How To Dehydrate Strawberries

How To Dehydrate Strawberries

I can’t believe I’ve never used my dehydrator for strawberries before. They have to be one of the easiest fruits I have done in one. I washed and dried them on paper towels before slicing them. Then the dehydrator did all of the work! I did 2 quarts of strawberries and when dried got just less than a pint. They are perfect for snacking on, salads or adding to any recipe using strawberries. I am going to be sharing my recipe next week making marshmallows using them.

These are our beautiful Florida strawberries that I have been talking about all winter long. The first thing you want to do is wash your strawberries and then I dry them using a paper towel. Next I remove the hull with a small paring knife. At this point you are ready to slice your strawberries about 1/4 inch thick.

Place the strawberries on the rack. I sprayed my racks with a little cooking spray first. Not much, if it looks to heavy wipe with a paper towel. Arrange the strawberries so they don’t touch. Turn on dehydrator and let go overnight. I did rotate my racks about 4 hours after I started.

Here they are after dehydrating all night. You can see how much the shrink in the picture. Let the strawberries cool to room temperature. Place them in a plastic bag and freeze them for 48 hours. This will pasteurize the strawberries to kill any insects and their eggs.

Then you will place them in a glass jar with some headspace left so that you can condition the strawberries. Shake the jar several times a day for a week. This helps to prevent mold.

When finished drying they made about 3/4 of a pint jar. When you put the strawberries in the jar for the first 3 or 4 days give the jar a shake. You can eat them right out of the jar or in my case I am making Strawberry Marshmallows from them.

If you don’t have a dehydrator you can also use your oven. Follow the same steps except instead of putting them on racks, I first line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Place the sliced strawberries on the paper, again not touching. Preheat your oven to 140 degrees or the lowest setting your oven will go. Prop the door open slightly to allow for air flow. Place cookie sheets in the oven, it will take at least 12 hours and as many as 24 depending on the thickness of your strawberries and the humidity. They will be leathery. When dried follow the same steps to finish the strawberries as above.

Store dried strawberries in a clean, dry, airtight container, in a cool dark location. (Light can cause discoloration)

Smaller strawberries can also be done whole.