I am attempting to make some sun-dried tomatoes. Last year I made some in the oven, and they turned out very well; I tended to eat them like raisins after they were done, so I didn’t get to keep as many for use over the winter as I had planned. But the ones I did keep were pretty useful. I just dropped them into boiling pasta for the last few minutes of cook time, then drained it all together, then added some butter or olive oil. That was good.
Unfortunately, drying in the oven can be a little annoying, because one must run the oven at low temperature for a long time—six to ten hours. I over-cooked quite a few. This year, the idea of keeping the oven running while the air conditioning was fighting off the 90+ degree heat just didn’t appeal to me at all.
So I am trying a new method. I happen to have a Ford Festiva-shaped solar-powered dehydrator, which I brought with me to work. I placed it so that the front solar screen was facing the sun, put a tray of little sliced tomatoes on the front panel, and went into the office to work.
I think this might take two days. Wish me luck.
Also, the newspaper mulch I’ve attempted to use in my watermelon bed has failed catastrophically. It is now difficult to see the watermelon vines under all the 18-inch-tall grass, as well as the volunteer tomatoes and basil (I won’t complain about the last two. The basil is especially welcome, and has a pleasant lemony flavor.) My garden, almost every inch, looks terrible. It’s extremely weedy, overgrown, and browning.
I just saw Alton Brown do a show on this. His method involved a box fan. But that was for fruit....do you have to have heat to make the tomatoes work?
ReplyDeleteI am unfamiliar with any method that doesn't involve heat! What does he do with the fruit, just whip air around it until it dries out? I guess that would work, too.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,1977,FOOD_9936_37444,00.html
ReplyDeleteFood Network gives the "recipe" here.
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,1977,FOOD_9936_37444,00.html
ReplyDeleteOkay, try again. It didn't copy the complete address.
And STILL not working.
ReplyDeleteGo to google and type in "Alton Brown box fan dried fruit". It'll be the first hit you get. (If it's worth that much effort and I'm not convinced it is)
I'll check that. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteI don't think it is the heat so much as the air circulation. You don't have to have the heat but it helps draw the moisture out more quickly. Get a Dollar Store fan and some rechargeable batteries. Turn the fan on when you go in to the office and let it move the air around in your car. Recharge the batteries when you get home so they can manage running 8 - 9 hours a day for several days in a row (plus, it is more eco-friendly). :0
ReplyDeleteSo it can be heat or airflow, or both. I suppose the ideal method would incorporate both, but since I don't need to speed up the process, I won't use a fan in my car.
ReplyDelete