Pear - very tasty and healthy fruit, which can be used not only in its natural form or in the form of jams, jams, marmalades, stewed fruit, etc., but also as an ingredient that gives a completely new taste to both desserts and salads, soups and main dishes from meat and fish.
Some varieties of pears can be kept well until the cold, but the question of how to properly harvest pears for the winter remains relevant for many housewives.
How are dried pears useful?
Using pears as a dried fruit allows you to keep the main vitamins contained in it, as well as pectin and minerals that pears are rich in - iron, zinc, iodine, potassium, calcium, copper, carotene, etc.
Dried pears improve heart function, they are also useful for the lungs, liver and kidneys. The benefits of dried pear are also manifested in its ability to soothe the nervous system, minimize the effects of stress and depression, tone up and improve overall well-being.
This dried fruit removes toxins from the body, due to which it is used for colds. Compote of dried pears has diuretic, antiseptic and even analgesic properties.
Dried pears belong to the rare type of dried fruit that is not contraindicated in pancreatitis.
Did you know? Pear - both fresh and dried - is an excellent component in various diets aimed at getting rid of excess weight. This fruit not only contains little sugar, but also is capable of lowering the level of sugar in human blood, therefore, dried pear is a favorite product for people suffering from diabetes.
The fact that a dried pear is called the queen among fruits will be best appreciated by men, since this product has been used for prostatitis since ancient times.
A good wife in the winter adds her husband to tea, especially if he is over forty, slices of dried pears to prevent this unpleasant disease, and Ukrainian compote without pear drying is impossible to imagine at all.
How to dry pears for the winter
It is best suited for drying is not yet fully matured, but not quite green pears of medium size. It is preferable to use summer varieties.
Dried pears such as "Bergamot", "Forest Beauty", "Fragrant" are good. It is important that the pear has a dense, but not coarse flesh.
Important! Over-grown fruit is not suitable for drying. However, they can be successfully used in other blanks - compotes, jam, or jams.
Drying of pears at home can be done in two ways - with or without prior thermal processing.
In the first case, the fruit does not darken directly during drying, but the second allows you to store more vitamins and nutrients in the finished product.
Regardless of the method chosen, pears plucked from the tree no more than two days ago should be washed under running water.
If the pretreatment method is chosen, the pears are blanched in boiling water for a few minutes (depending on the sweetness of the pears, you can add some sugar or citric acid to the water).
As soon as the pears are soft, they are thrown into a colander, allowed to drain, and the pears dry completely.
Further actions are the same for both methods. Pears are cleaned from the core and cut into plates or slices about a centimeter thick. If the pear is very small, you can not cut it.
The preparatory work is completed, go to the procedure of drying.
Pears can be dried in a natural way - in the open air, on a balcony, terrace, etc., or at an accelerated rate - in an oven, electric dryer, grill or microwave oven. Each of these methods has its advantages and disadvantages.
Drying pears in the sun
This is the cheapest and most natural way to dry. However, it requires much more time and space - a well-lit area. It is optimal for those who have a cottage, a private house or at least a spacious sunny balcony.
When choosing this method, it is also necessary to take into account the weather conditions: if the fruit is dried in the open air, they should not get wet in the unexpected rain - at the first signs of precipitation, pears should be immediately moved under a canopy, otherwise the whole procedure can be considered as failed.
Evenly sliced pears are laid out neatly on a flat surface with the juicy side up. From above, the fruit should be covered with gauze to protect from insects (when drying on a closed balcony, this precaution is unnecessary) and leave for several days.
The drying process must be constantly monitored; if necessary, pieces of fruit should be turned over for even drying. Depending on the temperature and the amount of sunlight, drying can take from two to seven days, after which the fruit is removed from the light in a more shaded place and left for another two days.
A properly dried pear should not crumble and break. Most of the moisture comes out of the fruit, but the pieces should remain soft and supple.
Drying pears in the oven
Dried pears can be quickly cooked in the oven. The whole procedure will take approximately 12-14 hours.
Sliced pears should be spread out on a baking sheet so that they do not overlap each other, and placed in an oven heated to 50-55 degrees. It is better to leave the door in the oven ajar so that the pears are sufficiently ventilated.
The process must be constantly monitored by adjusting the temperature depending on the condition of the fruit.
Around the middle of the procedure, when the pears are already dry, but not yet fully prepared, you can add a little temperature to speed up the process, but you need to finish drying at the minimum temperature.
Important! If the pears in the oven began to darken - this means that the temperature is too high, you must immediately reduce the heat and, if necessary, cool and turn the pieces on the other side!
After complete drying (it is determined in the same way as when drying in the sun) the oven is turned off, the pears are removed and left to dry for two days at room temperature, then laid out on clean cans or paper bags for storage in a place protected from moisture until winter.
Drying in the oven is not suitable for whole fruits, as it will take too much time - sometimes more than a day.
Drying pears in an electric drier
This is the most convenient way to make dried fruit. Its only drawback is the need to purchase a special electric dryer and spend some amount of money to pay for electricity.
Prepared fruit pieces are laid out on a tray of electric dryers and dried at a temperature of 70 degrees with occasional stirring. Drying pears in an electric dryer takes 15–20 hours, depending on the type of pear and the size of the pieces.
As with drying in the oven, pears should not be left unattended so that they do not dry out - the slices can turn brown, but should not darken much and begin to break.
Drying pears in the microwave
You can dry pears quickly in a microwave - in just a few minutes. Placed on a flat plate, the pieces are placed in the oven. Mode depends on home appliances.
If the oven is powerful, it is better to set the weakest mode, for the less powerful one - the medium one. Using a high level will not shorten the drying time, but simply burn the fruit.
After 2-3 minutes, the pear should be ready, but if you see that the pieces are still too wet, you need to restart the oven for half a minute and check the result again.
You can also dry the pears in the microwave using the "defrost" mode. This is a more benign option, it allows you to stretch the procedure for 30 minutes and does not require such careful monitoring of the process.
However, it’s still 2-3 times better to check the pears for readiness in order to prevent overdrying.
How to store dried pears
In order for the pear to retain all of its useful properties, it is necessary not only to properly dry, but also to correctly save.
Dried fruits are well kept in a sealed form so that they do not get moisture. For this purpose, tin or glass vessels with tight lids are suitable, as well as special plastic bags equipped with fasteners.
If there is no cellar, you need to try to find a cool dark place for dried pears. If possible, they should be isolated from spices, spices and other fragrant products, since drying has the ability to draw in odors.
Dried fruits should be periodically aired and checked for the presence of fungal growths. The first signs of mold are a direct command to throw away the product without regret.
Under all conditions, dried pears can be stored until the next spring.
Candied Pears
Candied fruits are a less dietary product than dried fruits, however, they are less calorie and, accordingly, more useful than other sweets.
Just like dried pears, candied fruits from this fruit are rich in fiber and preserve vitamins, minerals and trace elements.
According to the method of preparation, candied fruits are fruit pieces boiled in a concentrated sugar syrup and subsequently dried.
Pears, ideally - not fully matured, washed, cleaned from the core and cut into fairly large slices, dipped in sugar syrup (the amount of sugar should correspond to the weight of chopped pears) and cook slowly until the syrup is completely evaporated.
Ready-made pears are laid out on parchment, sprinkled with sugar and dried in the sun or in the oven on minimal heat.
Keep candied need as well as dried fruits.
Dried pears recipe
Drying, like drying, involves separation of the pulp from the juice under prolonged exposure to air and relatively low temperature. In fact, drying - This is a kind of cold drying.
Pear for drying is selected and processed in the same way as for drying, but slices can be made somewhat thicker.
Prepared pieces are placed in an enamel bowl and covered with sugar (in the ratio of about 1 part sugar to three parts pears). In this form, the pear should be left for 2.5 days at room temperature.
These pears are thrown back into a colander, allowing the syrup to flow with the juice, then spread into a boiling 50 percent sugar syrup (0.7 ml of syrup per 1 kg of pears), stirred and removed from the heat without covering with a lid. After 8-10 minutes, the pears are discarded again and allowed to fully drain for an hour.
Then the fruits are laid out in a single layer on the net and left for a week in a well-ventilated place (as the pear dries, you need to turn it over several times) or, to speed up the process, put it in an oven warmed to 60 ° C for 40 minutes, after that Cool and repeat the procedure again, sometimes up to three times. You can also hang the pear in the electric drier.
Dried pears should be dense and resilient.
How to freeze pears for the winter
Pear freezing is an ideal way not only to keep all the nutrients in it, but also to get a product that can be used in cooking as well as fresh pears.
Before freezing the pears, wash and wipe thoroughly with a paper towel.
Did you know? The amount of vitamins in a correctly frozen pear is almost the same as in a fresh one, provided that the fruit was frozen at a temperature not higher than -16 WITH, and was stored at a temperature not higher than -8 WITH. It is impossible to freeze the thawed pears again!
Properly frozen pears can be stored for a year.
Frozen slices or slices
Pears are peeled, cut into slices or pieces of the desired size. So that the pear does not darken, you can sprinkle it with lemon juice.
The pieces are laid on a flat surface covered with food-grade film or foil and placed in a freezer for a day.
After complete freezing, the pears are laid out in specially designed plastic bags (of which you need to release air and tightly tie) or in containers and placed in a freezer for subsequent storage.
Pears in sugar
The technology of preparation is the same as in the previous method, but before folding the pears to freeze each piece is dipped in sugar.
Pears in syrup
Pears are peeled, coreed and cut into quarters. The pieces are blanched in sugar syrup (at the rate of 1 cup of sugar per 0.5 l of water) for three minutes, removed using a skimmer, laid out in prepared plastic or glass containers and filled with syrup (it should completely cover the pears).
Without closing the container, allow the contents to cool completely, then tightly close and freeze. The fruits prepared in this way are perfectly preserved until the end of spring.
