How to properly store dried apricots at home
Apricots have been cultivated since ancient times. The inhabitants of Byzantium endowed the fruits with rejuvenating properties, believed that they were able to slow down aging, increase life expectancy. Berries were consumed fresh and dried, dried in the sun.
From the fruits of the stone fruit, aromatic jams and jam are cooked, compotes are closed for the winter, but during heat treatment the fruits lose vitamins, minerals and organic acids, which they are rich in. How to store dried apricots at home so that insects do not start in the package is not known to everyone. If you do not follow the rules for the preparation of berries and the drying process, the fruits will deteriorate.
Fruit drying methods
To preserve the maximum of trace elements and vitamins in apricots, which are so lacking in winter, the berries are sorted out and sent to a gas oven or special drying. In southern regions, where it is hot and there are no clouds in the sky, the fruits dry in the sun in 4 or 5 days.
Electric grill
Companies from many countries produce various types of household appliances; a detailed annotation is attached to each device. Fruits dry evenly in the electric grill. The apricots are sorted out, the seeds are taken out, divided into 2 parts and laid out on a wire rack so that the cut halves do not join together.
For three hours the berries are dried, setting the temperature within 50 ° C, after which they increase it by another 10 degrees. The fruits darken during the drying process, they will not change color if, before being sent to the electric grill, they are dipped into a solution prepared from 5 g of citric acid or juice and a liter of water. Dry apricots after the liquid drains. You can dry the berries well in 12 hours.
Gas oven
In the absence of special electrical equipment or a grill, both urban and rural residents can use a conventional stove, which has a built-in gas oven, but you need to constantly monitor how the fruit is dried by opening the door. The temperature in the oven must be at least 60 ° C, which is reduced only at the end of the process.
Dried berries are sweet and tasty if you add sugar in a ratio of 3 to 1 for a day:
- The mass is transferred to a colander and left in it.
- While the liquid is draining, the syrup is boiled. To prepare such a product, water is used in an amount of 300 ml and 350 g of sugar.
- Apricots are placed in a hot solution and boiled for up to 10 minutes. To dry the cooled halves, leave in a colander.
- The fruits are transferred to a baking sheet in the oven, where they are dried at 50 degrees for about three hours, at the end of the process, the temperature is lowered to 35 ° C and dried for the same amount of time, repeatedly turning the apricots.
Dried fruits should swell in water, do not let the juice flow when pressed. Dried apricots are soft to the touch, do not crack when tapped.
On open air
If the weather is hot and clear, the berries are weathered for 4 hours, then laid out on a metal grate, which is placed in the sun. After 4 days, the fruits are transferred to the shade, where the apricots must be dried until they turn orange.
In order to preserve more vitamins, the seeds are not pulled out of the fruits, the berries are dried under the hot rays of the sun for a week, then the apricots dry out in the shade.
Varieties of dried fruits and storage nuances
Depending on how the berries are cut, whether they are used with seeds or whole, there are several types of apricot drying technologies.
Dried apricots are obtained when the berries are cut in half or dried in quarters. This sweet food is rich in:
- organic acids;
- beta carotene;
- glucose;
- vitamins;
- fructose.
Dried fruits retain iron, phosphorus, potassium. Central Asian varieties of apricots are dried in the sun. Dried apricots have a beautiful color, which is obtained when the fruits are treated with sulfur dioxide.
The apricot is dried together with the bone. When using this product:
- Digestion is normalized.
- The pressure decreases.
- Eyesight improves.
Kaisa, which is obtained from uncut fruits that are dried in the air, brings considerable benefit to the human body, but the skin of the berries remains intact, since the stone is squeezed out of them.
Dried apricots can be kept in the refrigerator. Dried apricots in a cool room do not spoil for six months. You can find a place to store dried apricots both in a city apartment and in the country.
Conditions for long-term storage
When harvesting any kind of apricot product, a certain technology must be observed, otherwise the fruits will quickly lose their beneficial properties. Dry fruits do not spoil for a long time at home, if you choose the right:
- storage space;
- temperature regime;
- packing material.
Dried apricots can be kept in the refrigerator and in the freezer. In order to feast on apricots longer, they are placed in a closed cabinet, which stands on the balcony or in the pantry, but you cannot place dried fruits near radiators and stoves, washbasins and bathtubs. Sun-dried apricots are perfectly stored in the country, if you take the fruits to the attic.
The temperature in the apartment should not be 20 degrees, but at least 15, otherwise pests will begin to multiply. You need to store dried apricots and dried apricots in a dark place, but in a separate package. Do not mix apricots with other fruits, they will lose their taste. It is desirable that the humidity does not exceed 65%.
What container is suitable
Dried fruits should not be placed in plastic containers, since the aroma in such dishes quickly disappears, and the material attracts an unpleasant odor. You can not store dried apricots in bags made of linen, they quickly damp.
There is no need to put dried fruits in a plastic bag, the fruits are moldy, oxidized in a metal box.
And dried apricots, and apricots, and kaisa are well stored in a glass jar, they do not lose either smell or taste, but such a container should be sealed hermetically. You can put dried apricots in a ceramic container, provided the lid is tight. In a cardboard box or a box made of wood, dried fruits do not spoil for a month. In a can with a vacuum system, insects do not start, which significantly increases the shelf life of the fruit.
When placing dried apricots in the freezer, wrap them in foil. If you store dried apricots correctly, they do not absorb the smell of other products, do not lose their aroma, and please with a pleasant taste.
Pests and ways to combat them
If you put dried fruit in an unsuitable container, do not follow the storage regime, insects often start in the form of ticks, all kinds of bugs, moths. If such guests have already appeared, the apricots are poured onto a baking sheet, placed in the oven, and heated at 75 degrees for about an hour.
You can protect dried fruits from insect infestation using one of 3 methods. Containers for storing fruits must be treated with a bite diluted in the same amount of water. A bag of mint leaves is hung next to the apricots. Laundry soap helps to save dried berries from moths. Insects do not tolerate this smell, but so that fruits are not saturated with such an aroma, they must be sealed.
Shelf life of dried apricot
How long apricots or dried apricots will be stored depends largely on the packaging in which the products are located, as well as on compliance with the temperature regime.
Dried apricots won't go bad all month if placed on a shelf or left on the table. In the dark, they do not lose either taste or smell for six months. However, you need to open the package with dried berries at least once every 4 weeks to check if there is mold and moths. Having found a spoiled apricot, you will have to throw out the entire drying batch. When an insect is detected:
- The fruit is frozen.
- Placed in boiling water for an hour.
- Wash and dry.
Pests rarely breed in the refrigerator, dried fruits are stored for 10 to 12 months, it is better to pack apricots in small containers. If you put dried fruits in foil and leave in the freezer, they will not deteriorate, they will not lose their beneficial properties for up to 2 years.
