Cuisinart DHR-20P1 User Manual - Page 7

Fruit and Nuts Preparation and Treatment minutes. This helps prevent loss of vitamin C and maintains a bright color. Sodium bisulfite is available in most pharmacies/drugstores. FRUIT Nearly all fruits can be dried at home, but some will require more drying time than others; the guidelines offered here will help get you started. It is recommended that you select the fruits that are in season and experiment with those first. Preparation Wash and inspect fruits and remove any bruised or overripe parts. Peel if desired. Cut larger fruits in half. If the pieces vary too much in size, slice them to 3⁄8" to ½" thick for even drying. Smaller fruits such as grapes and cherries may be dried whole. Remove pits or stones from fruits such as plums, cherries, apricots, etc. Always peel fruits that have been artificially waxed. Peeling is optional with other fruits - for instance, dried pear skins tend to be grainy, and peach skin peels are a little fuzzy. Most fruits, like pineapples, grapes, strawberries, and plums, can be placed directly on the drying trays as they are prepared. However, some fruits will turn brown when exposed to air (apples, apricots, peaches, and pears). Following the guidelines set below, you can pretreat these fruits to slow this browning and to prevent loss of vitamins A and C. To pretreat them, the cut pieces should be kept in a holding solution until you have sufficient fruit to dry. Pretreatment Below are several optional methods of pretreatment. You don't always need to pretreat food in order to dry it; however, pretreatment can make food look better, increase the shelf life and even enhance the nutritional value. Experiment with both treated and untreated food to see which will work best. Remember, proper storage is critical to the quality of the final product, whether treated or untreated. Sodium Bisulfite Use food-safe (USP) grade only. Dissolve 1 teaspoon of sodium bisulfite in 1 quart of water. Dip small amounts of fruit in the solution for 2 Natural Pre-Dips With their high vitamin C content, pineapple and lemon juice are natural alternatives to other pretreatments to reduce browning. Slice fruit directly into juice. Remove after about 2 minutes and place on trays. Fruits may also be dipped in honey, lime or orange juice, gelatin powders or sprinkled with coconut to give them an exotic flavor. Use your imagination! When drying fruit halves, especially apricots, it has been suggested that popping the back ("inside out") will speed drying time. This is true, but it also results in the loss of the nutritional juices to the bottom of the dehydrator. Instead, cut each half in half again to give the end product more nutritional value, a brighter color, and faster reconstitution capabilities. Apples Wash thoroughly and peel if you wish. Cut in half and core, then slice into smaller pieces. Pretreat with lemon juice to prevent browning. Apricots Bananas Cherries Wash, cut open and remove pit. If desired, cut into quarters. Peel and slice. Pretreat with lemon juice to prevent browning. Wash and remove pits. Coconut Figs Grapes Drain the milk, open shell and remove coconut meat. Dry and cut into small chunks. Wash, remove stems and cut into halves or quarters. Place dry skin side up. Remove stems and wash. Papaya Wash, peel and cut into chunks. Peaches Wash, slice in half and remove pit. If desired, cut into quarters. Pears Wash, peel, slice in half to remove core. Cut into chunks or slices. Pretreat with lemon juice to prevent browning. Pineapple Remove spiny skin, core and cut into chunks or wedges. Plums Wash, cut in half and remove pit. If desired, cut into quarters. Strawberries Hull, wash and slice or leave whole, as desired. 7