How to make plums in the oven. The best varieties of plums for drying

Few people know that it is possible to dry prunes on their own at home. Of course, it’s easier not to create unnecessary problems for yourself and buy prunes in the markets and vegetable stalls at the right time, however, a product made by one’s own hands is much more valuable and more useful than that, which is offered to us on store shelves. However, be prepared to spend enough time: drying plums is a long, measured process that requires some effort, but as a result, it exceeds all expectations.

How to dry prunes at home?
There are two main ways to dry prunes: naturally (in the sun) and artificially (in the oven). If you have a balcony, you can try both options and choose the one that makes the best prunes. The beginning of both options is the same: right choice drain. The plum should be ripe (ideally, it should fall off the tree branch by itself), with juicy pulp and easily detachable bone. Wormy fruits are never used for drying!

So, what should be the sequence of actions for artificial drying:

1. Wash the plums thoroughly and dip them for 5 seconds in a boiling soda solution at the rate of 1 tbsp. l. soda per 1 liter. water, then place the plums in cold water and rinse gently with your hands. A sign confirming the correctness of the action should be a fine grid of shallow cracks that appear on the peel.
   
2. Lay the plums on a towel and blot off any excess moisture.
   
3. Arrange the fruits on a baking sheet in one layer, stacking them at a small distance from each other, and place the baking sheet in an oven preheated to 45-50 ° C. The first drying step lasts approximately four hours, and at the end of each hour, turn the plums over to the other side.
   
4. After this time, remove the baking sheet and leave the plums to cool at room temperature for about 5 hours. After the break, place the baking sheet in the oven already at 60 ° C for another 4 hours. At this stage, the plums must be turned over three times.
   
5. Take another cooling break of 5-6 hours in the air, and then finish drying at 80°C for about 3 hours. Change the time if the peel starts to crack and the juice starts to flow out of the fruit - try reducing the time the plums are in the oven or the temperature. In total, the drying process in the oven will take you about two days.
   

The second option is natural drying- can be tested both in the country and on the balcony. The beginning is exactly the same:

1. Wash the plums and treat them in a boiling soda solution, then rinse them gently cold water.
   
2. Dry the plums in the air or blot with a towel, as in the first option.
   
3. Lay the fruits on a baking sheet or plywood in a single layer and place in the sun, observing the minimum distance between the fruits. This step lasts three to five days depending on the size of the plums, and involves turning the plums over to the other side daily to prevent mold.
   
4. After 3-5 days, remove the plums in the shade in the air and leave to dry for another half a week, varying the time as needed.
   

In both cases, the signs of readiness of prunes are the same: the fruit should be black with a blue tint, soft and elastic when pressed, but not stale, prunes should not stick together and secrete juice. And if as a result everything matches - you can congratulate you, the drying of prunes was a success!

Gleaming with glossy sides, prunes lying on the shelves of stores call for buying and, of course, eating them as soon as possible. But we know what created this "gloss" and therefore beautiful view dried fruit does not seduce us. After all, it is quite clear that, treated with glycerin, sulfur compounds, or liquid smoke, "sparkling" prunes have almost completely lost their beneficial properties. And if the purchase of dried fruits is still planned, then it is better to purchase a product without a bright “color” and a more natural look. And if the fear of buying is still strong, then there is perhaps the only way out - to cook natural prunes at home. We will now advise you on how to make prunes with your own hands.

How to make prunes at home

Naturally, first of all, we will deal with the selection and preparatory processing fresh fruit. For the process of preparing dried prunes, we need to pick up very ripe, even better overripe, plum fruits.

The selected fruits, of course, are first thoroughly washed and, if desired, the seeds are removed. It should be noted that prunes at home can be made both pitted and with pits. True, leaving a seemingly unnecessary bone, we will save much more in dried prunes. large quantity useful substances.

After blanching, we immediately wash our plums hot water and proceed to the process of drying prunes.

Of course, we will dry our prepared plum fruits in the oven! That's just to monitor the temperature regime of the process, we will be very careful to make our prunes not only tasty, but also healthy.

Since the procedure for drying fruits in the process, how to make prunes at home, is the most significant, let's, for convenience, divide it into three stages.

Stage one

We lay out the plums on a baking sheet and, putting it in an oven preheated to 50 degrees, dry the fruits for 3-4 hours.

Stage two

We take out the tray from the oven. Stir the plums (carefully, they are hot) and cool. After the fruits have completely cooled, we preheat our oven to 70 degrees and place a baking sheet with plums there for another 5 hours.

Stage three

After removing the baking sheet from the oven, repeat the previously performed steps (mix and cool). We bring the temperature in the oven to 90 degrees and, placing a baking sheet in it, dry our homemade prunes before fully prepared, spending another 4 hours on it.

That's all our advice on how to make prunes at home.

to obtain a shiny surface of dried fruits, it is not at all necessary to process them with something. If, shortly before the completion of drying the fruits in the oven, increase the temperature to 120 degrees, then the sugar that comes out of the fruits caramelizes the dried fruits and gives their surface a gloss without the use of any “chemistry”.

Naturally, having made prunes, it is also important to provide it with the conditions necessary for storage. You need to store cooked prunes, either by packaging in paper bags or put into wooden boxes. You can, of course, store dried fruits in a closed glass container, but for this, prunes must be 100% dry. Some housewives use Bay leaf, sprinkling dried fruits prepared for storage with a small amount of laurel.

You can, of course, save yourself from extra hassle, buy prunes at the market or in a store, but if you know how to make prunes at home, why expose yourself and your loved ones to possible danger. However, decide for yourself!

How to dry prunes

Dried fruits are a delicacy that is valued in the East. In Russia, its extraordinary taste and useful properties also came to taste. Are you worried about the heart or do not give life overweight? Then prunes should replace sweets for you. You can simply eat it instead of sweets, drink it with tea instead of sugar and add it to any salads. Tasty and healthy! You can buy ready-made prunes, and if you wish, dry them yourself. How to do it?

Ingredients

• plums (fresh);
• water;
• soda.

Cooking method

First way

Second way

1. This recipe is much less expensive to make. Rinse the fruits thoroughly and place in a colander.
2. Soda - 1 tablespoon dissolved in 1 liter of water. Dip a colander with fruits into this solution and put on fire. The soda solution should boil.
3. Remove plums from heat and rinse with cold water. Arrange the plums on a baking sheet or spacing. Can be dried in the oven temperature regime- 50 degrees. In summer, in sunny weather, it can be dried in the sun.

At proper drying- prunes will be hard. When cooking, it is enough to soak it in water.

Prunes and granulated sugar compote

The taste of fruit compote will be more fragrant if prunes are added to it. It gives not only an unusual aroma, but a large number of healthy vitamins and minerals.

Useful properties of prunes

In the composition of prunes:

• several types of sugars (sucrose, glucose, fructose);
• organic acids (salicylic, oxalic, citric and malic);
• cellulose;
• iron, magnesium, calcium, sodium, phosphorus and calcium;
• a significant composition of vitamins - P, B2, B1, C, A;
• nitrogenous and tannins;
• pectin.

If you have beriberi or anemia due to iron deficiency, then prunes compote is the most the best medicine. In order not to have such health problems, for prevention purposes, include this healing compote in your diet.

Prunes have a positive effect on the functioning of the stomach and intestines. Who suffers from constipation - it is necessary to replace drugs with prunes.

Prunes are an excellent antibacterial agent. When used, it can slow down the growth of bacteria and lead to their death, which contribute to many lesions in the oral cavity.

More about useful properties ah prunes

Prunes can be used in various forms. It's tasty and fresh. In no way inferior in taste and nutritional qualities- dried, boiled or steamed prunes. Its taste does not change - sweet - sour. The aroma is just as irresistible.

Do you want to achieve piquant taste meat dishes and baking to make more fragrant - add prunes. Chicken salads are very tasty if prunes are added to them. Great combination!

Many gourmets will love this flavored drink. Compote made from prunes is delicious in any form - both hot and cold.

Ingredients

• water - 750 ml;
• granulated sugar- 1/2 cup,
• prunes - 200 grams.

Cooking method

For the preparation of prunes compote, you can use fruits, both with and without seeds. Of course, pitted the best option, since the berries can be freely eaten - no need to choose the bones.

Fruits should be carefully sorted and discarded unsuitable for consumption. Soak prunes if they are dried. First, it must be washed 2 or 3 times in clean warm water.

Compote is cooked only in pans with an enamel coating.

Put the prunes in a saucepan, add sugar, add water (hot). Mix and put on fire to cook. Let it boil and reduce the fire to a minimum.

Cooking time: 15 to 20 minutes.

The drink can be served hot or cold.

Delicious, unique and extraordinary fragrant compote from prunes.

Composition and useful properties of prunes

The attitude to prunes, this rather well-known dried fruit, is very controversial for many. Some fanatically adore him for the fragrant, smoky aroma and indescribable taste. Others cannot stand its appearance, since black, shriveled fruits do not contribute to popular love. So what is he - prunes? What is useful in it?

Beneficial features

Dried prunes are made from fresh plums, the method of drying and pumping fruits in special ovens. Thanks to heat treatment prunes acquire not only a "smoky" flavor, but also retain to the fullest extent all useful material fresh product. At correct use, prunes can turn into a real medicine that will save you not only from beriberi or anemia, but also from complex chronic diseases.

Biochemical composition

Prunes are rich in almost all trace elements contained in fruits: these are pectins, polysaccharides, fiber, as well as phosphorus, potassium, iron, iodine and many others. Of the vitamins, prunes contain the most vitamin PP, there are also beta-carotenes, vitamins of group B, E, A, C. It also contains organic acids: oxalic, salicylic, citric - all this makes prunes the most valuable food product, since, unlike chemical drugs, prunes do not have side effects and does not destroy the gastric mucosa.

Prunes are quite high in calories: about 231 kcal per 100 g of sweet prunes, of which: 57.5 g of carbohydrates and 2.3 g of various proteins, water, and also a lot of fructose and sucrose. So abuse prunes to those who want to have slim figure or obese - not worth it. However, eating 3-4 pieces a day will even be useful, as prunes effectively cleanse the intestines.

Prunes will also be useful for dysbacteriosis, as it prevents the development of putrefactive bacteria in the intestine and contributes to the settlement of its beneficial microflora. And this dried fruit is a real panacea for hypertensive patients - even a small amount of prunes compote, can effectively reduce pressure. It is also a diuretic, flushing out waste and toxins from genitourinary system, cleans blood vessels, and thanks to high content vitamin A - quickly restores vision.

Modern scientists have proven that the systematic use of prunes and decoctions from it, you can strengthen your immune system. It also has antitumor properties, therefore it serves as an excellent prevention of the formation of benign and malignant tumors, as it neutralizes free radicals in cells.

Cautions

It is not recommended to use prunes for nursing mothers, since the active enzymes from it cause colic in infants, and patients with colitis should not eat it, especially in the exacerbation phase. In limited quantities, it can be consumed by those suffering from diabetes, obesity and functional bowel disorders.

Before use, prunes must be washed and the pit removed, if present in the product.

Right make prunes at home - this means providing yourself with a large amount of vitamins for the whole winter. Prunes are not only delicious product It is also incredibly beneficial for our health. But its usefulness is questionable when you buy it at the store, where it looks like it's artificial. It is clear that dried fruit rubbed with all kinds of nitrates and glycerin beckons to buy it, but you can just as well gnaw on a plastic toy sprinkled with sugar. It would be best if you make prunes yourself, at home. This guarantees you that in the end you will get a healthy and natural product.

The benefits of prunes are undeniable: it contains a large set of B vitamins, as well as A, C, PP and E. In addition, these products contain a large number of iron, potassium, calcium, sodium and many other trace elements.

A very interesting fact is that prunes practically do not lose those beneficial properties that plums had. And storing such dried fruits is very simple and they slowly deteriorate.

If you include prunes in your daily diet, your gastrointestinal tract will be happy because This product contains substances that improve digestibility useful elements and normalization of the digestive system.

Prunes are very often included in the menu of many popular diets, as they can quickly and easily saturate the body, while providing it minimum set calories. That is why this product It will be especially useful for those who carefully monitor their figure.

This dried fruit has quite strong antiseptic and antibacterial properties : with its help, you can help the body cope with viruses and pathogenic bacteria that penetrate it and develop diseases. Prunes help immune system to fight with harmful substances that come to us from external environment. With this, you can protect your body, it will be especially useful in winter time years when all sorts of viruses strive to stick to a person.

The use of prunes is not recommended for those who are prone to obesity and have diabetes. Pregnant and lactating women should also use this product with caution. Otherwise, prunes cannot cause serious harm if they are not abused.

Making prunes

In order to properly and usefully make prunes at home, first you need to select the fruits that will be processed. For prunes, the most ripe plums are perfect, you can even slightly overripe. But by no means rotten! The collected fruits must be thoroughly washed so that there is no indigestion, and the seeds must be removed. You don't have to, but eating prunes whole without picking out the pits is much more enjoyable. Then you need to take 10 liters of water, bring to a boil and dissolve 100 grams of soda. After that, using a colander, dip the plums into this solution, and after 30 seconds, take it out.

Now wash the plums warm water and then they need to be dried. This must be done using the oven. We heat it up to a temperature of 50 degrees, after which we take a baking sheet and put our fruits on it. Then we send them to the oven and wait about three hours. After that, remove the plums from the oven, let them cool and mix well.

When the plums have cooled, turn on the oven again, only this time it will need to be heated to a temperature of 70 degrees. We again send the plums to dry and go about our business for about five hours.

We take out the plums again, cool, mix, and return to the oven, which has already been heated to 90 degrees. We are waiting for four hours, we take out a baking sheet with ready-made prunes from the oven, let it cool and enjoy the unsurpassed taste.

You need to store prunes in a dry, dark place, after decomposing them into bags. And if you want to make it look glossy, then at the last stage of drying the drain, about 10 minutes before the end of the process, increase the temperature in the oven to 120 degrees. In this case, the plums will release juice, which, under the influence of temperature, will turn into caramel, cover your prunes and give them a very beautiful look.

Dried plums, prunes - dried fruits, without which it can not do good compote. However, in the markets, it is often possible to acquire poor quality product. Negligent producers, in order to increase the shelf life, add preservatives in the production of prunes, in the commercial cultivation of plums, in large volumes, the use of pesticides and other chemicals is not excluded. In this regard, I offer you a simple recipe on how to cook dried plums with your own hands at home.

The best varieties of plums for drying

For quality product, choose only ripe fruits medium weight- 30-40 grams, sugar content should correspond to approximately twelve percent, plums have a holistic, dense, dark blue skin. Strong, fleshy, low water content berries. For all the above indicators, the following varieties of plums are most suitable:

1. Adyghe variety of plums
2. The so-called Hungarian
3. Variety "Izum-erik"
4. Renklody (all types)
5. Blue bird

Recipe for making prunes at home

After harvesting, plums are sorted, sorted, sized. Only medium-sized identical fruits are selected for drying. Diverse ones dry unevenly. All damage, traces of damage, stains and other non-conditions are removed. Remove the stalks. The pits are usually left, as prunes dried with pits become more saturated, bright aroma. There is a way to extract the bones, but this, as they say, is not for everyone.

After manipulations with the selection, rinse the plums thoroughly. Then we boil water, in a colander we dip for five seconds in boiling water, then immediately dip into ice water. The procedure contributes to the formation of microcracks on the surface of the skin, expansion, rupture of fruit cells, due to which the drying process is greatly accelerated.

dried plums recipe

Drying prunes can have several options. In the oven, microwave, electric dryers, in the sun. Last option the cheapest, at the same time reliable, environmentally friendly, affordable. When dried in the sun, the product is tastier, the aroma is natural, useful substances are preserved, the price is usually higher. There is a minus - the process can take a long time, not in all regions the ripening of the berry is accompanied by long, sunny weather. Now more.

Prunes in the microwave

With a small amount of raw materials, cooking prunes in the microwave takes a small amount of time. At home, this is the fastest, but not the most economical option, plus the risk of overdrying the berry.

Plums are laid out on a large plate in one layer, the power is set to three hundred watts. Time five minutes. Every thirty seconds, turn over, shift, believe. Continue to dry until tender, adding more time if necessary.

Do-it-yourself prunes in the oven

When drying plums in the oven, it is more expedient to cut the berries lengthwise. Arrange fruit on a baking sheet, flesh side up. Heat the cabinet to 50 o C. Dry for four hours, then take out the fruit and let it cool. Then we proceed to the second drying. This time preheat the oven to about 70 o C. Dry the same amount of time, cool. final stage the oven is preheated to 80 o C. Now the duration depends on the readiness. Check the content, the quality satisfies - the product is ready.

Prunes in an electric dryer

As in the oven version, cut the plums in half, lengthwise. On pallets electric dryer Spread evenly in one layer, flesh side up. Further, the procedure consists of three dryers by analogy with the oven option. Four o'clock fifty degrees, four o'clock seventy, finally eighty degrees. Allow to cool down between breaks.

• Little trick:

to make prunes look more beautiful, shiny, bright, at the testamentary stage, add temperature, oven, to one hundred and ten degrees, literally a minute before readiness. Hanging the heat up to this limit, promotes caramelization of the sugar that has come to the surface, thereby the product acquires gloss.

Drying prunes in the sun

As mentioned above, solar drying of plums, the most quality way. At the same time, the longest. Fruits, by analogy with the previous methods, can be cut, most manufacturers dry the whole berries, although it takes more time, prunes are of better quality, with long term storage, less damaged.

Spread a layer on sheets of fiberboard, plywood, wood, plastic wrap, cover the berries with gauze, in order to avoid damage by insects, put in the sun. At night it is more expedient to bring under a canopy, or cover in case of rain. Stir daily, exposing the sun different sides. The time to complete readiness may take from 10 to 15 days.

Finally

Such simple ways, dear summer residents, prepare prunes at home. Cooked with your own hands, it is much more pleasant, tastier. Bon appetit everyone! All the best, good health, goodbye!

• How to cook prunes at home