Drying (food)

“ The drying of food is simple, and no elaborate equipment is required for carrying out the process. Dried food requires less space and care in storage than food preserved in any other way, and both paper and cloth containers may be used in storing it. When storage space is limited, or when there is a very large quantity of some such food as apples or string beans that cannot be used or canned at once, it is advisable to dry at least a part of them. When used in combination with canning, drying offers an excellent means of preserving foods and thus adding to their variety. ”

“ Before satisfactory methods of canning came into use, drying was a common method of preserving both fruits and vegetables, and while it has fallen into disuse to a great extent in the home, much may be said for its value. Drying consists merely in evaporating the water contained in the food, and, with the exception of keeping it dry and protected from vermin, no care need be given to the food in storage. ”

“ One of the most important considerations commending the drying process is that the city or town housewife can employ this method of preservation with the simplest and most inexpensive facilities, and the process can be employed continuously, whether the food to be saved is in large or small quantities. A few sweet potatoes, peas, or beans can be dried at a time. Even a single turnip or an apple is worth drying. Bit by bit vegetables may be saved until a whole meal is conserved. ”

“ Also, various books on the market give instructions for drying and recipes for using dried food.
Fruits and vegetables selected for drying should be the highest quality 358 obtainable—fresh and fully ripened. Wilted or inferior produce will not make a satisfactory dried product. Immature produce lacks flavor and color. Overmature produce may be tough and fibrous or soft and mushy. ”

“ It also explains why the old-fashioned housekeeper dried fruits and why the preservation of certain meats is accomplished by the combined methods of smoking and drying, the creosote of the smoke given off from the wood used in this process acting as a preservative. All the grains, which are very dry, keep for long periods of time, even centuries, if they are protected from the moisture of the air. Peas, beans, and lentils, as well as dried biscuits and crackers, are all examples of how well food will keep when little or no moisture is present.
KEEPING FOODS WITH ICE ”

“ The preservation of foods by canning and drying should not be looked at as an old-fashioned idea; rather, it is a matter in which the housewife should be vitally interested. In fact, it is the duty of every housewife to learn all she can about the best methods to employ. Canning methods have been greatly improved within the last few years, and it is a wise plan to adopt the newer methods and follow directions closely. Especially should this be done if foods canned by the older methods have spoiled or if mold has formed on top of the food in the jars. ”

“ Quality fruits and vegetables can 309 be sun-dried or dried inside using an oven or a food dehydrator. As with other methods of preservation, quality of the final product will depend greatly on quality of the fresh food being dried. Drying does not improve the quality of any food. ”

“ Most food products release moisture rapidly during early stages of drying. This means they can absorb large amounts of heat and give off large quantities of water vapor while remaining at a temperature well below that of the drying air. Maximum drying rates can be achieved by providing a larger, thermostatically-controlled heat source and a fan for circulating air. ”

“ Spread the foods to be dried on the trays in a single thin layer, and arrange them so that the air from the electric fan will blow over them. Turn the trays as the food dries, so that one part does not dry sooner than another; also, turn the food frequently so as to expose all parts alike. ”

“ A temperature of 135° to 140° F is desirable for dehydrator and oven drying. Moisture must be removed from the food as fast as possible at a temperature that does not seriously affect the food’s flavor, texture, color, and nutritive value. ”

“ All dried foods deteriorate to some extent during storage, losing vitamins, flavor, color, and aroma. However, low storage temperatures prolong storage life, and dried foods may be frozen for long term storage.
Dried foods can be reconstituted by soaking, cooking, or a combination 360 of both, and will resemble their fresh counterparts after reconstitution. However, dried foods are unique and should not be expected to resemble a fresh product in every respect.
Drying does not render the food free of bacteria, yeasts, and molds. ”

“ There is no expense for glass jars or tin cans, and with ordinary care there is no loss of products, as there may be in handling glass jars or from spoilage. The actual work requires less time and less skill than canning and the dried products when properly prepared are just as good as the canned ones—some say better.
One special thing in favor of drying is the little storage space needed. You can often reduce 100 pounds of fresh product to ten pounds by drying, without any loss of food value and with little loss of flavor. ”

“ Canning has a greater range of possibilities than drying. A larger number of foods can be preserved in this way, and, besides, the foods require very little preparation, in some cases none at all, when they are removed from the cans. Practically every food that may be desired for use at some future time may be canned and kept if the process is carried out properly. These include the perishable vegetables and fruits of the summer season, as well as any winter vegetables that are not likely to keep in the usual way or that are gathered while they are immature. ”

“ The salt water seems to help restore the original color of the food. When dried vegetables are to be cooked, they should be cooked in the salt water in which they are soaked; when dried fruits are to be cooked, the salt water should be poured off and fresh water used. Long, slow cooking at a low temperature is better for all kinds of dried foods than rapid cooking. The fireless cooker will be found valuable for cooking dried foods.
CANNING AND DRYING ”

“ Products dried in a sun drier, no matter how crude, are superior to those dried in the open without protection of some kind. Products dry more rapidly in high altitudes than at sea level.
Racks in oven can be used. Plates or platters can be used in oven. A stove drier hung over the stove can be used. A water-bath or other commercial drier can be used with the stove.
TIME-TABLE FOR DRYING FRUITS
CHAPTER XIV HOW TO DRY VEGETABLES
Vegetable drying is a little more complicated than fruit drying, just as vegetable canning is more complicated than fruit canning. ”

“ The product should never be so hot that it cannot be grasped in the hand. In order to prevent the fruit from burning where artificial heat is used and to keep it from sticking to the drier by remaining in contact with it too long, stir the fruit occasionally. To insure the most uniform drying in sun drying, the fruit also should be stirred occasionally.
Remember that if trays with metal bottoms are used for drying, they should be covered with cheesecloth to prevent acid action. Oven racks may be covered with either cheesecloth or heavy wrapping paper. ”

“ This method of preserving fruit, except in large establishments where it is dried by steam, is but little used, since canning is quicker and superior in every way. Success in drying fruits is dependent upon the quickness with which, they can be dried, without subjecting them to so violent a heat as to burn them or injure their flavor. ”

“ Colour of the meal is another factor which demands recognition. It plays a far more prominent part in the commercial value of the product than might possibly be conceived. The American drying system, operating along direct fire-heated lines, while efficient so far as it goes, namely, the elimination of the moisture, yields a darker coloured meal, owing to the high temperature which has to be used, while, of course, the nitrogen content is lowered by such practice. ”

“ Vegetable and fruit drying have been little practiced for a generation or more, though there have been some thrifty housekeepers who have clung to their dried corn, peas, beans and apples. A friend of mine says: "Why, dried corn has a much better, sweeter taste than your canned stuff. I would rather have one little dish of my delicious dried corn than two big dishes of your canned corn."
Drying, I think we will all admit, does not and cannot take the place of canning fruits and vegetables in glass or tin. Drying and canning are twin sisters, and always go hand in hand. ”

“ If one has but a small quantity, the best plan is to dry by mean of artificial heat; setting it first in a hot oven until heated through, which process starts the juice and forms a film or crust over the cut surfaces, thus holding the remaining: quantity of juice inside until it becomes absorbed in the tissues. The drying process may be finished in a warming oven or some place about the range where the fruit will get only moderate heat. ”

“ In general, most fruits or vegetables, to be dried quickly, must first be shredded or cut into slices, because many are too large to dry quickly, or have skins the purpose of which is to prevent drying out. If the air applied at first is too hot, the cut surfaces of the sliced fruits or vegetables become hard, or scorched, covering the juicy interior so that it will not dry. Generally it is not desirable that the temperature in drying should go above 140 deg to 150 deg F., and it is better to keep it well below this point. Insects and insect eggs are killed by the heat. ”

“ Drying of animal fibre.—The best mode of operating is as follows:—The flesh must be cut into slices from 2 to 6 ounces in weight, immersed in boiling water for 5 or 6 minutes, and then laid on open trellis-work in a drying-stove, at a temperature kept steadily about 122° F., with a constant stream of warm dry air. That the boiling water may not dissipate the soluble animal matters, very little of it should be used, just enough for the meat to be immersed by portions in succession, whereby it will speedily become a rich soup, fresh water being added only as evaporation takes place. ”

“ This observation may be of value where fruits and vegetables are scarce or expensive. On account of cooking effects, it cannot be too often reiterated that raw fruits, vegetables and salads, are of more value than cooked forms of these same sources and that drying processes are extremely destructive where heat enters into the drying process. ”

“ So remember that for drying all vegetables are blanched in steam. To do this steaming you can use your ordinary household steamer, such as you use for steaming brown breads and suet puddings, or you can simply place a colander over boiling water in a kettle. Do not allow the colander to touch the water. If you are fortunate enough to possess a pressure cooker, steam the vegetables for drying in it.
Blanching is necessary for many reasons. It removes the strong flavors, objectionable to many people. Beans, cabbage, turnips and onions have too strong a flavor if dried without blanching. ”

“ If a patent drier is used, regulate the heat with a thermometer according to the time-table for drying. Turn the product while drying when necessary to keep it from adhering to the pan and make sure that every portion is subjected to heat. Quick drying is preferable to slow drying, but the heat must not be sufficient to cook the product. ”

“ The proper drying of vegetable substances, is of the greatest importance. It is often directed to be done in the shade,138 and slowly, that the volatile and active particles may not be dissipated by too great heat. But this is an error; for they always lose infinitely more by slow than by quick drying. ”

“ A top quality dried product reflects suitable pre-treatment before drying, and adequate drying under proper conditions. Also, appropriate storage after drying is vital to keep moisture from re-entering the dried product.
Fruits may be dried more easily than vegetables, because of their high sugar content and since not as much moisture must be removed to get a quality product. When properly dried, fruits should be leathery and pliable, and have a color characteristic of the fruit. Excessive darkening indicates a less desirable, poorer quality product. ”

“ It is better not to use too much drier, and, as the drying qualities of each maker's japans, etc., vary greatly, the workman's judgment must guide him as to the exact amount to be used. It is a matter of doubt as to what is the best article with which to thicken the color without altering the shade; a little bolted whiting is very good. Some grainers prefer melted beeswax or soap dissolved in hot water and added to the color while hot, or even cold water stirred into the color. As a rule, the less of these added to the color, the better. ”

“ To-day the preparation of fish, dried fruits, desiccated vegetables, etc., is a world-wide industry.
Generally speaking, decay organisms can only develop in a moist environment. All fresh foodstuffs contain a large proportion of water. The removal of this water effectively checks decay. Drying alone, however, does not always produce a permanent “cure,” as the foodstuff is always liable to get moist again. For that reason it is customary to combine the drying process with treatment with an antiseptic substance such as salt. ”