In this article, we are going to teach you how to make dried fruits in different ways. Drying (dehydrating) is a method of preserving food such as fruits and vegetables that dates back hundreds of years. Dried foods, in addition to fully preserving nutrients and vitamins, are delicious, have high durability, and are easier to consume due to the loss of moisture in them. Also, because many kinds of fruits are not available in all seasons, drying is an appropriate way to preserve them.
Long-term storage and easy shipping around the world give this product a strong market all over the world.
Fruit drying methods
Methods of fruit and vegetable drying include industrial, traditional, or home methods. Each of these methods involves several steps, which we will explain in each passage.
How to dry fruits naturally
At first, we are going to explain how to dry fruits naturally. Drying fruits and vegetables in natural ways also known as traditional is one of the oldest methods of producing dried products. For centuries, people dried fresh fruits for longer durability and to be able to use them all day of the year. Because by drying fruits and vegetables, their water was taken away and the possibility of mold and spoilage was eliminated and they could be kept in the open air for months.
As you know, in ancient times, the easiest and most accessible way to dehydrate fruit and vegetable moisture was to use sunlight.
How to dry fruits in the sun
now let's see how to dry fruits and vegetables in the sun. As its name implies, in this method sunlight plays an important role. This way is mostly used in areas that are favorable in terms of climate. The process of drying fruits in the sun is as follows:
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- Choose warm and sunny days with low temperatures.
- Choose an outdoor area where the sun shines.
- Wash and clean the fruits.
- Cut the fruits into thin slices.
- Place them on a plastic or stainless steel mesh so that the sheets do not pile up and separate.
- Check fruits every few days and collect dried products.
The traditional fruit dehydration in the sun also called the natural way, has advantages and disadvantages.
The benefits of this method include: using natural sunlight and no need for various machines or equipment, very low or no cost, easy drying, and the possibility of producing dried fruit for everyone.
However, this method also has negative aspects, such as a long time to produce dried fruit, the possibility of damage to the product by animals, birds, or insects, weather changes during the process, and exposure to extreme winds, etc., that cause a decline in quality.
How to make dried fruit at home
There are some ways if you want to know how to make dried fruits at home. You can dry or dehydrate fruits, vegetables, herbs, and every other kind of food at home in the sunlight or you can apply equipment such as ovens and small size of dehydrator machines.
Drying fruits and vegetables in ovens
Another way of drying fruits and vegetables at home without a dehydrator machine is to dry them in ovens. This method works with a combination of airflow and heat, which because nowadays ovens are available in many houses, people can easily try to dehydrate fruits and vegetables in this method. Unlike the traditional or natural way of drying fruit which takes several days, drying by oven only takes several hours.
How to dry fruits in the oven
If you want to know details of how to dry fruit in the oven follow the passage.
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- Wash the fruits and slice them into The same size and uniform and place them on the tray. The same size of the slices makes your product more uniform and they dry at the same time.
- Small fruits such as grapes, strawberries, cherries, etc can be dried properly. Medium fruits can be cut in half or sliced, and large fruits such as mango, pineapple, and coconut should be sliced.
- To preserve the appearance of the fruits and minimize their discoloration, put them in lemon juice and water for 10 minutes, then pour them into the strainer and drain gently with a lint-free towel.
- Preheat the oven to 54 to 71 ° C.
- Use lower temperatures for thinly sliced fruits such as apples or peaches and higher temperatures for strawberries and other whole berries.
- Cover the oven tray with wax paper and arrange the fruits neatly and spaced apart.
- Put the fruits in the oven and turn the oven tray every two hours.
- When the dried fruit becomes like leather and is somewhat pliable, it is ready to be taken out of the oven.
- After removing the dried fruits, pour them into plastic or glass containers and open put them in the open air for 4 to 5 days so that the rest evaporates. During these days, shake the container to move the fruits slightly. After 5 days, close the container.
One of the advantages of this method of fruit drying is that it requires less time than the natural method and the quality of the dried product is higher and the weather does not affect it.
How to dry fruits in a dehydrator machine
Here we will talk about how to dry fruits in a dehydrator machine, which is also called the industrial method. Production of dried fruits (dehydrating) using fruit dryer machines is one of the most modern methods of drying. because these machines are specially designed for dehydrating fruits and vegetables, give much higher quality and more uniform products.
Fruit dryer machines include home and industrial types, the home model is smaller in size and designed for household use, but the industrial model in larger dimensions and capacity and is designed to start a dried fruit production business.
The operation of the fruit drying machine is such that it dries the fruits evenly without burning them. Dryer machines prevent the elimination of minerals inside the fruits. In any case, the quality of the product in this method is more than traditional methods and the use of ovens.
Duration of fruit drying in dehydrator machines
The duration of drying fruits in dehydrator machines depends on the following:
The amount of fruit, the humidity of the environment, and the power of the fruit dryer machine.
Depending on the type of fruit and the fruit dryer, it takes hours for the fruits to dry completely. If you are going to dry a Significant amount of fruit, dehydrator (fruit dryer) machines are one of the best options.
How to dry fruits in dryer machines
In the following, we will explain how to dry fruits in dryer machines. For higher quality final products, it is better to use fresh and ripe fruits.
For the fruits to dry uniformly and simultaneously, they need to be sliced evenly and similarly. For this purpose, it is better to use special slicer equipment.
The fruits may change color and darken (brown) due to drying. To prevent this, we use additives.
Choose a dryer that has a timer and control panel.
Place the fruits on a tray neatly so that they do not pile up.
Set the machine to the required settings. Note that each type of fruit needs a different temperature and time to dry.
Put the trays into the fruit dryer machine and close the doors.
If your dryer is intelligent, it will turn off after the process, and if it's not it should be turned off manually or even checked out the product during the process.
Finally, collect the fruits.
Applying Arad machinery dryer machines for drying fruits
In case you have ordered any kinds of Arad Machinery drying machines, this company has professional customer services that assist you from the initial steps for drying fruits to the final stages. Arad machinery is one of the most successful companies in manufacturing dehydrator machines in addition to designing and manufacturing various kinds of machines and equipment, it provides free services to the customers.
So, if you don’t know how to dry fruits, don’t worry, our customer services give you advice from the stage of buying and preparing fresh fruit to the last stage of drying, packaging, storage, and sale.