Fruit Drying Guide; Drying Vegetables - Presto Dehydro Electric Food Dehydrator Instructions Manual

Electric food dehydrator

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Instructions manual (11 pages)

Table of Contents

maple syrup, corn syrup, or sugar to the puréed fruit, if desired. Try different amounts of sweeteners, starting with 1 tablespoon

for each 1½ cups of fruit purée, to find your preference. Fruit with sweeteners added will take longer to dry than fruit that is not

sweetened.

Canned fruit can also be used to easily make fruit leather. Drain juice from fruit, saving juice for later use. Place fruit in food processor

or blender and purée until smooth. Applesauce can be used directly from the container.

For frozen fruit, thaw and purée until smooth.

Pour puréed fruit on lightly oiled fruit roll sheet and spread with a spatula to form a uniform layer about ¼ inch thick. Place fruit roll

sheet on dehydrator tray and begin drying. Average drying time for all fruit rolls is 4 to 7 hours.

Determining Dryness

Acceptably dried fruit leather will be slightly tacky to the touch, but will not indent when touched in the center. Begin checking the

fruit roll after 4 hours of drying. If additional drying time is needed, recheck every 30 minutes.

While slightly warm, starting from the outer edge, carefully peel the fruit roll from the sheet. Loosely roll in plastic wrap or waxed

paper and follow "Packaging and Storage" information on page 3. For immediate enjoyment, cut in strips or roll and cut into serving

pieces.

Note: Remove fruit rolls from sheets prior to cutting them.

Drying times are highly variable depending on the type and amount of food, thickness, evenness of food pieces, humidity, air temperature, personal preference, and

even the age of the plant at the time of harvesting.

Fruit

Apples

Peel, if desired, core, and cut in rings or slices, ⅛˝ to ¼˝ thick.

Apricots

Cut in half, remove pit, and cut in quarters or ¼˝ thick slices.

Bananas

Peel and cut into ¼˝ thick slices.

Blueberries

Remove stems. Dip in boiling water for 30 to 60 seconds and then plunge in

ice water to crack the skin.

Cherries

Remove stems and pit. Cut in half, chop, or leave whole.

Cranberries

Remove stems. Dip in boiling water for 30 to 60 seconds and then plunge in

ice water to crack the skin.

Figs

Remove stems. Small figs can be left whole. Otherwise, cut in half. Dip

whole figs in boiling water for 30 to 60 seconds and then plunge in ice water

to crack the skin.

Grapes

Leave whole or cut in half. Dip whole grapes in boiling water for 30 to

60 seconds and then plunge in ice water to crack the skin.

Kiwi

Peel and cut into ¼˝ to ⅜˝ thick slices.

Nectarines

Cut in half and remove pit. May also quarter or slice ¼˝ thick.

Peaches

Peel if desired. Cut in half and remove pit. May also quarter or slice ¼˝ thick.

Pears

Peel, core, and slice ¼˝ thick.

Pineapple

Peel, core, and slice ¼˝ thick.

Plums/Prunes

Halve or quarter and remove pit.

Rhubarb

Trim and discard leaves. Cut stalk into ¼˝ slices.

Strawberries

Remove the leafy crown. Halve or slice ¼˝ thick.

Drying Vegetables

Vegetables dry much faster than fruits. At the end of the drying period moisture loss is rapid. As a result, vegetables need to be

checked often towards the end of the drying time to prevent overdrying. Food turns brown when it is overdried.

When drying smaller vegetables, such as peas or carrots, it is recommended that you use a mesh screen*. A mesh screen will help

*Nonstick mesh screens are sold separately.