Why not dry
The end of the gardening season is nearly upon us, and
after a season of canning, freezing and eating the produce
from backyard gardens, it’s time to think about preser
ving the last of the bounty. H
PARS SOIL SERVICE
HAS A NEW SOLUTION
TO AN OLD PROBLEM.
(LIQUID CALCIUM SOLUTION)
For Correction of Calcium
Deficiency in Crops
BULK DELIVERY AVAILABLE
ON YOUR FARM
1
For Information Cali:
PARS SOIL SERVICE
Box 488, RDI SLIjEUB
Elizabethtown, PA
717-367-2667 or 717-872-7342
EARLY PAYMENT DISCOUNT AVAILABLE
Qkx offers these tips
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For more information complete this I
coupon & return to I
THOMAS FARM SYSTEMS, INC. j
2025 Horseshoe Road,
Lancaster, PA 17601
Name
Address.
City
State
H-9/13 I
I
Phone
Food drying can be useful if the drought didn’t beat you to it
THOMAS FARM
SYSTEMS, INC.
Phone (717) 299-1706
the last of your garden produce?
In this era of rising energy costs and food prices, many
families are using food preservation techniques which had
been forsaken in recent years for supermarket con
venience. One of these techniques, food drying, is par
ticularly useful at the end of the gardening season, and is
experiencing a resurgence today.
Food drying was once practiced out of necessity, but
today, families are using dehydrated food as snack foods,
for backpacking or camping, as a hobby, and as a method
of preserving some of the abundance from backdoor
gardens.
There are several methods of dehydrating foods in
the gas or electric oven, with a specially built food
dehydrator, with wood stoves, with solar heat, with
convection ovens, and some innovative methods using
ordinary light bulbs.
If your goal is to save money drying food, consider the
cost of your power source, of constructing a solar dryer,
or of purchasmg a dehydrator, before you start your
adventure.
The Cooperative Extension offices throughout the state
are loaded with good information on food drying, from
selecting the best quality fruit to constructmg simple food
dehydrators. Why not contact your county Extension
office today and request information on food drying’
Some foods such as herbs, peas and beans may be dried
in the old fashioned way by harvesting the entire stalks,
tying the stalks in bunches and hangmg them m a warm
dry place or in the sun. If you hang them m the sun, cover
them with a net to protect them from insects and dust.
Other foods are usually dried on trays. You can use
cookie trays, but you’ll get a better product if the trays are
ventilated. Cheesecloth stretched over an oven rack will
serve as a temporary tray. Screen or wood slot trays are
more satisfactory. You can build them to fit your drying
unit.
To make your own drying trays, build a wood frame and
then stretch aluminum screening or stainless steel hard
ware cloth over the frames.
The principle of drying food is to remove enough
moisture from the item to prevent enzyme activity and
the growth of bacteria, yeast and molds which causes food
spoilage.
Once you have dried batches and batches of fruits and
vegetables, be sure to store them properly. Home canning
jars, if available, are excellent choices. Clean, empty
glass jars with screw lids are also good. You can also pack
dried food m plastic bags. Squeeze out as much air as
possible before you tie the bag tightly with a metal twist or
rubber band. Several bags of dried food can be stored
together m a metal container.
Storing foods in amounts that will be consumed soon
after opening is advisable. After packaging your foods,
store them in a cool, dark place a basement or cellar is
suitable.
PEAS To dry peas, clean and shell them, then blanch
them for two minutes in water or three minutes in steam.
Spread them on trays and dry them until they’re brittle. In
an oven, dry three hours, in a dehydrator, eight to ten
hours, and m the sun, six to eight hours.
' m
Lancaster Farming, Saturday, September 13,1980-Gl5
HERBS Herbs are good for people just starting out in
food drying. Most herbs are at the peak of their flavor just
before flowering. Cut herbs early in the morning just after
the dew has dried. Annuals should be cut at ground level
and perennials about Vs of'the way down the mam stem,
including the side branches. Wash herbs with the leaves
on the stems lightly m cold running water to'remove any
sod, dust, bugs or other foreign material. Dram
thoroughly on absorbent towels, or hang plants upside
down in the sun untd the water evaporates.
Strip leaves off the stalks once plants have drained and
dried, leaving only the top 6 inches Remove blossoms. No
pretreatment is necessary. Spread the herbs on drying
trays and dry untd they’re crisp and crumble easdy. In an
oven or dehydrator this will take 1-4 hours and m the sun 6-
8 hours. Herbs can also be hung upside down in clusters
and allowed to dry the old-fashioned way This requires a
warm, dry, well-ventdated room such as an attic with
good air circulation. To protect them from dust, you can
tie and hang them inside paper bags For more in
formation as well as information on the culture, har
vesting and use of over 25 herbs, contact your county
extension office and ask for the Growing Herbs in the
Home Garden pamphlet.
APPLES Apple slices are one of the most popular
dried fruits and can be enjoyed as a snack as well as in
rehydrated form. To prepare dried apples, wash, peel and
core peak quality apples. Cut them into rings or slices 1/8
mch-Vi inch thick. To help prevent browning during the
preparation you have the option of treating the pieces with
an ascorbic acid solution (2% teaspoons crystalline
ascorbic acit to 1 cup water).
To pretreat the apple pieces you can either steam
blanch them for 5-10 minutes or sulfur them 30-60 minutes,
depending on the size of the pieces. Next spread them out
on your trays, no more than two layers deep, and then dry
for the recommended time. Sun drying would take ap
proximately 3-4 days, dehydrator or oven drying would
take 6-10 hours. Apples, like other dried fruits, are done
when they are leathery and pliable with no moist area in
the center when cut. Package your dried food in airtight
containers and store m a cool, dry, dark place.
BEANS If wet weather threatens the end of the
growing season, or to dry Navy, Pmto, Red Kidney, White
Marrowfat, Soy and Mung Beans or Alaska Peas, pull up
the vmes with pods attached and hang them in a warm,
airy place. When the pods are completely dry, shell the
seeds. Heat them for about 30 minutes in a 140-150° F. oven
to prevent insect infestation during storage. Let the seeds
cool, then seal them in airtight containers.
To dry beans in a food dehydrator, wash thoroughly, cut
into short pieces lengthwise. Steam blanch for 2%
minutes. Drying time in a dehydrator will be 2-3 hours,
oven 3-5 hours, sun 8-10 hours.
CARROTS Use only young crisp carrots. Wash
thoroughly. Cut off roots and tops. Peel. Cut into slices 1/8
inch thick. Steam blanch for 3-4 minutes. Drying time will
be 2-3 hours in a dehydrator, 3-5 hours m the oven, or 8
hours in the sun.
CORN Harvest ears of sweet com and pop com when
the stalks, leaves and husks are thoroughly diy. Hang the
ears by the husks, or spread out the ears m baskets in an
airy place. Shell when the kernels will come off with a
moderately agressive twist motion of both hands. Store
the kernels m sealed containers.
Corn kernels may be dried by cutting the kernels from
the ears after blanching in steam for 5 minutes. Drying
time will be 1-2 hours in a dehydrator, 2-3 hours in the oven
and 6 hours m the sun
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