Dried Vegetables 
METHODS OF DRYINGf 
Three methods of drying have been found by 
the department specialists to give satisfactory 
results. These are sun drying, drying by artifi- 
cial heat, and drying with air blasts, as before an 
electric fan. Trays for drying by any one of 
these methods, as well as tray frames for use 
over stoves or before fans, can be made satisfac- 
torily at home. Frames and trays for use with 
artificial heat may be purchased complete if de- 
sired. 
Home-made trays may be made of side and end 
boards three-fourths of an inch thick and 2 
inches wide, and bottom boards of lathing spaced 
one-fourth of an inch. If desired, ^-inch gal- 
vanized wire mesh may be tacked to the side and 
end boards to form the bottoms of the trays. 
Frames for use before fans may be made of 
wood of convenient size. Frames for use with 
artificial heat should be made of non-inflammable 
material to as great an extent as possible. As 
many as six trays may be placed one above the 
other when artificial heat is used. In drying be- 
fore a fan the number of trays that may be 
placed one above the other will depend, to a 
large extent, upon the diameter of the fan. In 
drying in the sun, trays as described may be used 
or the products to be dried may be spread on 
sheets of paper or muslin held in place by 
weights. 
PREPARING PRODUCTS FOR DRYING 
Vegetables and fruits will dry better if sliced. 
They should be cut into slices one-eighth to one- 
fourth of an inch thick: if thicker, they may not 
dry thoroughly. While drying, the products 
should be turned or stirred from time to time. 
Dried products should be packed temporarily for 
three or four days and poured each day from 
one box to another to bring about thorough 
mixing and so that the whole mass will have a 
uniform degree of moisture. If during this “con- 
ditioning” any pieces of the products are found 
to be too moist, they should be returned to the 
trays and dried further. When in condition, the 
products may be packed permanently in tight 
paper bags, insect-proof paper boxes or cartons, 
or glass or tin containers. 
RECIPES 
Spinach and Parsley. — Spinach that is in 
prime condition for greens should be prepared by 
careful washing and removing the leaves from 
the roots. Spread the leaves on trays to dry 
thoroughly. They will dry much more promptly 
if sliced or chopped. 
Beets.— Select young, quickly grown, tender 
beets, which should be washed, peeled, sliced 
about an eighth of an inch thick, and dried. 
Turnips should be treated in the same way as 
beets. 
Carrots should be well grown, but varieties 
having a large woody core should be avoided. 
Wash, peel, and slice crosswise into pieces about 
an eighth of an inch thick. 
Parsnips should be treated in the same way 
as carrots. 
Onions. — Remove the outside papery cover- 
ing; cut off tops and roots; slice into one-eighth 
inch pieces and dry. 
Cabbage. — Select well-developed heads of cab- 
bage and remove all loose outside leaves. Split 
the cabbage, remove the hard, woody core, and 
slice the remainder of the head with a kraut cut- 
ter or other hand slicing machine. 
Beet Tops. — Tops of young beets in suitable 
condition for greens should be selected and 
washed carefully. Both the leaf stalk and blade 
should be cut into sections about one-fourth inch 
long and spread on screens and dried. 
Swiss Chard and Celery should be prepared 
in the same way as beet tops. 
Rhubarb. — Choose young and succulent growth. 
Prepare as for stewing by skinning the stalks 
and cutting into pieces about ofle-fourth inch to 
one-half inch in length and dry on trays. 
All these products should be “conditioned” as 
described. 
Raspberries. — Sort out imperfect berries, 
spread select berries on trays, and dry. Do not 
dry so long that they become hard enough to rat- 
tle. The drying should be stopped as soon as the 
berries fail to stain the hand when pressed. Pack 
and “condition.” 
Shucky Beans.* — Choose late summer or early 
autumn beans. String and break as for cooking. 
String on a long thread. Hang near the kitchen 
stove or in the shade on the porch of the house. 
If they dry in the sun, it toughens them. After 
they are dried, put them in sacks. Hang in a dry 
place. To cook them, break them up, soak over 
night in clear, cold water. Pour off this water 
and cook for one hour in clear boiling water. 
Pour off this water, rinse them and boil in fresh 
water until they are tender. Pour the water off 
and add melted butter, hot bacon drippings or 
white sauce. 
Pumpkin and Cusha.* — Cut ripe pumpkins or 
cusha into rings and peel them. String them or 
hang them on a rod or stick near the stove in a 
current of air, or they will rot. They must be 
hung so that the rings are separate from each 
other. They are prepared and cooked like 
“shucky Beans.” 
Corn.* — Corn is delicious when dried. Take 
tender roasting ears; steam until nearly done; 
cut from the cob with a sharp knife; spread 
thinly upon boards or dishes ; put in the sun to 
dry. If the tops of the grains are shaved off and 
the pulp scraped out, leaving most of the husk 
on the cob, it makes a much finer product. In 
cooking, it should be soaked for an hour or two 
in cold water before the final cooking. 
CAUTION. — In drying any fruit or vegetable, 
wire screen, mosquito netting, etc., should be 
stretched over a suitable frame to keep off flies. 
Okra.f — Steam until two-thirds done; split in 
quarters the thickest pods, and dry the same as 
corn. 
Pumpkin.f — Peel and cut in discs about an 
inch thick or in thin slices; spread in the sun to 
dry; soak several hours in cold water before 
cooking. 
•College Agriculture, University Kentucky Bulletin, 
t U. S. Department Agriculture. 
68 
