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3.3: Dehydration

  • Page ID
    29377
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    Learning Objectives

    • To apply the principles of dehydration to home methods of drying.
    • To properly store dehydrated food.
    • To rehydrate or otherwise prepare dehydrated food for consumption.
    Laboratory Problems
    • Pretreat, dry, store and serve some commonly dehydrated fruits and vegetables.
    • Observe the characteristics of various dried fruits.
    General Laboratory Directions

    This lesson is divided into two laboratory periods several weeks apart, with short assignments during the week following the first laboratory.

    Preparation Day

    Pretreat assigned fruit or vegetable according to specific directions below to control enzymatic deterioration.

    Carrots or Onions

    Wash and trim. Cut into ⅛-inch slices, then pretreat if directed. Steam blanch by spreading vegetable in a thin layer in steamer. Steam until hot in center, approximately 3 to 3 ½ minutes.

    1. no treatment.
    2. steam blanching.

    Apples

    Wash, peel, core, and cut into ⅛-inch rings. Immediately drop into assigned pretreatment solution and soak for 10 to 15 minutes.

    1. no treatment.
    2. 1 tsp. salt in 1 pint water.
    3. 2 tsp. ascorbic acid in 1 pint water.

    Peas

    No treatment.

    1. Drain and dry fruits and vegetables. Spread one layer of cheesecloth on dehydrator racks. Spread food in a single layer on racks. Set temperature of dehydrator at 140o-150oF. Dry until vegetable slices are brittle (3-6 hours) and fruit slices are leathery and pliable (6-8 hours).

    Label a Ziploc bag for each dehydrated sample as follows:

      • Name of Product, treatment used, section number, and student initials
    1. Let food stand in a large loosely covered container for a week, stirring each day, to allow moisture to equilibrate.
    2. Place in small air-tight containers and store in a cool place.

    Evaluation Day

    Prepare food according to specific directions. Record your observations on the chart.

    Carrots

    Rehydrate by soaking for 20 minutes or more in enough water to cover. Add more water if necessary to keep carrots covered. Cook carrots as if they were fresh in a small amount of soaking water.

    Apples

    Dehydrated apple slices may be eaten as they are, or they may be rehydrated and cooked. Add enough water to cover fruit and soak for 1 hour or more. Add more water if necessary to keep fruit covered. Simmer fruit in soaking water until tender.

    Observations and Explanations

    Type of Treatment Before Drying Appearance Texture Flavor
    Carrots, No Pre-treatment      
    Carrots, Steam-Blanched      
    Apples, No Pre-treatment      
    Apples, Salt      
    Apples, Ascorbic Acid      

    Observe the characteristics of various dried fruits:

    Dried Fruits Appearance Texture Flavor
    Apples      
    Apricots      
    Currants      
    Dates      
    Figs      
    Peaches      
    Prunes      
    Raisins      
           

    3.3: Dehydration is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by LibreTexts.

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