How to Dry Strawberries at Home

Fresh strawberries like to enjoy not only children but also adults. However, the time for such culinary delights is limited, because the period of ripeness of the royal berry lasts only 2-3 weeks. Therefore, many pragmatic housewives prepare strawberry jam for the winter or freeze the vitamin harvest. One can argue for a long time about the advantages of such a way of preparation, but it also has serious disadvantages. But dried or dried strawberries are a product completely devoid of disadvantages. In addition, there are many options for preparing such a delicacy at home. So that any hostess will be able to master the uncomplicated technique.

Many scientific articles have been written about the benefits of dried strawberries, from which one thing is clear - this kind of preparation allows you to preserve the valuable composition of the natural product as much as possible. In other words, dried strawberries are a source of vitamins that will help improve the health of large and small members of the family. And also such a berry can be added to tea and drinks, prepare nutritious desserts and delicious pastries. Let's tell you about the ways to dry the berry and options for cooking from it.

How to choose strawberries for drying

The first thing to do is to choose good specimens of strawberries for drying. Since the time of collection in different climatic regions is different, it is difficult to name a specific period. Also, much depends on the variety of culture. For example, in the middle belt, early varieties reach ripeness in early June, and late-ripening strawberries are harvested until October. For drying, choose hard, but not overripe berries. Juicy strawberries for drying are not suitable, since they have a lot of moisture. Sweet, undersized berries are ideal for this kind of preparations. Among the best varieties for drying are:

• Pegasus;
• Kimberly;
• Pandora;
• Roxanne;
• Asia;
• Maxim;
• Marmalade and some other varieties.

For drying whole berries, wild varieties and small strawberries Kupchikha, Divnaya are suitable.

In addition to varietal selection, it is necessary to remove fruits damaged by rot. Berries should have a bright aroma and taste, but the most important indicator of quality is a dense structure. For drying, berries go together with stalks.

Note: Discarded strawberries can be used for jam or make a compote from it.

How to prepare them for drying

The strawberry crop immediately after harvesting should be allowed for processing, otherwise the berries will very soon become watery and become unsuitable for drying. The maximum shelf life of fresh produce is 5-6 hours.

The preparation of berries for subsequent drying consists of several stages:

1. First, the harvested crop is taken over, cleaned of debris. Unconditioned specimens are placed in another container.
2. The next step is to separate the sepals, although it is not necessary to do this. Small berries can be dried whole and directly with the "tails".
3. Afterwards, rinse the strawberries several times under running water, taking care not to damage them. This is the most important stage of pretreatment. If the berries are badly washed, the remaining sand and dirt will then squeak on your teeth.
4. After water procedures, dry the fruits. You can use paper towels to speed up the process.
5. Prepared strawberries cut into equal slices or plates. Simplify the task will help you use a special device for cutting cheese. Small berries are usually dried whole or cut lengthwise into two parts.

Blanching in Syrup
This method of preparing the berry crop is not necessary, but connoisseurs of vitamin products believe that dried berries turn out tastier in this form. Although this technique has been used in Russia since ancient times, people call it the Thai way for some reason. The advantage of blanching berry slices before drying is that you do not get over-dried chips, but a dried product, more like candied fruit.

The sequence of performing this step:

1. For 1 kg of strawberries take 600 g of granulated sugar.
2. Prepared in the above way, place the berries in a deep container, pour part of the sugar.
3. Place the container for 1/2 day in the refrigerator.
4. Then prepare the syrup in the ratio: 1 liter of water 400 grams of sugar.
5. Take the strawberries out of the fridge. Pour the berries into the boiling syrup, boil for 8-10 minutes.
6. Drain the ready fruits in a colander, to drain the excess liquid.

Next you can dry according to any chosen scheme.

Note: This method can be adopted if there are small children in the family. Received in such a simple way, the treat is quite capable of replacing candy, but it is less likely to cause damage to the tooth enamel.

How to properly dry strawberries

Now it's turn to tell about the ways of self-drying berry products. There are several such options: some involve the use of household appliances, others are based on the natural process of drying. And all methods of drying berries without preservatives allow getting a natural and very useful product for the family diet. Having such a vitamin arsenal in stock, any hostess will be able to prepare exclusive dishes and drinks in snowy winter, which will help to improve health. So, let's understand the advantages of all known methods of drying strawberries at home.

In the oven

This is the fastest and less time-consuming option will take 8-10 hours. After drying in the oven, the berries are obtained with a pleasant characteristic flavor and bright aroma of strawberry jam. The finished product in appearance is very reminiscent of chips. Therefore, little sweet tooth especially like to eat such berries.

No additional means for drying in the oven is required. It is enough just to follow the instructions step by step:

1. First, prepare the baking pans: they must be clean and dry. To prevent berry juice from leaking, cover them with parchment or special baking paper.
2. Rinsed and dried whole berries or slices put on the baking tray so that they do not touch.
3. Set the temperature in the oven to 60 degrees, warm it up a little, and then send the trays with berries there and close the door tightly.
4. After an hour and a half, take out the trays and leave them outdoors until they have cooled completely.
5. Then flip each slice to the other side. As necessary, replace the parchment with a fresh sheet.
6. The process of drying berries to resume, but the door should be in a slightly ajar position. Set the temperature of the oven to 45-52 degrees.
7. Dry the berries until fully cooked, but every hour turn them carefully.
8. Repeat the technological process until the fruits are completely dried. If you need to get dried strawberries, the cooking time can be reduced by 2-3 hours.

Of course, such a drying process is not very comfortable for the hostess, at least because for a long time you need to be near the oven, constantly turning berries. Additional inconvenience is created by the ajar door of the unit. Therefore, if you have an electric dryer in the kitchen, it is worth using this device.

In an electric dryer.

This option is considered the most optimal, both in terms of time and in terms of the quality of the products obtained at the end of the process. By using an electric appliance to dry berries, the entire procedure will take 6-8 hours. However, it all depends on how big the batch of fruit product is to be dried.

How to dry strawberries in an electric dryer:

1. Cover the trays with kapron mesh beforehand, but you can also use parchment paper. Such a backing is needed so that the strawberry slices do not stick to the racks of the electric dryer. In addition, this measure will facilitate the removal of finished berries.
2. Put the ready berry slices into the trays. Arrange the fruits densely, but in such a way that the slices are not overlapping in relation to neighboring slices.
3. When the laying will be prepared, turn on the device to a temperature of 50-60 degrees.
4. In this mode, dry the berries for 1-1.5 hours.
5. If the crop is occupied by several trays, they need to change places at a certain interval of time (90 minutes), so that the sweet products dried evenly.
6. After the first change of trays, it is better to change the temperature to 45-50 degrees and leave it until the end of drying.

Important point: Do not be surprised that the output will remain only a third of the original volume of berry stock.

In an aerogrill

The main advantage of drying any berries in the oven is that the product fully preserves its aesthetic appeal. Of course, the taste characteristics of dried in this way strawberries also deserve only the highest marks.

Algorithm of action:

1. For drying in the aerogrill, select juicy and strong specimens.
2. The berries are carefully washed, dried.
3. Overly large fruits cut in half or cut into slices.
4. Place the sliced berries evenly on a streamer or mesh tray.
5. Set the temperature mode on the scale of the device to 60 degrees and a high blowing speed.
6. Depending on the variety of berries and the volume of the bookmark, dry from 30 minutes to one hour.
7. During the drying process, be sure to leave a gap between the flask and the lid, to give a free outflow of hot humidified air.
8. If at the end of the specified period berries have not found the desired condition, send them in the air grill for another 10-15 minutes.

Useful information: this method of drying is unique in that it allows you to preserve the complex of substances in the finished product, which is present in the fresh berries. The taste of this delicacy is impossible to describe with words, because the product somewhat resembles marmalade, and somewhat like candied fruit. Dried strawberries are nice to add to tea, ice cream, fruit salads.

In the microwave

Drying any berry product in the microwave is considered the fastest way to prepare a sweet dessert. Although the amount of vitamins decreases after the intense dehydration procedure, a nice addition to a tea party can be made in just 5-8 minutes if the batch of berries is small. A large batch of berries will take 1-3 hours to dry.

Step-by-step cooking diagram:

1. Place sliced berries on a dish that can be freely placed in a microwave oven rack.
2. To prevent the berries from sticking to the surface of the container, cover the bottom with paper.
3. Place the slices so that they do not touch.
4. Also cover the top of the plate with parchment.
5. Now set the defrost mode on the device and dry the strawberries for exactly 3 minutes.
6. After that, switch the appliance to minimum power and dry the products for another 3 minutes.
7. It is very important not to let the berries burn. The fact is that household appliances of this class heat differently, so it is possible that in some places the berries may dry faster.
8. Finish drying the fruit in the open air. This process will take from 1 to 3 hours.

Note: It is now a common opinion that dishes or individual products cooked in the microwave are harmful to health. Given the fact that the hostess will not dry strawberries every day, this technique is quite applicable when there is no free time. However, each hostess can decide for herself which drying method suits her best.

In the sun

Open-air drying is the longest method, but at the same time it is the most suitable for home use. Using this technology does not require additional devices. However, in order to obtain high quality products, the hostess or her helpers will have to watch the berries for 4-6 days. And this is at best, if you are lucky with the weather. Some prudent hostesses, not wanting to depend on the vagaries of the climate, dry berries indoors. This option can also be considered promising, if the room is well ventilated.

So, the entire process, from preparation to the finished product consists of several steps:

1. Prepare in advance the trays, large sieves, trays.
2. All auxiliary means, on which the strawberries will be dried, cover with paper, but it is possible to use unnecessary newspapers for this purpose. Place thick sheets of paper on top of the "pillow". It is best to take a piece of absorbent cotton.
3. Place the strawberry slices evenly on the sheet of paper. The berry slices should not touch each other.
4. On a sunny day, dry the trays with strawberry slices in the shade or under a canopy. Residents of "stone jungle" can adapt the space of a balcony for this purpose. The main rule is that the sun's rays must not get on the berries.
5. After every 5-7 hours be sure to carry out a revision: if the paper pad has become damp, make a replacement of newspaper and absorbent cotton. Berry slices one by one turn to the other side.
6. In order not to change the paper without end, thread the berry plates and dry in this form.

If you follow this regime, usually on the 4-5th day the strawberries are ready.

By the way, together with the berries, only on a different tray, you can dry the sepals. Then the dried raw material is very useful to add to a tea brew.

Note: It is unacceptable to lay berries directly on newspaper sheets, because printing ink is very toxic because of its lead content. It is a powerful carcinogen.

In principle, we have described in detail here all the popular drying techniques of fruit and berry products. Housewives only need to choose from this culinary arsenal the most suitable method for themselves.

How to determine if the product is ready

Determine the readiness of dried strawberries is not difficult. To do this, you can perform a simple test at home:

1. Bend a slice of berry. If it will be elastic, but not brittle - then the product is ready.
2. If the strawberry chips stick when you squeeze them with your fingers, then you need to continue drying. Regardless of the drying method, the finished strawberry plates should be: dry, pliable, and without traces of juice.

These are the three main signs of readiness. But there are some varieties of strawberries that retain a slightly oily surface after drying, which is no big deal. The most important purpose of drying is to remove moisture.

How to store dried strawberries correctly

Regardless of the method of drying, dried berries for their long shelf life need to ensure proper conditions. Let's list the different options and their advantages:

1. Polyethylene bag. Such packaging for finished fruit and berry products is suitable in the case if it is then determined for storage in the freezer. In this form, the product will remain for 2-3 years.
2. Glass jars with a sealed lid - also suitable container for capricious products. In this form, without access to moisture, strawberry chips can be stored for up to two years.
3. Berry powder. Some housewives let dried berry raw material for powder. For this purpose, a coffee grinder is used. Strawberry powder can also be stored in a jar with a tightly lapped lid for up to 2 years.
4. Ceramic dishes, paper bags and canvas bags are also suitable for storing dried berries.

Important: During long-term storage, berries should be checked periodically to notice the appearance of mold on them in time. Such a product can no longer be used. The most insidious pest of strawberries is fruit moth. In order for the insect not to spoil the berry chips, you need to ventilate them periodically.

What are the benefits of dried strawberries

In addition to the fact that dried strawberries are considered a gourmet delicacy, it is also a very healthy product. During periods of seasonal epidemics of influenza and viral infections, it is necessary to include it in the diet.

In the composition of dried berries there are the following components necessary for maintaining health:

1. Vitamin complex, which is dominated by ascorbic acid and nicotinic acid, and vitamins A and E are also present.
2. Minerals in large quantities: phosphorus, zinc, magnesium, iodine, potassium.
3. Carbohydrates, represented by 80% natural sugars.
4. Antioxidants that clean tissue cells from toxins, preventing their premature aging.
5. Pectins, which have a positive effect on digestion.
6. Tannins, which relieve signs of inflammation.
7. Organic acids, practically necessary for all the biochemical processes of the body.
8. Fiber, which improves intestinal function.
9. Essential oils.

Also in the composition of dried strawberries in small quantities present proteins and fats. In a hundred grams serving of berry potato chips there are about 176 kcal, which is considered an acceptable indicator for the use of weight loss.

Such an impressive set of substances provides a number of beneficial actions. Dried strawberries when constantly present in the diet:

• strengthens the immune system;
• Is a powerful antidepressant;
• regulates the process of hematopoiesis;
• strengthens the heart muscle;
• is a good diuretic;
• has anti-inflammatory properties;
• Restores normal water-salt balance;
• normalizes blood pressure;
• stimulates blood circulation;
• speeds up healing of wounds.

The healing properties of the wonderful berry can be listed endlessly, because it is beneficial not only in the treatment and prevention of various diseases, but also helps to keep women young and beautiful. For example, it is proven that with regular consumption of strawberry chips, the body will increase the synthesis of collagen, and this will have a positive impact on the appearance. The content of iodine in the berries is good for the thyroid gland. Just 10-15 dried fruits a day will be a reliable prevention of cancer. In folk medicine, there are many unique recipes involving dried strawberries. For example, an extract based on them is used to treat hemorrhoids. The berry is invaluable for colds and bronchitis, rheumatism and just a bad mood. One can give as an example a lot of unusual, but very effective recipes with dried strawberries.

Therefore, the inclusion of such a delicacy in the diet is always justified, if a person is not prone to allergies, which is not uncommon today.

What can be cooked from dried strawberries

Dried strawberries are a real boon for any housewife. This product, as if specially created for the realization of the most daring culinary fantasies. For example, if you add the powder to the dough, baked goods will take on an amazing color and flavor. And what a rich taste a traditional fruit compote with the addition of a small portion of dried strawberries has. Such a treat can be given to small children without fear in reasonable quantities. But if you summarize the possibilities of dried strawberries, then such a preparation is suitable for cooking:

• porridges;
• desserts;
• jam;
• mousses;
• confectionery;
• fruit salads;
• drinks (homemade lemonade).

You can enjoy berries, replacing a snack or combining them with sour cream or yogurt.

In short, there are a lot of options for the rational use of the useful product. Here are a few simple recipes that are ideal for practical use in the home kitchen.

Quick muffin

This variant of baking refers to the category of dishes "when the guest is on the doorstep". It takes about an hour in total to prepare, and the baking process takes only 10 minutes. In the grocery kit for a fragrant muffin for tea should be:

• egg - 4 pcs;
• vegetable oil - 70 ml;
• powdered sugar - 70 grams;
• salt - a pinch;
• champagne - 120 ml
• flour - 250 gr;
• baking powder - 2 tsp;
• dried strawberries - 200 g;
• orange - 1 fruit.

The cooking process:

1. When all the products are on the table, turn on the oven and immediately put it on 180 degrees.
2. While the oven heats up, rinse the dried berries with warm water, then cut them into small cubes.
3. Combine the eggs, powdered sugar and salt in a bowl, then whisk.
4. Add the champagne and vegetable oil to the beaten eggs. Whisk the eggs again.
5. In the resulting mixture, add flour (sift it is mandatory) and baking powder.
6. Mix the dough well.
7. Remove zest from an orange, cut into small pieces.
8. Now stir the orange zest and strawberries and add them to the batter.
9. Let the dough stand for a quarter of an hour, and then form muffins, dividing the entire layer into 6-8 pieces.
10. Place the pieces of dough in the molds and put them in the oven.
11. An indicator of the readiness of muffins is a dry match.

When the cupcake has cooled a bit, it can be cut and served for tea.

Strawberry Nut Balls

Spending a minimum of time, the hostess will get an amazingly delicious treat, which will be eaten with pleasure by kids and adult sweet tooth. Prepares such a dessert is very simple, in just a few steps. List of ingredients:

• dried strawberries - 50 g;
• hazelnut - 50 gr:
• agave syrup - 50 g;
• Strawberry jam "Maheev" - 1.5 tbsp;
• walnuts - 130 g;
• roasted almonds - 50 gr.

The mere listing of the components of the future treat begins to intensely secrete gastric juice. But you should not oppose this, because the further process consists of the following actions:

1. Roast the nuts.
2. Strawberries rinse in warm water, dry.
3. Now pulverize the berries and nuts with a blender.
4. Add syrup and jam.
5. The resulting mass is mixed well.
6. Shape into balls.
7. Put ready rounds on a plate covered with clingfilm.
8. Place in fridge for few hours.
9. Before serving, roll balls in cocoa-powder or coconut flakes.

Milk cocktail with berries

This recipe is also without any wizardry, but it turns out a very tasty and healthy dessert. To enhance the flavors, you can use dried strawberries in combination with raspberries.

The proportions of the main ingredients:

• milk - 1 tbsp;
• Honey - 30 g;
• vanilla - to taste;
• strawberries and raspberries - 50 g each.

Algorithm of action:

1. Cut the washed berries into halves, dry them.
2. Grind berries together with honey and vanilla in a blender.
3. Add milk to the mass and beat with a blender again, but on high speed. If the taste is lacking in sweetness, you can add a little sugar.

Oatmeal cookies with strawberries and white chocolate

And this culinary masterpiece is not ashamed to serve to the festive table. Although more often this version of the pastry is used by supporters of fitness and natural nutrition.

For delicious cookies with berries you will need:

• eggs - 2 pcs;
• Dried berries: cherries, cranberries, strawberries - each one a handful;
• sugar - 120 gr;
• flour - 200 gr;
• butter - 120 gr;
• chocolate (white) - 40 gr;
• vegetable oil - 1 tsp;
• soda - ½ tsp;
• cinnamon - ½ tsp;
• oat flakes - 4 tablespoons;
• milk - ¼ cup;
• salt - a pinch.

Sequence of steps:

1. Preheat the oven to 190 degrees.
2. Break up the chocolate into small pieces, but you can grate it.
3. Mix the flour with the cinnamon, add salt, baking powder and baking soda.
4. Add all the berries and chocolate to the mixture. Once again stir vigorously.
5. Beat butter and sugar with a mixer. Without stopping to beat, introduce eggs one by one and milk.
6. Now it remains to combine the flour mixture with berries with the creamy and egg component.
7. Add to the total mass oat flakes, mix.
8. Spread a sheet of parchment on a heated baking tray, grease it with vegetable oil.
9. Spoon out the dough.
10. Sprinkle the remaining flakes on top of small cakes.
11. Bake the cookies for 15 minutes.

You can make a lot of other interesting desserts from dried strawberries. The dried berry plates will make a wonderful composition with ice cream, the sweet pieces can simply be combined with butter and sent to the refrigerator. Then the resulting product can be spread on bread - both tasty and useful. Dried strawberries go great with cottage cheese paste. Dried berries do not require additional preparation, since they are already themselves a full-fledged light snack. Therefore, such a valuable versatile product should definitely be stocked for the winter.