Grow Your Own Magazine

Has anyone a good oven-drying recipe for ripe toms, looking for a way of keeping them in jars perhaps?

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Manda.

"Wouldn't it be nice
For maybe an hour
To not have a care."

I think someone posted a recipe for this a few weeks back SBP not sure.

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ntg

Never be afraid to try something new.
Remember that a lone amateur built the Ark.
A large group of professionals built the Titanic

http://grief-encounters.blogspot.com/

Hello SBP, Vicki had a post on saying she just halved the tomatoes, added a smidge of oil and garlic, put them in a very slow oven for 4 or 5 hours then freezed them for pasta sauces etc. I'm going to try it myself as still loads of tomatoes on the go.

HI SBP - try this one:

350g tomatoes, sliced in half
2 garlic cloves, finely sliced
1 tsp thyme (fresh if poss)
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
course sea salt

Preheat over to 110C or gas 1/4 mark. Scatter salt on a baking tray then place tomatoes on top of salt, cut side up. Sprinkle on garlic and thyme. Drizzle oil over and cook in oven for 2 - 3 hours until semi dry. Remove from oven and cool.

Hope this answers your question. dexterdog

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Appreciate the little things in life because one day you will realise they are the big things

Ta everyone. I re-found this recipe (from a previous year when we'd hoped for lots of toms!!! ) - sorry its a bit long.....

Dried Tomatoes (yields about 1 pint)

Wash carefully and wipe dry:
7 or 8 pounds of firm, ripe (preferably Roma) tomatoes.

Cut out the stem, and if the tomato has a scar (discolored area of tough
skin), remove it and the hardened core lying under it.

Cut the tomatoes in half, lengthwise. If the tomato is more than about 2
inches long, cut it in quarters.

Scrape out all of the seeds that you can without removing the pulp.

Arrange the tomatoes, with the cut surface up, on non-stick cookie sheets
(glass or porcelain dishes are OK. They will have to withstand
temperatures of a few hundred degrees F if you are going to oven-dry the
tomatoes). Do *not* use aluminum foil, or bare aluminum cookie sheets. The
acid in the tomatoes will react with the metal.

Mix together thoroughly:
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried thyme
2 tsp salt.
Sprinkle a small amount of this mixture on each tomato. (You may customize
this mixture to suit your own taste.)

Dry the tomatoes in the oven, dehydrator, or in the sun. Directions follow
for each of these methods. However, no matter what method you choose, be
aware that not all of the tomatoes will dry at the same rate. They do not
all have the same amount of moisture, nor do they experience the same
temperature and air circulation while they are drying.

They are done when they are very dry, but still pliable - about the
texture of a dried apricot. If dried too long, they become tough and
leathery. If not dried long enough, they will mold and mildew, unless
packed in oil. So watch them carefully while they dry. Try to remove them
on an individual basis, before they become tough.

Here are the drying methods. There is a time listed with each method. This
time is approximate, and can vary significantly depending on the moisture
of the tomato. Do not rely on this time as more than a very rough guide.

Oven-drying (approximately 12 hours):

Bake, cut side up, in 170 F oven for about 3 hours. Leave the oven door
propped open about 3 inches to allow moisture to escape. After 3 hours,
turn the tomatoes over and press flat with your hand or a spatula.
Continue to dry, turning the tomatoes every few hours, and gently pressing
flatter and flatter, until tomatoes are dry.

After the tomatoes are dry, store in air-tight containers, or pack in oil.

To pack in oil:
Dip each tomato into a small dish of white wine vinegar. Shake off the
excess vinegar and pack them in olive oil. Make sure they are completely
immersed in the oil.

When the jar is full, cap it tightly and store at *cool* room temperature
for at least a month before using. They may be stored in the refrigerator,
but the oil will solidify at refrigerator temperatures (it quickly
reliquifies at room temperature however).

As tomatoes are removed from the jar, add more olive oil as necessary to
keep the remaining tomatoes covered.

The author notes that she has stored oil-packed tomatoes in her pantry for
over a year with tremendous success. She also notes that she has tried a
number of methods to pack the tomatoes in oil, but she says the vinegar
treatment is the difference between a good dried tomato and a great one.
It is also important from a food safety standpoint, as it acidifies the
oil and discourages growth of bacteria and mold.

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Manda.

"Wouldn't it be nice
For maybe an hour
To not have a care."

Sorry for resurrecting this thread but I love sundried tomatoes and I am not particularily keen on eating them fresh! With this in mind I am growing some Roma type tomatoes but I don't have a dehydrator and the oven method seems a bit of a faff!
I was thinking of halving them and sun drying them on a high shelf in the greenhouse? I would imagine I would need to put net or fleece over them to keep the bugs out, but wondered roughly how long it should take?

There must be someone on here who's tried it to good effect?

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My Majesty made for him a garden anew in order
to present to him vegetables and all beautiful flowers.- Offerings of Thutmose III to Amon-Ra (1500 BCE)

Will watch with interest - the bank manager might get a bit upset if I try and buy a dehydrator!

Sorry Snadger never tried leaving the toms lying about! But we did try the above recipe I posted and they tasted great. It wasn't too much pfaff oven-drying them either, just put them in before bedtime and woke up to fabulous smells!

Only just last week eaten the last of the 4 jars we tried - they were very tomatoey and added lovely depth of taste to sauces like bolognese.

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Manda.

"Wouldn't it be nice
For maybe an hour
To not have a care."

Given that there's simply loads of time yet, it would be interesting to let this thread 'ramble' for a while, because there are loads of peeps with loads of recipes and ideas on the subject, and we are all bound to learn from it.
It would be really interesting to learn from the varieties that people grow for the purpose of drying/semi-drying, for comparison later, no?
Ignore me if you don't feel like starting it as a proper thread - I won't be offended!
I am growing two varieties for the sole purpose of 'semi-drying' in my Rayburn. And by 'semi-drying' I mean 'not totally dried and useless for cooking! More 'Sun-Blushed', still with a bit of 'body' in the tomato, and just completely loads and loads of sunblushed taste, in olive oil. (Part of tonight's dinner actually....)
The varieties I am growing this year are: San Mazano, and Romano (both upright cordons), and far les 'messy/untidy' than Roma me thinks !!

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With Love,
Wellie

Give it some....

http://hollycottagegarden.blogspot.com
Blog updated Thursday 9th October

Only problem I can think of with drying tomatoes this way is that the atmosphere in the greenhouse is moist, which will not help with drying tomatoes. I think they will tend to rot instead. Daughter and I made loads of tomato and chilli sauces last year by roasting toms, chillies and spices in the oven and then blending. Obviously this isn't sun dried tomatoes as such but I hope it helps. If you really want dried toms, then you need a hot sunny autumn, wire racks in the sun and wind so they dry properly, and then put them into jars with oil/vinegar.

I think it was the March issue of Martha Stewart Living that did a piece on 'paste' tomatoes - Roma being one of these.

Paste tomatoes are best for use in making paste (obviously) and sun/oven-dried, due to them having less watery pulp.

I'm growing some Roma to experiment with this year. Although last year i oven-dried some Moneymaker and some other type with success and they're in a jar in the fridge covered in oil. Although the oil has now solidified so not sure what state they're in at present!

I am growing
Marmande - for pasta sauce and salads
Gardeners Delight- Salads
Money maker - hellfire chutney!

Not sure if my choice is wise, please suggest other options

hi headfry

hellfire chutney sounds interesting, do you have recipe??

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Kernow rag nevra http://www.cornishnotenglish.com/

The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits
Albert Einstein

Just be ordinary and nothing special. Eat your food, move your bowels, pass water and when your'e tired go and lie down. The ignorant will laugh at me, but the wise will understand
Bruce Lee

I got my dehydrator from Tchibo, for around £35. It is wonderful for drying tomatoes, amongst many other thiongs, such as cherries, which suit my diabetic father rather well, as he is not only diabetic, but only has one kidney, which means he has to watch his potassium too - no grapes or raisins, no tomatoes no bananas etc.

It isn't as fancy as the ones you see for hundreds of pounds, but it does do the job rather well. Unfortunately, Tchibo changes its stock every few weeks, which means that they aren't currently stocking it. Fortunately, things tend to reappear again after a few months. It might be worth keeping an eye on their website (www.tchibo.co.uk), or signing up for their weekly newsletter, if you're interested...

HTH

Nef

The tomatoes I am growing for sun drying are Royal Chico an heirloom variety similar to Roma!
Just out of interest I am also growing Ponderoso Pink and Marmande beefsteak.
Gardeners Delight, which will never make it home from the lottie as they will be eaten straight from the bush!
Hartzfuer for general consumption and a small yellow currant sized one who's name eludes me, for hanging baskets etc
All are 3" high at present and I should be able to plant them into the greenhouse beds at the beginning of May! Hopefully I've got my sums right and have enough space to plant em!

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My Majesty made for him a garden anew in order
to present to him vegetables and all beautiful flowers.- Offerings of Thutmose III to Amon-Ra (1500 BCE)

Will try and hunt of the Hellfire recipe for you Kernowyon! could take a while so please remind me again!!!!

Think this book has probably been mentioned elsewhere, it's flummin brilliant. It's recently been published in paper-back which makes it more affordable.http://www.amazon.co.uk/Preserved-Hu...tellafriend-20

Anyway, it also has basic instructions to make a drying box from a big wooden or cardboard box, and a 60 watt light-bulb. (OH thinking about giving it a go with a packing crate, he wants to make jerky!)

I'll copy out the instructions for the box if anyone wants me to, but as there's also 28 pages of recipes to do with drying, it might be worth a tenner for the book. Or your local library should be able to get it in for you.

I'm growing Roma for the 2nd year, but also trying San Marzano and Rio Grande from T&M's new Italian range. See which does best for what, as we also make our own ketchup & chutney and I want to try bottling this year. (Also covered in the afore mentioned book!)

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Sarah

“Tell me one last thing,” said Harry. “Is this real? Or has this been happening inside my head?”
“Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?”