The dried fruit, which contains about 25% moisture and dried fruit, the humidity does not exceed 5%, is a healthy and natural to have right snacks hand, access to transport and store, and very nutritious.
Good quality dried fruits can be bought or homemade and sold in food tours too. In addition to being a simple and delicious food, they are easily transported from one place to another, they take up little space, weigh little, and keep for a long time. Raisins, dried apricots, prunes, apples, blueberries, figs, dates, strawberries, dried mango, etc., are simple and fatty foods that we can use to sweeten numerous healthy recipes or as part of recipes for muesli, energy bars, and balls, cakes, compotes … and above all, they are an ideal option for snacks full of nutrients. But it is essential to consider its purity and quality since, even though they seem healthy foods when we buy them, they are usually accompanied by additives, sugar, and inferior quality oils. We also have to consider the transformation process, which will influence the nutritional quality and the final taste.
Methods Of Obtaining Dehydrated Or Dried Fruits
Drying is a technique for preserving food. It consists of eliminating most of the water, thus preventing the growth of microorganisms. It is one of the oldest preservation techniques, and today it has been replaced by automated and controlled drying. To do this, there are several techniques:
Sun-dried
The drying outdoors is the oldest of dehydration. A more environmentally friendly method, if done well, is the conservation method that preserves more nutrients and has a more intense flavor. It is a more vulnerable technique since food is exposed to environmental aggressors. However, there are still small companies that use it traditionally, for example, to dry tomatoes ( dried tomatoes dehydrated in the sun ), to dry Malaga raisins ( which can only be dried in the sun if they have the Denomination of Origin) or to dry apricots, as some families still do, in the traditional way.
Hot air drying
It consists of applying a current of air at a specific temperature, speed, and in certain conditions of humidity. The higher the heat, the faster the dehydration, but more significant destruction of enzymes and vitamins.
Freeze drying or vacuum lyophilization
The water is sublimated, passing directly from the frozen material into the air. That is, the moisture is eliminated from the food by sublimation: the food is quickly frozen at about -57 ºC and then slightly heated and subjected to a vacuum, thus causing it to dry out. This process is more expensive and used for more delicate fruits like strawberries. It has the advantage that it seems to be better preserving the original structure of the food, and due to the low working temperature, the alteration of the thermolabile vitamins is further prevented. On the other hand, the shelf life of freeze-dried food is longer.
