Make Dried Cherries
Cherries are delicious fresh from the tree, but did you know you can dry them at home, so you can enjoy them year round? You can use a food dehydrator, your oven, or just the heat of the sun! This article will explain all three methods for you.
Ingredients
- Cherries- any kind will do, just make sure they're fresh, and have no blemishes.
Steps
- Wash the cherries well in cool water and remove the stems.
- Pit a Cherry. This is much easier with a cherry pitter, which leaves the cherries whole, or you can cut them in half with a paring knife, and remove the pits.
- Pat the cherries dry with paper towel.
- Once dried, place the cherries, cut side up on baking sheets. Make sure they are not touching.
- For the oven, or dehydrator, preheat to 165 F degrees, for about 3 hours, or until the tops look leathery and wrinkled. Then reduce heat to 135, for about 16-24 hours.
- You can tell the cherries are done, when they start to look similar to raisins. They should be hard, but still pliable, a little bit sticky, and when you squeeze them, no liquid should come out.
- If you would like to dry your cherries in the sun, it's almost the same procedure.
- Place the patted dry cherries on trays, and cover them with cheesecloth. Also, it is a good idea to put the trays on top of something, so they're not on the ground.
- Leave them in the sun for 2-4 days. It really depends on the temperature and humidity, so check them often.
- Once they are fully dried, place the cherries in a 160 degree oven for 30 minutes. This will kill any (unlikely) bacteria that may have formed.
Tips
- After you have packaged the cherries, watch them carefully for a day or two. If any moisture forms in the bag or container, the cherries were not completely dried. They will grow mold if this is the case, so dry them in the oven a little longer, or eat them up quickly!
- Once the cherries are done, allow them to 'rest' for an hour or so before you package them. then put them in airtight containers, or zipper bags.
- You can eat dried cherries just as they are, as a topping for yogurt, or salads, or in any recipe that calls for raisins. So experiment! Try them in all sorts of ways.
Warnings
- If you're drying your cherries in the sun, make sure it's a sunny forecast for the next few days. Rain will ruin your batch of cherries.
Things You'll Need
- A cherry pitter, or a sharp knife
- Paper towels
- Baking sheets
- An oven, dehydrator, or a few warm, sunny days.
Related Articles
- Make a Dehydrator
- Eat Cherries
- Bake a Cherry Pie
- Pit a Cherry
- Select and Store Cherries
