Sunday, November 4, 2012

Homemade Raisins What Could Be Easier?


FoodPantrie Air Drying

You haven’t lived until you have made and eaten home-made raisins.  These are far plumper than the commercially prepared ones. Plus, they last longer! The above picture shows you that this process is so simple, you don’t even need electricity to dry them! 

There have been times when I have purchased commercially prepared raisins only to find weevils in them after a few months.  Never had that happen with my homemade ones.

Sliced in Half

 The process is really simple:
  • Choose seedless grapes.
  • Cut them in half.
  • Spread out on your dehydrator racks, cut side up.
  • Dry at 115º for a couple of days. 
Linda’s note:  Sorry I don’t have the dried ones to show you. They are leathery and shriveled. The FoodPantrie ones took about a week to dry.

 

4 comments:

  1. I totally agree that they taste better than store bought. I make it everytime I can get a good deal on them and dehydrate them.

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  2. Don't dehydrators use electricity?...what is the method used to dry them without electricity?...thanks! I love raisins!

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    Replies
    1. Hi Selina,
      Yes, Most dehydrators today use electricity. This happens to be my FoodPantrie dehydrator, which does not use electricity. The point is, for most foods, electricity is not necessary. People have dehydrated foods since the time of Adam and Eve without electricity. It's only been in the 20th century that electricity has been used.

      I do not recommend dehydrating meats without electricity because you need a minimum of 140 degrees to kill botulism.

      If you want to know more about dehydrating without electricity, check my post and page on solar dehydrators. there are plans on how to make your own. Just go to the links provided for more information.

      The thing about grapes is that they have a thick skin. You need to puncture that skin in order to allow moisture to escape for dehydration. I found the easiest thing to do is to simply cut them in half.

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