Omaha daily bee., 1917-06-14
Drying Fruits and Vegetables
By Frederic J. HaSktn.

By Frederic j. HdSk,R.
Washington, June ll.-Those who cannot pre-
serve food by canning it this summer can dry il
This is what Europe has done for the last tw
years, and now it is our turn. 1t is up to the maj
OF the family to get out his check book or hi
saw and screw driver and produce a drier. FIJI
ing sheet iron and galvanized screening into tn
form OF drying apparatus is not an easy job, bu
the self-sacrihce is certain to be rewarded mex
winter when your attic is full OF string beans anc
peaches and your less diligent neighbor is dinin.
on cheese and cornmeal
! he drying OF fruits and vegetables is a very
simple process, requiring less work than canning
and the results are usually most satisfactory
Many American women today still dry their owr
pumpkins and squash because they make the bes
| pies. In the case OF fruits the original flavor is
sometimes lost, but their nuritive value is greatly
increased owing TO the evaporation of water As
| to dried vegetables there is no more attractive
winter dish than pint of dried string beans
cooked with little onion or bacon.
The type Of homemade drier which is now
beng used extensively in the south, where the
Department Of Agriculture has been stimulating
interest in drying, is one that can be used on a
wood or coal range a kerosene stove and is
easy to make. The bottom is made of piece of
galvanized sheet iron twenty-four inches long by
sixteen inches wide and six inches high Upon
this base is built framework of thin strips of
wood thrty-six inches apart which act as cleats
to hold the trays of food The framework is then
covered with galvanized iron, and you have the
drer complete except for the trays door with
hinges and another sheet of ron-perforated and
a little smaller than the base-whch is suspended
by wires couple of inches above the base, pre-
venting the direct heat from coming in contact
with the product and serving as a radiator to
more evenly spread the heat
An electric fan placed in front of an oven or
this form of drer is of the most effective dry-
ing devices The trays for this drer are also made
OF frame of thin strips of wood to which is
tackled sheet of galvanized screen wire, which
forms the bottom Of the tray. 1t is best to make
the trays three inches shorter than the drier it.
sell so that the lowest tray when put in the drier
and pushed as far back as it will go will leave
three-inch Nspace in front. Then the next tray
is placed even with the front, leaving a three
inch space in the back The other trays should
be aiternated in the same day Lastly, good
sized hole should be left in the top of the drier
to afford ventilation for moist air.
In drying vegetables only the very best and
freshest varieties should be used In order 10
secure the best results, moreover, the product
must be perfectly clean. Hence scrub them we'll
before preparing. The Department of Agricul-
ture even goes SO far as to suggest that IF steel
knives are used in pairing and cutting they should
De bright and clean so as not to disco1or the
vegetable After they are prepared they are
banched, Banching simply means to plunge the
product into boiling water and keep it there for a
or cheese cloth bag are better for this. The next
step IS to wipe the water off by folding the prod
uct between two towels or BY exposing il
to the air for little while. They are now
ready to be placed on the tray in thin layer and
put IN the drier; At the beginning the tempera-
ha anf 1o,.t Al IN i
grees Fehrenheit-but gradually this may be in
creased until l4S degrees is reached The dry-
ing process usually requires about two or three |
hours, but unfortunately there is nothing but ex-
perlence to tell person how long certain vege-
table should be dried.
The matter of temperature, however is verv
and therefore drying should not be at
tempted without thermometer There are many
good oven thermometers on the market which
cost very little and the ordinary chemical ther-
mometer does the work when suspended in the
1rier. Great care should be taken to regulate
the heat so that the product does not become
'corched, and under no circumstances should the
temperature rise above $50 degrees.
Any green vegetable may be dried, and if
properly dried will not lose its natural flavor and
ood value. The young and unsophistcated string
bean, for example, may be dried whole, although
he older members of the family should be cut
nto pieces before drying. Lima beans, garden
'eas, carrots, parsnips, onions, beets, pumpkin,
squash okra, cabbage, caulihower, peppers and
'weet corn are all excellent drying subjects
The storage of dried vegetables is also mat
er OF grave. consequence. 1t is necessary that
hey should be kept in dry place, for instance
md away IRON insects and dirt. If lard can or
coffee box is used it must be moisture proof
\ tin box of some kind with tight fitting lid Is
Usually the best, but failing this very good
ontainer is paper bag.
Fruits submit to the drying process as well,
not better than vegetables. They increase their
ugar content and hence their food value Dried
rults, moreover, are better known and better
liked than dried vegetables. Hence, almost every
ook. book contains numerous recipes for prepar-
ng them. On hot, dry days fruit may be dried in
he sun until its surface begins to wrinkle and
hen transferred to the drier Otherwise the
rocess is the same as with vegetables.
IA new book by the United States Department
Agriculture describing the new process of l
ONE canning will be published in a few days
! free copy of this book will be sent to any
eader of The Bee who is interested. Send your
anne and address with 2-cent stamp to The !
'maha Bee, Information Bureau, Washington, .
J. G., and copy of the canning book will be {
mt to you as soon as published.l