Oven Dried Toms

[sandersj89]

We have been storing tomatoes for year now by drying them to create something akin to sun dried toms you can buy in the shops. In most years we have used a low oven, at about 80 degrees Celsius but this year have bought a cheap food dehydrator and I am very pleased with the results.

So, this is how I do it:

Start with a selection of spare tomatoes,



This is a mix of sungold, marmande, ferline and tumbler. I will dry any tomato but there are meant to be varieties more suited.

I then half or quarter the tomatoes and lay them on the drying racks, some people remove the seeds but I do not bother,



If you use an oven lay them of a metal rack in a baking tray to catch any drips.

I then sprinkle over some mixed herbs and a few twists of Malden sea salt.

Then into the dryer,



And the waiting begins, the smaller fruits are ready in about 6 hours, the larger will take up to 12 hours, I wait until they have lost most of their fluid,



Most of these need a bit longer,



Then they are stored in sterilised jars covered in olive oil,



We normally aim to make about a dozen jars, the last of last years has just been opened and it is still fine.

These are stored in a dark cool place and will keep up to 12 months, if you don’t eat them all in a few weeks as they are very morish on their own or are great in stews and pasta sauces.

HTH

Jerry

[sandersj89]

[supersprout]

jerry I could hug you, these pics are just perfect - now all I need is the tomatoes! ;D

[Columbus]

Hi Jerry,  :)

How long should I expect them to take in the oven?

Col

[OliveOil]

I've tried them in the oven and after 6 hours not alot had happened... will try and invest in a dehydrator i think!

[Sherwood]

Can you tell me more about the dehydrater - how much did it cost and where did you buy it? I love gadgets!

[sandersj89]

Sorry for the late reply, I got it online from Tchibo.co.uk but that offer is long gone.

You can pick them up cheaply on ebay or I believe Westfalia do a decent one at a good price.

Jerry