, but when you are drying, not just heating, you also have to replace that humid air in the oven.
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