Am I doing something wrong when dehydrating fruit?
July 27, 2009 - 5:33am
Hi all, I just got a dehydrator (NESCO) and am so excited!
I wonder if I am doing something wrong, though, because I have had about 30 grapes in there for over 24 hours and they are still not done. They are turning brown but are not raisins yet. I started them out at 105 degrees F and turned it up to 115 when I saw that they were taking so long. Is this normal? (I was able to dry bananas in much less time in the same machine)
The dehydrator's user guide mentions that fruits can be blanched in boiling water before dehydrating, but I don't want to kill the enzymes.
Can anyone tell me how long it usually takes to dehydrate grapes, and if there is something I should do to the fruit (other than wash it) before dehydrating to speed up the process?
Thanks so much!
July 27, 2009 - 6:04am
#1
Did you cut them in half? if not, then they are going to take quite some time. I dehydrated pitted cherries not too long ago, and it took almost a week - I thought the hole where the pit was would be sufficient, its not.
I'd cut them in half, it will cut your drying time down tremendously.
July 27, 2009 - 6:07am
#2
I didn't cut them in half but will do that now-- thanks so much!
July 27, 2009 - 8:40am
#3
Do you think that dried fruit at the grocery store is blanched first? Thats where I get all my dried fruit because I don't have a dehydrator.
July 27, 2009 - 10:51am
#4
I don't know if it is blanched, but I never buy it because the dried fruit at my grocery store lists sugar as an ingredient.
July 27, 2009 - 6:56pm
#5
LaEnsalada: I assume it is.
