How to dry strawberries at home 
When preserving strawberries, most people freeze them or make strawberry jam, but another alternative is drying. Dried strawberries can be eaten as a snack, added to green salads, cooked and dried cereals, muffins, pancakes, cookie dough, or smoothies, combined with granola or mixed with ice cream or yogurt.
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Why is my dehydrated fruit not crispy?
If your dehydrated food feels soft, spongy, or sticky it’s probably not dehydrated enough. Put the product back in for additional time. Hard and crunchy or breakable pieces are done. Yes, items can be over-dried and as a result are more difficult to rehydrate.
What is the white fungus on dried fruit?
If you’ve ever wondered, what is the white powder on your Orchard Choice or Sun-Maid California Dried Figs, you might think it’s mold, but more likely, it’s actually naturally occurring fruit sugar crystals. This common occurrence is called sugaring on figs.
Does dehydrated fruit expire?
Packaging and Storing Dried Foods – Dried foods are susceptible to insect contamination and moisture reabsorption and must be properly packaged and stored immediately. First, cool completely. Warm food causes sweating which could provide enough moisture for mold to grow.
- Pack foods into clean, dry insect-proof containers as tightly as possible without crushing.
- Store dried foods in clean, dry home canning jars, plastic freezer containers with tight-fitting lids or in plastic freezer bags.
- Vacuum packaging is also a good option.
- Pack foods in amounts that can be used all at once.
Each time a package is re-opened, the food is exposed to air and moisture that can lower the quality of the food and result in spoilage. Pack food in amounts that will be used in a recipe. Every time a package is re-opened, the food is exposed to air and moisture that lower the quality of the food.
- Fruit that has been sulfured should not touch metal.
- Place the fruit in a plastic bag before storing it in a metal can.
- Sulfur fumes will react with the metal and cause color changes in the fruit.
- Dried foods should be stored in cool, dry, dark areas.
- Recommended storage times for dried foods range from 4 months to 1 year.
Because food quality is affected by heat, the storage temperature helps determine the length of storage; the higher the temperature, the shorter the storage time. Most dried fruits can be stored for 1 year at 60ºF, 6 months at 80ºF. Vegetables have about half the shelf-life of fruits.
Foods that are packaged seemingly “bone dry” can spoil if moisture is reabsorbed during storage. Check dried foods frequently during storage to see if they are still dry. Glass containers are excellent for storage because any moisture that collects on the inside can be seen easily. Foods affected by moisture, but not spoiled, should be used immediately or redried and repackaged.
Moldy foods should be discarded.
How do you dehydrate strawberries for long term storage?
Fresh to dehydrated conversion – Dehydrating strawberries will reduce their weight to about 10% of their original weight. One pound of fresh strawberries will yield about 1.5 oz (42g) of dried strawberries.
Airtight storage container Vacuum sealer (optional)
1 ½ lb strawberries, see note 1
Start with clean hands, equipment, and countertops. Wash the strawberries and remove the tops with a knife or strawberry huller. Slice the strawberries into ¼”-⅜” thick slices (either cross-wise or pole-to-pole). Arrange strawberry slices in a single layer on dehydrator trays, ensuring there is space between pieces to allow airflow. Dehydrate at 135F/57C for 6-12 hours, until dry (see note 2).
How can you tell if dehydrated fruit is bad?
How to tell if Dried Fruit is bad, rotten or spoiled? – Practicing proper hygiene and food safety techniques will help prevent foodborne illness. Your senses are usually the most reliable instruments to tell if your dried fruit has gone bad. Some common traits of dried fruit going bad are discoloration (usually to a darker tone), hardness (they can become extremely chewy as they age, but can still be eaten as some actually prefer them this way) and loss of flavor (a stale or flavorless taste).