Dried apples are an excellent way to preserve vitamins for the winter. The use of dried apples, according to recent studies, is not only to preserve vitamins, but also to affect the so-called "harmful" cholesterol. It is believed that dried apples in relation to exposure to cholesterol give better than fresh fruit, indicators. In addition, dried apples have a dietary effect and contribute to the discharge of excess weight. Obviously, this is due to the pectins with which the apples are saturated. It is the pectins that contribute to the feeling of satiety.
How to make dried apples?
Get such a product is not particularly difficult:
- For drying, sour and sweet-sour varieties are selected. Apples are washed in cold water and dried in fresh air.
- fruits are peeled, the core with bones neatly cut out.
- Peeled apples are cut into slices or mugs;
- so that the flesh retains a light shade, the lobules are lowered into the salted water for no more than a couple of minutes. Salt solution is prepared based on the proportion of 20 grams of salt per liter of water.
Options for drying include the use of an oven or drying in the sun.
How to cook dried apples in the oven?
Prepared slices of apples are laid out on a baking tray. The oven is heated to a temperature of 80 ° C.
Drying in the oven lasts about 6-8 hours, depending on the thickness of the cut lobules. The main thing is to make sure that apples do not burn. It is advisable from time to time to shake or flip them.
Readiness is determined by color. Dried apples should be light cream color and soft to the touch.
For those who have a "whimsical" oven, the sun drying option is more suitable.
How to cook dried apples in the sun?
Prepared apples are laid out on trays and put in the sun. The drying process will take from 2 to 4 days. It is necessary to turn apples daily.
Of course, drying in the sun seems more "natural", but it may not be available to residents of some regions, and it is inconvenient for residents of large megacities, in which the apples taken out on the balcony will absorb not only the sun's rays, but also the flavors of exhaust gases.
How to store dried apples?
After the apples are dried, you need to prepare all the conditions for their preservation until the cold.
The basic requirements for the storage conditions of apples:
- Tare, which will be stored apples, you need to lined waxed paper.
- For storage, a cardboard box, basket, plywood or wooden box, dense bags will suit.
- The best place for storing dried apples is a glass jar with a hermetically sealed lid, or even better - waxed.
- The room should be dry and cool, well ventilated.
- Do not store apples next to strong-smelling products, as they absorb all the surrounding odors.
How to keep dried apples if stocks have been attacked by pests? There are two main ways to get rid of insects:
- Peel the apples, pour a thin layer on the baking sheet and warm in the oven at 60 ° C for 30 minutes.
- Frost apples. After the dried apples lie off for half an hour at -15 ° C, the pests will die.
Each housewife knows that dried apples can be consumed not only in a "raw" form, but also what can be done with dried apples compote, charlotte, stuffing for pies. Charlotte is done in the same way as with fresh apples, only for the beginning dried fruits have to be soaked in boiling water for 30 minutes. For pies, a filling of dried apples, previously soaked in boiling water and twisted through a meat grinder, is suitable. It only remains to add sugar and spices, for example, cinnamon.