PRESERVATION BY DRYING 147 



A large variety of fruits may be preserved by drying 

 if we only have proper means for extracting the water. 

 Indeed, probably any fruit could be thus preserved for 

 future use if we could find a practical method of drying 

 it. To do this the fruit, divided into small pieces, must 

 be subjected to a heat sufficient to dry it rapidly so as 

 to prevent decay, but not sufficient to cook it. It is 

 hardly worth while to attempt such work in the ordinary 

 home, for the results are not entirely satisfactory, and 

 dried fruits are easily purchased. Some such method is 

 practical with certain fruits and impractical with others ; 

 but it always greatly changes the nature of the fruit. 

 Before it can be used the dried fruit must be soaked 

 with water to soften it, after which it rarely bears much 

 resemblance to the original fruit. Dried apples are quite 

 different from fresh ; the taste of the fresh apple has wholly 

 disappeared, leaving in its place an entirely different flavor. 

 The same is true of practically all fruits preserved by dry- 

 ing. Their food value has not been reduced, for a bit of 

 dried apple is just as nutritious as the fresh ; but fruits 

 have very little food value at any time, and are eaten 

 mostly for their flavors. Dried fruit is much inferior in 

 taste and cannot be used for so many purposes as fresh 

 fruit. The drying of fruits and vegetables leaves a pulpy, 

 somewhat tasteless substance, which, although it still 

 retains its original food material, has lost the peculiar 

 charm which gives value to the fresh fruit. 



It must be evident, then, that drying is the most widely 

 adopted method of preserving foods, but it is not equally 

 useful for all kinds. With some it works to perfection. 

 For grains or other foods obtained from seeds it leaves 



