Sun Dried Tomatoes

[RED-DOG]

You won't really appreciate sun dried tomatoes unless you have had a go at drying them yourself. As with all dried foods, the trick is to dry them without cooking them, and it's not easy.

Drying is a great way of preserving meat, and it comes with the added bonus of making it about 80% lighter, which also means that the flavour is 80% more concentrated. I have made several attempts to air dry strips of beef, it's called Jerky, Biltong, or if ground into a powder, Pemmican.

It's a difficult business, the trick is to dry it quickly so as to cut down the risk of bacteria growing on it during the time while it still contains moisture, (Bacteria won't grow once it's dry) and yet to do so without using heat and cooking it. The best technique is to slice it as thinly as possible, and then hang it up somewhere where dry air passes over it constantly. One of the ways of doing this is to suspend in the airflow that feeds a fire, but in such a way that the heat from the fire does not cook the meat, but merely provides a constan flow of dry air.

Sun drying is pretty much the same, except that the sun provides the flow of dry air in much the same way as it produces the thermals that buzzards and the like use to carry them aloft. These are not difficult to find, just drop a feather onto a bolder or some other large stone surface on a warm day, if it goes up instead of down, you have found your thermal.

Now, all you have to do is slice your tomatoes, (Use about 10 times more than you think you will need) place them in the warm dry airflow, wait for 8/10 hours, and Bob's your uncle.

Of course, you could just go to Tesco's, but it's not nearly as much fun.

[TightEnd]

KitkKats

[technolog]

Love sun-dried tomatoes, love sun-dried tomato pesto, love char-grilled pepers.

[kinboshi]

The best way to eat tomatoes:

[technolog]

Heathen!

[kinboshi]

Heathen!

You know I'm right...

[Jim-D]

Heaven!

You know I'm right...

Now you are right!

[KingPoker]

Dont think i have ever eaten a sun dried tomato.


And dont particuarly feel im missing out either!

Thats what I thought but trotting around Asda today I saw a bottle of the sun dried ones and thought Id gone mad.....I mean why not have 'sun dried bread' or 'sun dried ham' too?

The best thing about tomatoes. at least with plum or cherry ones is the juciness of them, if you dry them up, whats the point!!

sure they are peanuts are the only veggies i eat

no tatties?

nope dont eat tatties

surely only cannibals eat tatties!

[bobby1]

You won't really appreciate sun dried tomatoes unless you have had a go at drying them yourself. As with all dried foods, the trick is to dry them without cooking them, and it's not easy.

Drying is a great way of preserving meat, and it comes with the added bonus of making it about 80% lighter, which also means that the flavour is 80% more concentrated. I have made several attempts to air dry strips of beef, it's called Jerky, Biltong, or if ground into a powder, Pemmican.

It's a difficult business, the trick is to dry it quickly so as to cut down the risk of bacteria growing on it during the time while it still contains moisture, (Bacteria won't grow once it's dry) and yet to do so without using heat and cooking it. The best technique is to slice it as thinly as possible, and then hang it up somewhere where dry air passes over it constantly. One of the ways of doing this is to suspend in the airflow that feeds a fire, but in such a way that the heat from the fire does not cook the meat, but merely provides a constan flow of dry air.

Sun drying is pretty much the same, except that the sun provides the flow of dry air in much the same way as it produces the thermals that buzzards and the like use to carry them aloft. These are not difficult to find, just drop a feather onto a bolder or some other large stone surface on a warm day, if it goes up instead of down, you have found your thermal.

Now, all you have to do is slice your tomatoes, (Use about 10 times more than you think you will need) place them in the warm dry airflow, wait for 8/10 hours, and Bob's your uncle.

Of course, you could just go to Tesco's, but it's not nearly as much fun.

very intersting Red, Im deffo gonna have to try these now, I will report with the findings.

[Ironside]

Tomatoes are evil, so are mushrooms. FOOD OF THE DEVIL I SAY!

well said that man

[Ironside]

The best way to eat tomatoes:

the only way

[BigTomatoes]

 drying them yourself is deffo the way to go. dont get a chance to much living in Scotland right enough.

[bobby1]

In the name of research I have today sampled sun dried tomatoes and can report that the are indeed nice, The Mrs served them with buffalo mozerella and I can safely say that is a waste of time. I mean it doesnt taste of owt.

Tho I did spot 'vine ripened tomatoes' in Asda. So they are tomotoes that have ripened on the vine.......is that not like advertising oranges that 'grew on a tree' or potatoes that were 'earth grown'?

[fearisthekey]

In the name of reaearch I have today sampled sun dried tomatoes and can report that the are indeed nice, The Mrs served them with buffalo mozerella and I can safely say that is a waste of time. I mean it doesnt taste of owt.

Tho I did spot 'vine ripened tomatoes' in Asda. So they are tomotoes that have ripened on the vine.......is that not like advertising oranges that 'grew on a tree' or potatoes that were 'earth grown'?

buffala mozzarella. Buffalos don't have tits.

Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo. Is a valid sentence. How weird is that.

Red-interesting read. Would probably save a fortune also.

[OatFedGoat]

Tomatoes are evil, so are mushrooms. FOOD OF THE DEVIL I SAY!

well said that man

Mushrooms are the fungi from betwixt Satans toes I tell thee!