How to dry apples at home: step by step instructions. How to dry apples at home: two convenient ways

We sell apples almost all year round, but apples grown in summer or autumn are still considered the most healthy and tasty. To keep them for a long time, while not really bothering, you can make them dry. Drying in an electric dryer is considered to be the best drying method: it is relatively quick, convenient and easy compared to drying in the open air or in the oven.

Apples of any variety are suitable for drying, depending on your taste preferences. Some prefer sweet varieties of apples, some like sour ones. The main thing is that the fruits are free of rot, wormholes and damage.

How to cut apples for drying

Before slicing, apples must be washed and dried well. Peel the core with a special tool or a knife, cut the fruit into slices or circles no thicker than 0.5 cm. If you cut them thicker, they will cook much longer. Peel the skin from the fruit or not, it's up to you. The peel contains many vitamins, but it becomes quite tough when dried, which not everyone likes.

To keep the apples longer and not lose their color when dried, you can (but not at all necessary) lower them into a saline solution before cooking. It is done like this: 1 tablespoon of salt is dissolved in 1 liter of water. Soak apples in it for 5 minutes, drain in a colander.

How to dry apples in an electric dryer

Spread the sliced ​​apple slices in an even thin layer on the pallets of the electric dryer. It is important not to stack them too tightly so that hot air can circulate freely between them.

It is necessary to dry at a temperature of 65-70 degrees for about 8-10 hours. You need to change the trays periodically for even cooking, as the slices will cook faster on the lower tray.

The video from "Tasty Simple and Useful" shows how to prepare apples for the winter by drying in a dryer

If you have to turn off the dryer before the fruit is fully cooked, be sure to open the lid or lay out the fruit trays, otherwise they will pick up moisture again.

The drying time largely depends on the juiciness of the apples, the thickness of their slices, the model of the dryer, so their readiness must be checked periodically. Only by experience will you determine the optimal cooking time for dried fruits.

How to check the readiness of drying from apples

The finished drying should be elastic, when pressed, moisture is not released, the piece does not stick to the fingers.

If the piece is brittle and dry, it means that the apples are too dry. You can use them, but there will be much less vitamins in such a product.

How to store dried apples

When the drying is ready, you need to remove the pallets from the dryer, leave the dried fruits to cool completely. You can store them in cotton bags, paper bags, glass jars with tightly screwed lids.

Plastic bags or plastic containers are not suitable for this purpose, as the dryer can become moldy in them or insects can start in it. It is good to store bags with dried fruits in a dry, cool place protected from the sun. For example, in the pantry, but not in the refrigerator.

Having dried fragrant apples for the winter, you can make delicious compote, porridge, pies for your family. Yes, and just crunch on apple chips with hot tea.

When you make preparations for the winter, you want the maximum of vitamins to be preserved in the product. Therefore, I really like to cook homemade dryers. Today I will tell and show how to dry apples in the oven or in the sun.

In preparation, such a preparation is simple and does not require additional costs in the form of sugar, spices or cans.

For this preparation, we need apples in any quantity and sunny weather. 😉 Varieties can be taken different, depending on your preferences.

Wash and dry apples. We remove damaged places, if necessary. Many do not know how to cut apples for drying: thin or thick slices. We cut the fruits in different ways, both in thick pieces and slices no more than 0.5 centimeters. If you have a harvester with a nozzle for chopping vegetables and fruits, then you will cope with the task of thin cutting much faster. A thinner dry, as you know, will dry faster. How we cut the apples this time can be seen in the photo.

We spread the pieces in a thin layer on baking sheets, cover with clean gauze and expose to the sun. We stir every 3-4 hours and after 2-3 days, depending on the weather, thin apple drying will be ready. It will decrease in volume, become dry, but flexible. The sweet aroma of dried apple will appear. If the cut is thick, then the drying process will be delayed by two or even three times.

How to dry apples in the oven

If the weather is not sunny, but cold and wet, or you simply do not have time, then you can use a faster drying method. I will only note that what the oven will be - gas or electric - does not matter.

We prepare apples as when drying in the sun.

First you need to preheat the oven to a temperature of 50-70 degrees. Put the apples on a baking sheet covered with parchment and dry for 3-4 hours.

I must say that despite the fact that drying for the winter, depending on the circumstances, I do it in both ways, but I prefer the first one. The finished product comes out more tasty and fragrant.

When asked how best to store dried apples at home, I will say that I prefer to save them in glass jars with a tightly closed lid, but you can also use clean linen or paper bags.

In winter, delicious amber compote, jelly, stuffing for pies are prepared from dried apples. And you can just eat like that, instead of sweets. After all, it is not only tasty, but also useful.

Dried apples, like many dried fruits, are a storehouse of vitamins, microelements and easily digestible carbohydrates. They, especially in the peel, contain a lot of nutrients, so necessary for a person in winter and early spring, during beriberi. You need to properly stock up on these natural gifts, and then no illnesses are terrible. The thing is that, compared with fresh, these dried fruits have a long shelf life and "live" without problems until spring. How to dry apples at home? There are several ways. Let's explore these folk recipes!

Preparation

Apples are mostly water (up to 90 percent). When dried, it evaporates, but useful substances do not. Making dried fruits from fresh apples does not affect the taste of the product. These dried vitamins can be stored for a long time, dishes are prepared from them when there are no more fresh apples, compotes and uzvars are cooked. The drying process itself does not require sophisticated equipment and any special knowledge. How to dry apples at home? First, they need to be prepared, sorted. Fruits with all sorts of defects are immediately set aside. Wash the selected apples thoroughly under running water. We take out the core (there are special tools, but you can get by with a thin sharp knife made of stainless steel). Some people prefer to remove the skin as well, but it just contains a lot of useful substances. So it's better not to peel! Next, cut the fruit into circles or slices. Sliced ​​apples immediately begin to oxidize and darken. To avoid this, they are usually blanched - dipped in hot water for a few seconds. It should be borne in mind that part of the sugars and acids is lost during this process. Some prefer to soak the slices in saline for two to three minutes.

In the sun

How to dry apples at home? The easiest and most time-tested way is drying in the sun. The prepared slices are laid out on a flat surface so that they do not touch each other, covered with a piece of gauze from insects. Everything else must be done by the sun. The main thing is that this happens at a sufficiently high temperature and without the participation of extraneous moisture (for example, rain). But that's what awnings are for. Periodically, apples must be turned over, shifted from place to place. This speeds up the drying time.

How to dry apples in the oven?

But if the first method is more suitable for rural residents or for summer residents, then the second is ideal for city dwellers who want to indulge in vitamins in winter. First you need to preheat the oven to a low temperature (50-60 degrees) so that the fruit does not become covered with a crust and the process of water evaporation does not stop. On a baking sheet (or baking sheets) we spread baking paper and put the apple slices in one layer. We put the trays in the oven with the door ajar. So the steam will come out of the oven, and the air will circulate. We interchange the baking sheets periodically, and turn the apples. We raise the temperature after a while to 70 degrees, and close the door. Drying lasts 7-8 hours. Before the end of the process, the temperature can be reduced to 50 degrees. We determine the degree of readiness by appearance (everyone knows what dried fruits look like)! When squeezed, the slices should not release juice. This is one of the ways to dry apples at home. In fact, instead of an oven, you can use a special drying cabinet, if one is available. But here is another way of cooking - and very curious.

How to dry apples in the microwave?

This method only takes a few minutes. Accordingly, he is very productive. How about benefit? Microwave processing of apples will not harm the fruit. For the skeptics: after all, millions of people reheat food every day in this kitchen appliance! So, we put the prepared fruits in a dish covered with a cloth towel. We turn on the microwave at low power for two to three minutes. We take out the apples. If the dried fruits are not ready - still set for a couple of minutes. It should work!

Hello dear readers. We are all waiting for the coming of autumn in order to fully enjoy its gifts, which are so useful at this time of the year. Everyone knows that autumn is the time for fragrant apples, which beckon with the variety of their varieties. Not having time to try all kinds of these autumn fruits, we try to prepare them for the winter in all sorts of ways. One of these ways is drying apples, thanks to which we can enjoy healthy vitamin drinks based on such dried fruits even in the cold season. Such a cloudy season does not allow us to carry out natural drying of fruits, but this does not matter. After all, there are several interesting ways to dry apple slices, which are easily carried out at home.

Of course, you can buy a ready-made product in the supermarket, but no one vouches for its naturalness. Yes, and too ideal appearance of such drying is alarming.

Such a sign may indicate the chemical processing of this product, which certainly saved the apples from their usual vitamin composition.

Having prepared apple drying on your own, you will definitely know that this product is natural, although it is not so attractive in appearance.

So, let's figure out how such drying of apples is properly prepared, and what secrets will help your drying look no worse than store-bought.

How to dry apples at home - subtleties and secrets

Remember how grandmother always prepared drying from various fruits even in the warm season, and already in winter we could enjoy the fragrant compote that she prepared.

And we, as children, always tried to steal a few dried apple slices from a huge bunch, which consisted entirely of dried fruits.

Drying turned out to be very sweet, because in the process of drying, excess moisture evaporates from the fruit, due to which only vitamins and sucrose remain in them.

And now it is quite possible to use dried apples as snacks between main meals.

Such a light snack will especially please our lovely ladies who are trying to keep themselves in shape even in winter, when you won’t find vitamins as such during the day with fire.

Apples, in comparison with other types of drying, are the least high-calorie, and their structure is quite soft, which cannot be said about home-dried apricots.

The process of harvesting drying has a number of advantages, thanks to which you will immediately run to the market for fresh apples for drying:

✔ This type of preparation will not take you much time, especially if you are a busy hostess.

You will only need to cut the apples, and the rest is no longer up to you. After all, if you cook compote for the winter, then it can take a lot of time. And so, you just prepare the basis for the future compote, which can be prepared at any time, while also not particularly straining.

✔ At home, you are in complete control of the process, thanks to which a natural product will be obtained.

Ideally, of course, it would be nice to produce this kind of harvest from apples that you pick in your own garden.

But fruits bought on the market are also suitable. The main thing is not to buy apples in supermarkets, since you definitely won’t find natural products there.

✔ Such dried fruits do not require special "greenhouse" conditions for their storage, so they are definitely not threatened with an early spoilage.

And thanks to the reduction in the size of each slice, you can easily store such a dryer in a cloth bag right in the kitchen. Just imagine what aroma will scatter in the kitchen.

Therefore, you should not think that the dried version of apples is somehow worse than fresh ones, because they are not amenable to any heat treatment. Rather, apple jam will be less useful, since during its preparation most of the vitamins will simply disappear.

Interestingly, the same amount of vitamins in dried apple fruits can be stored for 10 years. Therefore, think about how such “dry vitamins” can save you during the season of colds.

Weigh all the pros and cons, and hurry to the market for the required number of apples.

But keep in mind that during the drying process, the fruits are capable of decreasing by as much as 7 times. Therefore, if you are planning to dry apples for the entire winter season, then one kilogram will obviously not be enough here. Indeed, from such a quantity of fresh fruits you will receive only 150 g of the finished product.

Before deciding to take such a crucial step, it is necessary to familiarize yourself with some conditions for the correct implementation of the drying process in order to fully preserve its vitamin composition.

Apple processing and drying technology

1. The process of drying fruits can be carried out both with the help of special devices that every kitchen is now equipped with, and in the tired autumn sun. Since autumn can turn out to be far from sunny, it is better to immediately consider the option of preparing drying in apartment conditions. You can use both a simple oven and a microwave.

1. To get a quality product, you need to make sure that the apples are picked from the tree correctly. Therefore, it is better to do this on your own, while the collection must be carried out in dry weather, because moisture can lead to future damage to the fetus. In addition, it is forbidden to shake off the apple tree, because damage to the structure of the fruit can also spoil the quality of the finished drying.

1. Choose only ripe apples without any external damage. Slightly rotten fruits can spoil the entire batch of drying.

1. Drying involves the use of only ripe apples, so it is recommended to choose only autumn varieties, because only they will contain such a large amount of nutrients. In order for the finished drying to taste still resemble an apple, it is advisable to choose sour or sweet and sour varieties. In addition, their acid will indicate a high content of ascorbic acid.

1. Everyone wants to get beautiful drying as a result, so many people cut apples into circles. Undoubtedly, such drying looks great, but get ready, the process of drying such rounds can take much longer. Therefore, it is better to cut the fruits in the usual way for us - slices. So, you will get drying much faster, in addition, the likelihood that it may deteriorate is significantly reduced.

1. Slices should be cut into small thicknesses, because too thickly sliced ​​\u200b\u200bfruits can dry for too long, or even deteriorate completely during the drying process. And they shouldn't be too big either. Many do not like the peel, but do not rush to remove it from a ruddy apple, because it is in it that the greatest amount of vitamins is located.

1. Want to get the perfect white dryer? There is one secret that will help achieve the desired result: after cutting the fruits, dip the finished slices for a few minutes in a saline solution, then rinse them in clean water. Lay the apple slices on a paper towel to absorb excess moisture. And for the solution you will need 50 g of salt per 3 liters of water.

1. There is another way to process apple slices that you will definitely like much more than the previous one. You will need to place the future drying in a solution of citric acid, but if you want apples with a lemon flavor, then use fresh lemon juice. But if it is not the appearance of the future workpiece that is important to you, but its taste, then you can not waste time on processing.

1. We place the slices on special grills, or simple baking sheets, large wooden boards are also suitable. If you are an experienced specialist in these matters, then you probably have a special frame with stretched cotton fabric. This option will be just perfect to get the desired result.

1. If you still could not resist and cut the apples into perfectly even circles, then for quick drying it is best to string the finished slices on wooden sticks. Well, or you can just string them on a thread and hang such apple garlands in the interior. So, you will prepare the drying and decorate the room, and besides, the aroma emanating from the fruits that are in the process of drying will simply enchant you.

Drying apples at home is an important process, many people dry apples for themselves, and some people dry them for sale. Therefore, everything must be perfect.

How to know that dried fruits are ready

In such an activity, it is important to control the process all the time, because you can overdry the fruit. This is a method of drying fruits using an oven.

After all, an overdried product will not only lose its taste, but will also lose those useful vitamins for which we started all this.

But under-dried apple slices will not suit us either, because their long-term storage will be simply impossible.

Half-baked dried fruits will simply rot when stored in a bag, which we will probably hide in a dark closet.

Our drying will not have a chance to go bad, because there is a way to help determine the degree of its readiness.

So, choose one of the slices and try to bend it between your fingers. Ready-made apple drying is quite elastic, which allows it to bend easily.

But if it turned out to be fragile and broke into two parts right in your hands, then this means that the product is not ready yet.

Drying in the sun - how to dry apples

This method has been familiar to us since childhood, but it is not always possible to dry late apples in sleepy sunlight.

After all, we can find the most ripe apples only in autumn, but this does not matter either. There are special summer varieties designed just for drying.

Of course, such a process will take much longer than in the oven, but for lovers of the natural way of drying apple fruits, we offer this option.

The ideal time for this kind of activity is in September, when there is already a sufficient variety of apple harvest, and the sun is still shining like a summer.

Residents of apartment buildings can place prepared apples directly on their balcony. This is the only well-ventilated place in the apartment, where a sufficient amount of sunlight enters. But if there is no balcony, then this is not a problem.

You can place the drying even on the windowsill, but with the condition that the room will be constantly ventilated.

1. We select intact fruits that must be thoroughly washed. Next, cut the apple in half, and remove the core, after which we cut it into small slices.

1. To preserve the snow-white color of the fruits, dip them for a couple of minutes in salt water, then rinse under running water to get rid of the salt. We remove excess moisture with a napkin and lay out the pieces of apples on a flat, flat surface.

1. We place our future drying on the balcony and leave it under the gentle rays of the sun. But at night it is better to take the workpiece to the apartment, because due to the lack of heat, the fruits can absorb moisture, which can interfere with the cooking process. It is better to cover them with some kind of cloth, which will serve as protection from summer insects.

1. Throughout the day, it is better to “visit” our apple slices from time to time so that the process of drying the fruits occurs evenly. If one side of the slices is already dry enough, then it's time to turn them over to the other side.

On average, fruits can dry from 4 to 6 days, but these figures will vary depending on factors affecting the situation: the intensity of sunlight, air temperature, and the thickness of the slices themselves.

How to dry apples at home using the oven

If you have found your ideal variety of apples, but it is already too late for natural drying, because it is late autumn outside, do not worry.

The drying process can also be carried out in an apartment environment, and it is usually carried out using an oven.

An apple drying rack is ideal, but a baking sheet is also a good option. Only in this case, you need to turn the slices all the time so that they dry evenly.

1. It is necessary to set the temperature no more than 60 degrees, because a high temperature can damage the structure of the fruit, as a result of which the beneficial substances contained in them will be lost. It is also important to keep the oven door ajar from time to time for better air circulation.

1. When the slices have lost most of their moisture, causing them to wilt a little, lower the temperature a little.

1. It is necessary to keep the product in the oven until you are sure that they are already dry enough for long-term storage. After all, under-dried fruits will begin to deteriorate quickly, and your harvest of dried fruits will simply be spoiled.

Drying apples at home using an oven is much easier and more profitable if you live in an apartment.

How to dry apples in an electric dryer for the winter

Electric drying is good because in the process of drying the fruit, constant air circulation is provided. Thanks to this, they are dried with the help of heat and air, and are not dried due to exposure to high temperatures.

In order for the drying to be uniform, lay the sliced ​​slices in one layer on a special rounded grid.

The temperature should also not be higher than 60 degrees. Under these conditions, drying will be ready after 8 hours, although this time may vary depending on the thickness of the slices.

How to dry apples in the microwave

If you are a busy housewife, and you do not have time to control this complex process, then use the help of a microwave. So, you will get drying in a matter of hours, but keep in mind that some vitamins may be lost.

1. After choosing undamaged apples, you need to wash them thoroughly and cut them as you like. We take a plate, and lay it with a thin natural cloth, after which we lay out our slices on the prepared surface. We also put the same fabric on top.

1. We set the mode to 200 W and leave the future drying for 3-4 minutes. As a result, we get a quick drying option that will be stored for quite a long time.

Storing apples - important rules

Properly dried fruits are only half the battle, albeit a very important one, this allows you to save dried apples for the winter. But in order for drying to retain its taste and useful properties, it is necessary to provide it with acceptable conditions.

Usually such dried fruits are stored in plastic bags, which is not very correct. The fact is that polyethylene does not let air through at all, and this can lead to rotting of dried fruits.

Therefore, the ideal option, of course, would be a bag made of natural cotton fabric. Such a canvas passes air well, which will help the slices to be stored as long as possible.

If you put ready-made dried fruits in a bag, this does not mean that you can forget about them until the first desire to cook compote. From time to time it is necessary to check their condition, because such dry fruits can be a real delicacy for various insects.

In addition, it may happen that mold overtakes your workpiece. But this will happen only if the humidity in the room rises or if the fruits were not completely dried.

Although the process of drying apple slices may seem impossible in an apartment environment, this is actually not the case. Just not everyone knows how to dry apples correctly.

There are several alternative solutions to the usual drying of apples in the sun. In addition, it will not take you much time, because your task is only to prepare the fruits for the main processing. Drying fruits is much easier than making jam or closing compotes.

An apple contains a lot of mineral and organic elements that are of great benefit to the human body. They are rich in iron and vitamin C.

But, with prolonged storage, apples lose their beneficial properties. They are stored in cellars, compotes are boiled, or apples are dried, that is, they are dried.

This is perhaps the most effective and reliable way to preserve all the vitamins in fruits.

Apples are dried in several ways. This is drying in the sun, in the oven, microwave or in electric dryers for vegetables and fruits.

Rules for drying apples

Drying rules include:

• Whole, undamaged apples are dried, they must be ripe, and selected by size.
• Autumn sour and sweet-sour varieties of apples are suitable for drying.
• The thickness of the slices should be no more than 1 cm.
• All cut apples should be the same thickness.
• It is recommended to cut apples into slices, so they dry faster than those that have been cut into circles.
• In order for the apples to dry evenly, they are laid out very carefully, there should be one layer of fruit in a row, then they will not stick together.

To prevent the apples from turning dark, you need ...

Since apples are very rich in iron, they quickly oxidized. So that when drying at home, chopped apples do not darken, they must be dipped in cold water with the addition of salt or a small amount of citric acid. Use about 10 grams of salt or 2 grams of acid per liter of water. The fruits are then air dried.

Another popular way is blanching, i.e. sliced ​​​​circles or slices of fruit are dipped in hot water (almost 90 ° C) for a few seconds. But when blanching, apples lose some of the sugar and acid.

Also, apple slices can be held over the steam of boiling water, put them in a sieve or colander in advance, then they are dipped in cold water to cool. Thanks to this procedure, apples dry much faster.

Apple selection rules

Apples are chosen ripe, whole, with dense pulp and sour-sweet taste, without wormholes and fruit rot.

Large ones are dried only in cut form., they are cut into slices and circles, the seeds are removed. The skin of apples is either peeled or left. For drying, mainly summer varieties are used, less often autumn.

Drying apples in the oven

At first glance, drying apples in the oven may seem like the easiest way. Well, what's so complicated here: washed and chopped apples are stacked on a baking sheet and in the oven. But no, you need to take into account small nuances. It must be remembered that fruits are dried in an open oven, because when the oven is closed, they will quickly bake.

Definitely need a lot carefully monitor the condition of apples, because they can dry out or even burn out.

Apples, cut into slices and circles, evenly spread on a baking sheet, after laying it with parchment.

The disadvantage of this method of drying apples, perhaps, can be called the fact that this the process is very long and takes a lot of time.

Not all varieties of apples are used for drying in the oven.

From sweet varieties, drying is loose and tasteless.

Sour and sweet and sour varieties of apples are excellent. The most delicious drying is obtained from the Antonovka variety.

Drying apples in the oven takes by almost 6 hours. The fruits are stirred every 40-50 minutes to dry them evenly.

You can not immediately turn on the oven at a high temperature, as the apples can instantly become covered with a crust, and all the moisture will remain in them. The oven door, at the beginning of the process, should be ajar, close it at the very end, when all the water has practically evaporated.

Drying in the oven is conditionally divided into three periods:

• In the first period, the temperature is 50 ° C, the oven door is ajar until the apples begin to wilt.
• An hour after the start of the process, the temperature is raised to 70°C, most of the water begins to evaporate from the apples.
• The last, third period, is to increase the temperature to 80°C.

Drying in a dryer

The most convenient drying method is drying apples in an electric dryer. It takes up little space, works by itself and does not require constant presence, dust and various insects do not fall on apples.

Apples cut into slices are stacked on special sections of the dryer, then they are installed in the electric dryer itself. The lid closes and the power button is pressed.

Approximate drying time is about 6 hours. At the initial stage, the temperature is set at 75-85°C, then it is lowered to 50°C. The readiness of apples is easy to determine, when pressed, they stop releasing juice.

The best varieties of apples that are dried in electric dryers are considered early autumn ones: Aport, Titovka autumn, Pepin, Antonovka. It is not recommended to dry winter varieties. Those apples that have fallen can give quite good results when dried. Delicious dried fruits also come from summer varieties, as well as wild apples.

Drying apples in the sun

Summer pleases us with fresh fruits, but not all of us live in those regions where fresh vitamins are eaten all year round. This is the best time for drying. Drying apples in the sun is considered less expensive and accessible to everyone.

Sliced ​​apples are laid out on trays, baking sheets, or on a table that is located outside. They dry out under the influence of sunlight, they must be turned over every day until completely dry.

Also, apples can be strung on a thread and hung like a New Year's garland in a sunny place. You can make special dryers covered with gauze or mesh, so they are easy to keep from flies and other insects.

Dry in the sun only possible in the summer heat.

Since apples are dried in the summer, summer varieties are used for their drying. For example, Papirovka, Melba, Borovinka, Dream. The most delicious dried fruits are obtained from fruits with white pulp.

This type of drying is considered the longest, since the finished drying can be stored for storage in almost a week, sometimes even five days is enough.

Other drying methods

In addition to drying in the sun and in the oven, fruits are dried in the microwave and electric stove.

For the microwave, apples are prepared, as well as other types of drying, then they are put on a plate, after covering it with a cotton cloth, and covered on top.

The whole drying process takes only 3-4 minutes, with a microwave power of 200 watts. The pluses include the fact that useful elements and vitamins are not greatly destroyed and are stored in large quantities in dried fruits.

Perhaps, drying apples on an electric stove is not the best way, but what if it's raining or very cloudy outside. A baking sheet, or other metal dish, is placed on the stove, and a grate with laid out apples is placed on it.