Dried dried apricots look good, and the taste is even better. And it can also be included in the composition of many dishes, and nutritionists only talk about the benefits of this dried fruit! So we have almost no choice, either to the market for dried apricots or to figure out how to cook it at home. Yes, it is possible to make dried apricots and at home, there would be an oven and patience.
How to dry dried apricots at home?
First you need to select strong apricots and rinse them thoroughly in cold water. Next, remove the bones and keep in a colander 5-10 minutes above boiling water. This is necessary for the fruit to retain its color. After drying the apricots with a paper towel and place in the oven, spread out on a baking sheet. Keep in the oven at 65 ° C for 8-10 hours.
How to store dried apricots at home?
You can store dried apricots as you please - even in linen bags, even in plastic bags. But this is the case when it comes to purchased, seasoned dried apricots. If you intend to keep dried apricots for a long time at home, then after drying it should be laid out in wooden (not only softwood) boxes. To keep dried apricots in such boxes you need 3 weeks, after which it can be packaged in a more convenient for you dishes. This technique will allow dried apricots to retain all the beneficial properties of apricots, and dried fruits will be stored for longer.
Useful properties of dried apricots
It is clear that fresh apricot is useful, as it contains a lot of vitamins and trace elements necessary for the body. And can dried apricots boast something similar? Of course, how to do it is important. For the mass sale of dried apricots, they just don’t process them - all sorts of chemicals that completely destroy all useful properties are not the worst option. But we must remember that in home-made dried apricots, all the good things in apricots cannot be saved. Nevertheless, many vitamins in dried apricots are preserved, and there are even more minerals in these dried fruits than in fresh apricots. So, what vitamins are in dried apricots? These are vitamins A, C, PP and vitamins of group B. Of the minerals in dried apricots there is a large amount of iron, potassium, magnesium, calcium and phosphorus. Also, dried apricots boast the ability to excrete heavy metals and radionuclides from the body, and all due to the high content of organic acids and pectins.
In general, dried apricots are very useful for digestion as a prophylaxis and in diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. Dried apricots are advised to use with anemia. And the constant use of dried apricots in food reduces the risk of blockage of blood vessels and has a rejuvenating and healing effect on the body as a whole. So, it is noticed that people who have dried apricots in their ration, more often have more taut and elastic skin and healthy, strong hair. But still it is worth remembering that with all the usefulness of dried apricots, just eat it is not worth it. This threatens indigestion, since dried apricots are a concentrated product and too many useful substances on the body. 
may not have a beneficial effect. The daily intake of dried apricots 80-100 grams per day. Dried apricots can be eaten individually or as part of any dish.
Everyone knows that dried apricots have several names, for example, apricot and dried apricots. What is the difference between these two types of dried fruit? Apricot, an apricot, dried with a stone, and dried apricots - without it. Is this the only difference? And no! In dried apricot much more vitamins and minerals are stored (there are generally more potassium in it than in any other dried fruit), and this is due to the way it is produced. The fact is that the traditional apricot is obtained by drying directly on the branches of the tree. It is clear that not everyone has an apricot tree in the yard, and therefore often we only have access to dried apricots. But if there is an opportunity to bite a real (raw with chemicals) apricots, do it, because it is among the inhabitants of Central Asia considered a gift of Allah and a “fruit of beauty”.
Dried apricots are dried apricot halves. It is very good for health because it contains a lot of magnesium and calcium, organic acids, mineral salts and pectins, as well as iodine and carotene. The use of dried apricots is shown in the autumn-winter period and for the treatment and prevention of a number of diseases.
WITH
Instruction
Dried apricots can be dried by yourself. To do this, buy good apricots, wash them and remove the bones. Then hold in a colander over boiling water for 10-15 minutes. Then put the apricots on a clean white cloth and dry off moisture. Put in the oven for 8-10 hours at a temperature of 65 degrees. When the apricots are dry and dried apricots, fold it into a container of wood (but not in the spruce or pine). There, the fruits must lie for 3 weeks, then they will retain all the valuable properties.
You can dry apricots in the sun. Select the good fruit, rinse and cut into halves, remove the bones. As in the previous method, hold over boiling water in a colander for 10-15 minutes. Dry on a white cotton rag, string on a string and hang in the sun. You can hang apricots on a tree or put on a lattice sieve. The main thing is to ensure air circulation from all sides, otherwise the fruits may rot. The weather for drying should not be wet, but hot and windy.
If you decide to buy ready dried apricotsit is better to take the old-fashioned way. After all, on an industrial scale, apricots are dried in special drying chambers, where they are fumigated with sulfuric, rather sulfuric anhydride to impart a bright color. This substance can cause allergies, so if you are not sure about the method of obtaining dried apricots, choose a product that is slightly dull, reddish. You can soak before use dried apricots 10-15 minutes in boiling water and rinse thoroughly.
How to make dried apricots - homemade recipe
So, selecting quality fruits, they should be thoroughly cleaned. Do not forget that the most valuable dried apricots - used in its natural form, not washed, so cleanliness is better to take care in advance.
Further, the fruits are divided into halves, the bones are removed. By the way, the property of an apricot variety is easy to separate from the stone is better to check at the stage of purchase, otherwise the appearance of dried apricots will be spoiled by uneven pieces.
Next, prepared apricots in small portions should be placed in a colander, which is placed on a container with boiling water for 5-10 minutes. Exposure to steam will help preserve their natural color, even in dried form, with apricots.
Steamed apricots for some time need to spread on a clean cloth to soak up the excess moisture, and then put the fruit pan for 10 hours in the oven, heated to 65 degrees.
After cooling down, dried apricots are stored in linen bags or wooden containers with a lid, but in no case should you trust this plastic bag!
As you can see, it is not difficult to make dried apricots at home, but you will be 100% sure of the quality of the finished product and will boldly give it to children.
How to store dried apricots at home?
You can store dried apricots as you please - even in linen bags, even in plastic bags. But this is the case when it comes to purchased, seasoned dried apricots. If you intend to keep dried apricots for a long time at home, then after drying it should be laid out in wooden (not only softwood) boxes. To keep dried apricots in such boxes you need 3 weeks, after which it can be packaged in a more convenient for you dishes. This technique will allow dried apricots to retain all the beneficial properties of apricots, and dried fruits will be stored for longer.
Useful properties of dried apricots
It is clear that fresh apricot is useful, as it contains a lot of vitamins and trace elements necessary for the body. And can dried apricots boast something similar? Of course, how to do it is important. For the mass sale of dried apricots, they just don’t process them - all sorts of chemicals that completely destroy all useful properties are not the worst option. But we must remember that in home-made dried apricots, all the good things in apricots cannot be saved. Nevertheless, many vitamins in dried apricots are preserved, and there are even more minerals in these dried fruits than in fresh apricots. So, what vitamins are in dried apricots? These are vitamins A, C, PP and vitamins of group B. Of the minerals in dried apricots there is a large amount of iron, potassium, magnesium, calcium and phosphorus. Also, dried apricots boast the ability to excrete heavy metals and radionuclides from the body, and all due to the high content of organic acids and pectins.
In general, dried apricots are very useful for digestion as a prophylaxis and in diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. Dried apricots are advised to use with anemia. And the constant use of dried apricots in food reduces the risk of blockage of blood vessels and has a rejuvenating and healing effect on the body as a whole. So, it is noticed that people who have dried apricots in their ration, more often have more taut and elastic skin and healthy, strong hair. But still it is worth remembering that with all the usefulness of dried apricots, just eat it is not worth it. This threatens indigestion, since dried apricots are a concentrated product and too many useful substances on the body may not have a beneficial effect. The daily intake of dried apricots 80-100 grams per day. Dried apricots can be eaten individually or as part of any dish.
Everyone knows that dried apricots have several names, for example, apricot and dried apricots. What is the difference between these two types of dried fruit? Apricot, an apricot, dried with a stone, and dried apricots - without it. Is this the only difference? And no! In dried apricot much more vitamins and minerals are stored (there are generally more potassium in it than in any other dried fruit), and this is due to the way it is produced. The fact is that the traditional apricot is obtained by drying directly on the branches of the tree. It is clear that not everyone has an apricot tree in the yard, and therefore often we only have access to dried apricots. But if there is an opportunity to bite a real (raw with chemicals) apricots, do it, because it is among the inhabitants of Central Asia considered a gift of Allah and a “fruit of beauty”.
And yet I made dried apricots this year, again, thanks to a neighbor (Lesya, hello).
Apricots are almost gone, and we just got a taste. The secret of dried apricots turned out to be simple - her day should be soaked in syrup, but more on that later.
For dried apricots need solid, even slightly greenish fruit. We no longer had the opportunity to get such apricots, so we made from ripe, but not too soft fruit.
So, we proceed.
Apricots need to be washed, separated from the seeds and briefly soaked in cold water (1 liter) with 8 teaspoons of citric acid. Not long for me - it was time while the syrup was boiling.
But it is better to hold it longer, then the dried apricots will turn out beautiful orange.
I can’t say the exact amount of apricot, because I had them in a bucket and I was guided by a saucepan with diluted citric acid - how many got into it, this was the portion.
We make syrup from a liter of water and a kilogram of sugar. When it boils we drop our soaked apricots there. We are waiting for all this to boil, mark 5-10 minutes and turn off.
Apricots are not taken out of the syrup, but leave for a day.
Then we throw back on the drushlag, so that the syrup is properly stacked. It is necessary to dry apricots in the oven at a temperature of 50 degrees, a little later, add a light to 65 degrees with periods of 55 minutes. Dry until juice stops being released (or syrup, which is already there).
The taste of homemade dried apricots is absolutely no different from the purchase, but it does not come out of such a bright color.
Of course, I had to tinker with it, but we are for naturel, but for my relatives and loved ones, I don’t feel sorry for any time.
A question has ripened, I dried rather large fruits. At the exit, small morels, what kind of giants do they use for dried apricots ???
Dried apricots are called dried apricot fruits and is one of the most common dried fruits. In order to make apricots dried apricots, you need to dry them in special places for a long time - about a week.
Drying is done in the sun. For 1 kg of dried apricots there are 3-4 kg of apricots. Dried apricots color should be light. If dried apricots darkened during drying, it means as a result of moisture.
You can learn more on our website. If dried apricots, which are sold in a store, do not inspire confidence in you with their composition, then it is easy to prepare dried apricots from apricots at home.
Dried apricots at home in the dryer
- 1 kg of solid apricots
- 1 kg of sugar (per 1 l of syrup)
Rinse apricots and remove bones. In 1 liter of boiling water, dissolve 1 kg of sugar. Apricots need to be boiled in sugar syrup, otherwise they will become brown, and so retain their color (although they will not be as bright as the store) and will be sweeter. Dip the apricot halves in the syrup and boil for 5-10 minutes. In this syrup, leave them for a day.
A day later, we take out the apricots and let them drain the syrup. In a colander or strainer this will not work. Since apricots at this stage are very tender and can spread out in one movement. There is such a way: spread our apricots along the edge of the plate. After the juice from the apricots has stopped flowing, you can start drying. You can dry in the dryer (many people buy it primarily for apricots).
We spread the halves of apricots on the grid of the dryer in a single layer, it is best if they did not even touch each other. We put the filled grids into the dryer, close and set the temperature. Dry them first at 50 grams, and then dry them at 45 grams. By the time it takes about 10-15 hours. some will just be ready after 10 hours, while others will have to be dried.
To determine the degree of readiness of dried apricots can be something like this: soft-elastic and not sticky to the touch.
From the original 2.5 kg of apricots you will get about 0.5 kg of dried apricots. It is better to store them in a glass jar with an airtight lid in the refrigerator. Syrup, in which apricots were boiled, can be boiled again and closed in jars. In winter, it will be possible to dilute and drink fruit drinks.
If there is no dryer, then everything can be done with improvised means. Whoever has a dacha, it is dried in the sun on baking sheets, though it will take several days, and there may still be various troubles in the form of flies or birds, or just rain.
Dried apricots at home in the oven.
You can dry the dried apricots and at home in the oven: spread out on a grid or baking sheet and dry first at a temperature of 50 grams, then 65 grams and finally dried at 60 grams. The oven should be ajar.
Dried apricot, although inferior to the fresh content of nutrients, still contains them more than jam, jam or compote. Apricots are perishable fruits, drying is one of the best ways to preserve them and, moreover, does not require large cash outlays.
Apricots are perishable fruits, drying is one of the best ways to preserve them.
Before you start drying apricots, you should decide what you want to end up with. The question seems strange? Naturally, dried apricots. Do you know how dried apricots are actually called, and dried apricots are just one of its varieties.
The name depends on the integrity of the fruit and its size. Small dried apricots with a bone called apricot, large - whispered. If the bone is squeezed out through the hole at the stem with minimal disruption of the fetus, then Kajsa is obtained when drying. And if the dried halves of apricot are dried, naturally, without a bone, then this is dried apricots. Connoisseurs distinguish the product from cut fruit and broken without the help of a knife.
Homemade dried apricots video
But to distinguish the dried apricots in order of what sort it is cooked, not accepted.
However, when choosing apricots suitable for obtaining a quality product, the variety is of great importance. Large, not too juicy fruits with dense pulp and high sugar content are suitable for dried apricots, the stone should be easily removed. Many Central Asian varieties have such qualities, some of which contain more than 20% sugar, but in the middle lane one can find suitable ones with a sufficient sugar content of about 10%. The weight of properly selected, dense apricots is reduced by drying 5-6 times.
Fully mature, intact fruits collected from the tree are selected, rejected can be dried in the form of apricots or sear. It is advisable to wash apricots intended for dried apricots, so carefully that the dried fruit can be consumed unwashed, otherwise it loses some of the nutrients. The fruit is divided into halves, remove the bone.
The fruit is divided into halves, remove the bone
The content of vitamins apricots is somewhat poorer than apricots, but this useful delicacy has another advantage: it can be given a very beautiful, juicy, amber color. In the manufacture of a commercial product, the effect is usually provided by treating the prepared apricots with sulfur dioxide. The method, although prescribed by technology, is considered not entirely environmentally friendly. In order to get dried apricot at home, we can recommend more acceptable ways to preserve color.
If for the manufacturer the bright appearance of future dried apricots is important, then before drying it puts the prepared apricot halves in a colander and soak over the steam for 5 to 10 minutes, depending on the hardness of the fruit, in some cases, you can even boil the fruit for 5 minutes. After that, lay apricots on a clean cloth to make the glass excess moisture. Dried fruit is not as spectacular as when processing with sulfur, but still brighter than dull, not steamed dried apricots.
To preserve color, it is possible to withstand washed fruits in citric acid solution.
Also, to preserve the color, you can keep the washed fruits in a solution of citric acid, prepared at the rate of 1 teaspoon per liter of water.
The most careful option, giving the most useful dried fruits - drying the fruits directly on the tree, so it turns out apricots of suitable varieties for this. It is also advisable to dry dried apricots in the most natural conditions, for this you need a ventilated, non-shaded place (courtyard, balcony or roof) and hot sunny weather. There should not be a highway with exhaust fumes and dust near .
The halves of the fruits are first kept in the shade, preferably in the wind or draft, after 3 - 4 hours they are laid up in cuts, separately, so that they do not stick together, on wooden grids or folded in wicker braids and placed under the sun. You can use a metal grill, but it is necessary to lay a thin cloth on it. At night, the blanks are cleaned into the room, the same in the case of temporary weather. After a few days, the slices tightened, reduced in size and become non-sticky, then they can be expanded more closely. Depending on the temperature and properties of the fetus, drying lasts one to two weeks.
It is desirable to dry dried apricots in the most natural conditions.
Some manufacturers strut apricot halves on a string and stretch it in a horizontal position. If the fruits are not too juicy and dense enough to not stick together in a lump and stick together, then this method is acceptable. A softer apricot can be strung on twigs or thin wooden skewers, and placed at an angle, inserting one end into specially drilled holes. In an area where, in hot weather, wind often blows, strung on a string or twigs, the fruit dries out even in the shade.
The problem often accompanying the “old-fashioned” method is insects — ants and flies. Practitioners are advised to frequently change the location of the product in order to “fool” the ants, but this requires a large accessible area and constant monitoring. It is easier to place the apricot on the table, the legs of which are immersed in bowls of water. To protect against flies, fruits can be covered with gauze, with a sufficiently burning sun, this is acceptable.
Another option is to adapt the old double frame from the window for the solar dryer, replacing the glass with a plastic mesh. Such a device, suspended in a horizontal position, provides high-quality drying and protection from insects.
For those who do not have a suitable area for sun-drying fruits or prefer to get a batch of dried apricots in one day, there is an opportunity to use household appliances. The best modern dryers are equipped with a powerful heater, a fan, a system of trays, increasing the usable area, a thermostat. Producers are constantly improving their products, as a result, the process of harvesting dried fruits becomes more and more simple and convenient, and the result is of better quality.
Spread slices on trays separately, so as not to stick together
Peculiarities of working with one or another device are indicated in the attached instructions, but the basic rules for handling apricots should be taken into account. Spread slices on trays separately, so as not to stick together. During the first and last 2–3 hours, the temperature is set at 45–50 ° C, in the middle of the process - up to 60 ° C. Duration of drying - 8 - 10, less often - up to 12 hours.
If there is no special dryer, you can successfully use an ordinary oven, but you have to keep the process under constant control. Due to the lack of ventilation in the oven, they maintain a higher temperature, 60 - 65 ° C, and occasionally open the door to remove moisture, by the end of the drying temperature is slightly lowered. From the moment of half-ready, you need to monitor the condition of the fruit, so as not to overdry them.
Video about making dried apricots at home
How to determine the readiness of dried apricots?
To find out that your dried apricots are ready, it is enough to check it by three indicators:
- To the touch. In properly dried dried apricots, about 10% of the initial amount of water remains, it is dry, but elastic, pleasant to the touch and a little heavier than overdried - hard, dry tough sound when tapping.
- Immerse in water. A sure indicator of good quality is the ability to swell in hot water. About 30% of the vitamins contained in fresh apricot and up to 80% of the original mineral substances are stored in this product.
- By color. Dried apricots, cooked without chemical treatment, it turns out moderately yellow, orange or dull brown, too saturated color is not an indicator of quality and does not attract knowledgeable consumers.
Dried apricots, cooked without chemical treatment, it turns out moderately yellow, orange or dull brown
Sometimes at home cooking apricot slices are dried unevenly. For alignment, they are placed for several days in a closed cardboard box or a wooden vessel for the so-called “misting,” and the moisture is evenly distributed throughout the entire mass of the product. In the same boxes or wooden cans, dried apricots can be stored, placed in a cool, dry room, you can hang it in a bag of thick fabric. The qualitative dried apricots about two years are stored.
How to cook dried apricots?
Dried apricots are ordinary dried apricots.
How to cook dried apricots at home
Delicious dried apricots can be prepared independently at home.
For this we need ripe apricots without rot and damage.
1. Apricots need to wash and remove the bones.
2. Prepared fruits should be kept in a colander over boiling water for 10-15 minutes.
3. Then put the apricots on a clean white cloth (cotton) and dry off excess moisture.
4. Put the fruit on a baking sheet covered with baking paper. Put the baking tray in the oven, preheated to 65 degrees.
5. Dry apricots in the oven for 8 to 10 hours at 65 degrees.
6. When the fruits are dry - get dried apricots. It should be folded in a wooden box and tightly closed with a lid.
Note!
The box should not be made of pine or spruce.
In a wooden container, dried apricots must be kept for 3 weeks, thus, all its valuable properties will remain. Next, send to storage in a dry, well-ventilated room.
How to cook dried apricots - the second way
1. We select good, ripe apricots, wash them, cut them in halves and remove the stones.
2. As in the first method, hold the fruit over boiling water in a colander for 10–15 minutes.
3. Then dry on a white cotton cloth.
It is important to know!
The most important thing is to ensure unobstructed air circulation from all sides, otherwise apricots may rot.
The weather for drying must be hot and windy and in no case damp.
It is important to know!
In industrial production, apricots are dried in special drying chambers, in which, in order to give the fruit a bright, salable appearance, they are fumigated with sulfur.
Rather, to say - sulfurous anhydride. The benefits of dried apricots from this is reduced.
This substance is not harmful to health - it can cause allergies and problems for people with asthma.
Therefore, if you are not sure about the method of preparing dried apricots, choose a product that is slightly dim, not of such saturated brightness.
You can soak the dried apricots before use for 15 minutes in boiling water, and then rinse thoroughly.
For children, it is best to prepare dried apricots themselves, so you will be completely sure of its quality and the absence of harmful additives.
