Healthy snacks at home: how to dry pumpkin in an electric dryer correctly and what you can eat it with
Pumpkin is rich in vitamins, fiber, microelements and is also low in calories. Many tasty and nutritious dishes are prepared from the juicy orange pulp. It is boiled, fried, baked and stuffed. However, not everyone knows that pumpkin pulp is also dried. Sun-dried slices are a wonderful vitamin supplement to the diet, and children eat them with pleasure.
We'll tell you how to dry a pumpkin in an electric dryer correctly and how to create decorative items from this orange beauty.
Preparing pumpkin for drying
The taste of the finished product largely depends on the correct choice of pumpkins and the preparation of the fruit for drying.
Suitable varieties for drying
For drying, undamaged pumpkins without signs of rot are selected. It is important that the fruits are fully ripe. First of all, preference is given to table and nutmeg varieties rather than forage varieties of pumpkin.
Hard-barked pumpkins are considered the best option for drying.ripening later than everyone else.
Important! For harvesting, those pumpkins are selected that have the stalk remaining after harvesting. Such fruits are protected from the entry of harmful microorganisms.
Late-ripening varieties include: Sweet dining room, Winter sweet, Buttercup, Blue Hubbard. Among the decorative varieties, Legendaria and Cucurbita are dried. Early ripening varieties are also dried and dried, but their moisture content is higher, and accordingly, they take longer to dry than late ripening varieties.
Selection stages
Pumpkin selection is carried out in two stages. First, the appearance of the fruit is examined. Only ripe, whole pumpkins are selected, without dents or damage. There should be no suspicious plaque or stains on the crust.
Then the fruits are cut and the pulp is carefully examined. Pumpkins with uniformly colored, dense flesh produce a tasty and healthy starting product, which is also stored for a long time.
Preliminary processing
Selected specimens wash thoroughly, peel and separate the seeds from the pulp.
Advice. When cutting up pumpkins, do not throw away the seeds. They are very helpful.
Pumpkin pulp cut into pieces 3-4 cm thick. Do not make the slices too small, because when dried, the pumpkin greatly decreases in size.
Blanks spread in a container in a thin layer. The slices are sprinkled with sugar at the rate of 200 g per 1 kg of pulp. Place a press on top and put the pumpkin in a cool place for 12-15 hours. Then the juice is drained, the pieces are again sprinkled with sugar and again put in a cool place for 12-15 hours.
The drained juice is mixed with a small amount of sugar and brought to a boil.. When the juice has cooled slightly, the prepared pumpkin pieces are immersed in it for 15 minutes. After this, the slices are removed from the liquid and drying begins.
It can be useful:
Drying pumpkin in an electric dryer
It is preferable to dry the pumpkin using an electric dryer or oven.. This significantly reduces drying time and reduces the likelihood of product spoilage during the process. In addition, the dryer greatly simplifies the process, since virtually no human intervention is required.
The prepared slices are laid out on racks at a short distance from each other.The temperature is set to at least 55-60 °C. To prevent the slices from sticking to the grates, they are periodically turned over.
The total cooking time for the delicacy depends on the size of the pumpkin pieces and the moisture content of the pulp.. On average, the drying process lasts from 12 to 20 hours.
Candied fruit
For preparing candied fruits use small pieces of pulp. First, they are boiled several times in sweet syrup, and then laid out on wire racks and sent to the dryer or oven.
Can prepare candied fruits with different tastes. To do this, add lemon or orange juice, cinnamon, ginger, and honey to the sugar syrup.
Pumpkin chips
For making unusual chips the pulp is pre-baked in the oven for 30-40 minutes and pureed. The resulting mass is spread in a thin layer on a baking sheet. Then the puree is dried in an oven or electric dryer until brittle.
Pumpkin powder
Another unusual option for preparing dried pumpkin. Pumpkin powder is made from dried puree., grinding it with a coffee grinder to a homogeneous consistency.
The crushed mass is stored in jars or paper bags in a dry, dark place.. Pumpkin powder adds a beautiful color to baked goods and complements soups, side dishes and dessert dishes well. If you mix it with warm water, you get healthy pumpkin puree.
Drying pumpkins for decoration and crafts
For crafts or interior decoration, the pumpkin is dried whole. This is done in two ways: using the oven or in the fresh air. Drying such a large vegetable entirely is not an easy task. To ensure that the pumpkins dry well and do not spoil during drying, choose not too large specimens.
The selected fruits are washed and the seeds are removed. The oven is heated to 55-60 °C and the workpiece is placed there.To ensure even drying, the pumpkin is periodically turned over. The drying process takes from two to eight hours, depending on the size of the vegetable and the juiciness of the pulp.
If there is a need to dry a large fruit, this can be done by leaving the prepared pumpkin in a dry, dark place. During natural drying, the workpieces are periodically checked in order to notice signs of spoilage in time. Under natural conditions, pumpkin is dried for two to three months.
Seeds
When cutting pumpkin fruits seeds often thrown away. But in vain - it is a valuable source of zinc, vitamin E and other useful substances. Pumpkin seeds can also be dried.
Before drying, the seeds are thoroughly washed in warm water, freeing them from fibers. Then excess water is removed and the seeds are laid out on clean paper or cloth to dry. Dry naturally at room temperature.
Once the seed coat becomes brittle and dry, the seeds are considered ready and are removed for storage.
How to determine if a pumpkin is ready
When preparing dried pulp, the main thing is not to overdry it.. How can you tell when the treat is ready? Readiness is determined by the appearance of the slices, as well as by taste. Properly dried pieces are soft and flexible, but do not stick to your hands.
If in doubt, try it! Chew the slice for a while. If the pumpkin feels like it’s melting in your mouth, it means it’s ready.. The dried pulp tastes sweet, because now it contains much more natural sugar than fresh pulp.
When dried, pumpkin slices decrease in size by 1.5-2 times. This also signals readiness.
Storage conditions for the finished product
How to store dried pumpkin slices? For storage, a cool, dry place with a temperature of +9 to +12 °C is best suited. Air humidity should be no more than 60%.
For long-term storage, choose glass or plastic containers with tight-fitting lids. Line the bottom of the container well with dry parchment paper. The layers of slices are also covered with paper.
Advice. If you have prepared a large amount of treats, choose the freezer for long-term storage.
Uses of dried pumpkin
Dried pumpkin slices - ready-to-eat product. But they are also used as an ingredient for a wide variety of dishes. Dried pumpkin is used to prepare pureed soups, porridges, sauces, and desserts. We offer several recipes.
Candied pumpkin with honey and spices
Spiced candied pumpkin with honey is a healthy and unusual dessert. To prepare it you will need one and a half kilograms of pumpkin pulp, cinnamon stick, vanilla sugar, cloves, 4 tbsp. l. fructose, 4 tbsp. l. honey
The pulp is cut into cubes and boiled in water with a cinnamon stick for five minutes. Separately prepare a syrup from two glasses of water, honey, fructose and vanilla sugar. Add pumpkin cubes to the syrup and cook for 15 minutes.
The candied fruits are carefully removed from the cooled mass and dried in the oven at low temperature for at least 4-5 hours. The finished treat is transferred to a container and stored in the refrigerator.
Candied pumpkin with lemon
Candied pumpkin with lemon is very tasty. To prepare an unusual dessert you will need: 2 kg of pulp, 600 g of sugar, half a glass of powdered sugar, two lemons and water.
The pulp is cut into cubes, covered with sugar and left overnight.In the morning, the released juice is drained and mixed with grated lemons. Bring the mixture to a boil and cook, stirring constantly, for five minutes. Then the syrup is filtered, pumpkin pieces are added and boiled until thickened.
Dry the candied fruits in the oven or dryer, spreading them out on paper. The finished dessert is sprinkled with powdered sugar.
Candied pumpkin does not harm your figure - the calorie content of the finished product is about 150 kcal.
Georgian dish pkhali made from dried or sun-dried pumpkin
An unusual dish called pkhali is also prepared from dried pumpkin pulp. To prepare it you will need: 500 g dried or sun-dried pumpkin, 3 cups walnuts, 1 tsp. saffron and utskho-suneli, 2-3 cloves of garlic, cilantro, celery and dill, 2-3 tbsp. l. vinegar, ground pepper and onions (optional).
First, prepare the nut mass. Walnut kernels are ground in a meat grinder. The greens are finely chopped. Garlic is crushed into a paste. Greens, onions, garlic, spices, hot peppers, vinegar, and salt are added to the walnuts. Mix thoroughly.
Pieces of dried pumpkin are mixed with nut mass. It is better to prepare pkhali in advance so that the ingredients are soaked. Vinegar is sometimes replaced with pomegranate juice.
Take note:
Secrets and tricks of cooking dried pumpkin
So, dried pumpkin is a tasty and healthy dish that is easy to prepare at home. Let's add a few secrets of experienced chefs that will help you stock up on bright slices for the whole winter:
- to preserve the bright orange color, the pumpkin pieces are dipped in boiling water for two minutes before drying (if this is not done, the pumpkin will darken when dried);
- to remove harmful microbes and insects, the pumpkin is soaked in salt water before drying;
- during the drying process, turn the pumpkin slices several times to prevent the pieces from sticking to the grill;
- If at the end of the process the pieces remain too wet and sticky, they are left to dry for another hour or two.
Conclusion
Drying pumpkins outdoors is a lengthy process and not always successful. During natural drying, the pumpkin often begins to rot or is attacked by insects.
Using an electric dryer or oven for drying significantly speeds up the process and minimizes the likelihood of product spoilage. If the process was completed correctly, the result will be pumpkin slices that do not stick to your hands and are elastic.