How to wash raisins for food. Do I need to wash dried apricots

Dry fruits need to be washed! And not just wash, rinsing under water, but soaking! And the more dried fruit is dried and wrinkled, the longer it must be soaked.

WHY SOAK DRIED FRUITS?

There are more than enough reasons:

Dried fruit is dirty from the environment and the hands through which it has passed in the process of processing and delivery to the final destination. During soaking, the folds of dried fruit straighten out and dirt is washed out of them, otherwise the dirt is practically inside the fruit.

Perhaps your dried fruit has been processed in some way for safety and durability. Water removes almost any treatment. For example, when they smoke with sulfur, it settles on the fruit and you can’t wash it off by simple washing, but during soaking, sulfur rises to the surface of the water and then drains into the sink - you are left with the cleanest fruit.

A dried fruit is a dried, water-free fruit. By removing water, we keep the fruit for a maximum of time. When a dried fruit lies in water, it draws water back, getting saturated and becomes softer, fleshier and juicier. Usually high-quality dried fruits: raisins, dried apricots, prunes and others are very dense due to drying and are perfectly soaked. At the same time, soft dried fruits are most likely processed in some way and turn into porridge when soaked.

It is more beneficial for our body to eat soaked dried fruits: the gastrointestinal tract perfectly perceives softer and ready-to-digest food, unlike food that is too hard.

During soaking in dried fruits, the maximum amount of useful substances is activated!

By pouring dirty water and soaking the fruits again in clean water, you can get a very healthy compote without cooking.

HOW TO SOAK DRIED FRUITS?

1) rinse under running water;

2) put in a bowl of clean warm water for 5-30 minutes, depending on the condition of the fruit: the more dusty and dry it is, the longer the soak.

EXCEPTIONS

These are Armenian dried fruits loved by everyone at once: Cherry, Pear, Figs, Chocolate dried apricots, Peaches, Persimmons, Prunes. They come to us ALREADY washed and packaged in vacuum packs of 250 grams! This means that they can be opened and eaten right away, as well as taking several packages at once with a margin - they will not deteriorate.

"There are two good and one bad way to dry fruit."

To choose good, not treated with "harmful chemistry" dried fruits, follow the ancient wise rule "All that glitters is not gold!"

In today's issue, we bring to your attention the recommendations of the Solntsefrukty specialists, 14 photos, 1 video and many useful tips.

Must see colorful illustrations at the end of the article!

So, there are two normal and one bad way to dry fruit:

1. in the sun (an acceptable method - fruits dry quickly, but turn out to be hard),

2. in the shade (the best way),

3. drying with temperature or chemical treatment
(worst way).

Unfortunately, chemically processed dried fruits are widely sold in our stores (and partially in the markets) (explained in more detail below). They look more beautiful, do not deteriorate for a long time, and they are not eaten by pests.

But the appearance of full-fledged high-quality dried fruits is devoid of the attractiveness created by chemicals, in some fruits they can even insects come across, but this is rather a sign of quality and edibility - there are no poisons.

Not a single fruit retains its original color during the drying process, and, even more so, cannot become brighter and more saturated. This is achieved only with the help of preservatives and dyes. Fumigated with sulfur dioxide and dyed with food coloring, before us appear amber raisins, bright orange dried apricots, golden figs. Beautiful, but a knowledgeable person will not eat such dried fruits.

Properly dried dried fruits gray and dark:

- raisins and dried apricots should be brown,

- dark raisins - black with a bluish bloom,

- figs - gray, run, light brown or black. The latter, however, is more common fresh, as white figs are more suitable for drying.

Detailed tips follow below.

Secrets of chemical and thermal processing of dried fruits

1. They fumigate with caustic gas ...

Most often, dried fruits are fumigated with sulfur dioxide (sulfur dioxide, sulfur dioxide, SO2, another name is additive E220). This is how manufacturers kill bacteria and make the product inedible for insect pests.

Dried fruits are smoked in a sulfuric fumes, and they acquire shine and gloss in the literal sense of the word. Apricots and raisins become golden, transparent, prunes are directly glossy with fat and shine on the counter, like polished black marble.

Opinions on the admissibility of treatment with sulfur dioxide are ambiguous: some say that in the form in which it is present in dried fruits, our body completely removes it.
Others - that when dissolved in water, it turns into a weak solution of sulfurous acid, and this, in turn, irritates the mucous membranes of our digestive system.

What to do? You can soak dried fruits in cool water for a while, then drain the water and rinse thoroughly.

2. Shine with grease or glycerin

Another trap is the shine of dried fruits, which also appears for a reason, but after processing with fat of poor quality and unknown origin or glycerin. "Not all that glitters is gold." The more shiny, for example, prunes, the more fat manufacturers did not spare.

Ideal dried fruits have a nondescript appearance: dull, shriveled, often dusted. They are unlikely to shine.

3. Sometimes gas or gasoline burners, blowtorches are used to speed up drying ...

At the same time, dried fruits are poured onto the grid and a burner or lamp is directed at them. Of course, such dried fruits will be less useful! In addition, they will absorb harmful substances, and they will have a “gasoline” taste.

The gas dryer must be equipped with a multi-stage cleaning filter system through which hot air reaches the product. Often this rule is ignored. As a result, carcinogenic substances settle on dried fruits. In addition, the natural aroma of the fruit disappears.

4. Sometimes dried in a tunnel oven…

A tunnel oven or dryer is, roughly speaking, a tunnel with heating elements along which a conveyor with dried fruits moves. In Uzbekistan, according to our information, there are no such installations, but fruits from Moldova, Poland, Iran and other countries can be dried in a tunnel oven. Such dried fruits can give off the smell of diesel fuel. The usefulness of such drying, as in the previous method, is doubtful.

5. Dip in boiling water with caustic soda

Plums, dates, and raisins, especially those picked early, have such a hard skin that they won't dry out on their own. Therefore, they are dipped in a boiling solution of caustic (non-food) soda, which causes the peel to become covered with small cracks and drying is faster.

“Unfortunately, this is a necessary measure,” the manufacturers try to justify themselves. However, juice flows through the cracks, bacteria penetrate, and this also does not reflect in the best way on the appearance.

6. "Smoke" with liquid smoke

Liquid smoke - they "smoke" dried apricots, prunes. It is believed that despite the manufacturers' assurances about its safety, liquid smoke is a carcinogen.

In small quantities, everything is not so scary, but we don’t know HOW the manufacturer processed the fruit and what kind of liquid smoke specifically. And in many countries of the world, “smoke in a bottle” is completely prohibited.

How to choose dried apricots and apricots

Light fruits should ideally be dark after drying. Dried apricots, not fumigated with sulfur dioxide, are dark in color, and a beautiful bright color is achieved with the help of dyes.

When choosing dried apricots, look for inconspicuous greyish, pale yellow or dark brownish fruits - there is a chance that they have not been treated with chemicals.

Pale orange, yellowish dried apricots can still be, because there is a storehouse of carotene in it, but bright orange happens only with a storehouse of chemicals.

You should not buy such bright orange dried apricots:

Apricot is processed less, so it is often nondescript. Uryuk with a bone is healthier than pitted dried apricots. In the East they say: "If you pull a bone out of a fruit, it means depriving it of its soul."

This is confirmed by studies conducted in the West: apricot contains more vitamins and microelements than dried apricots; Dried prunes with pits also contain more nutrients than pitted prunes.

Quality dried apricots can be like light yellow(but not bright orange), and grayish, brownish and it usually looks nondescript, for example, like this:

Prunes

coffee shade

If the prunes have a coffee tint, this means that they were previously scalded with boiling water. And there are few vitamins in it.

Factory and private manufacturers, for disinfection and greater safety, dip prunes before drying in boiling water, often with a solution of caustic soda.

From such processing, prunes develop a brown tint, it loses many nutritional properties, and its taste begins to taste bitter. Of course, boiling water does not exclude stoves, ovens and open fire, which again does not add points to prunes for services to our body.

Dark gray "anthracite" shade

Also, do not buy dark gray "anthracite" prunes, they are clearly processed with glycerin. Quote from a textbook: "A product treated with glycerin has a shiny surface, which improves its presentation."

Black color

Real prunes - only matte black, not bitter, have a rich sweet taste with a slight sourness.

Prunes can still be checked like this: wet and look at it in half an hour, natural should turn white in places, processed - no.

Shine

The less shiny the prunes, the better. Why? Read at the beginning of the article about fumigation and processing with low-quality fat of unknown origin or glycerin.

This is how prunes processed “to a shine” look like:

And this is what raw prunes look like (pay attention to the matte surface):

By the way, prunes from the United States can be coated with oil derived from genetically modified soybeans.

Prunes with a stone are healthier

In the East they say: "If you pull a bone out of a fruit, it means depriving it of its soul."

This is confirmed by studies conducted in the West: apricot contains more vitamins and microelements than dried apricots; Dried prunes with pits also contain more nutrients than pitted prunes.

Therefore, real pitted prunes can cost less than real pitted prunes.

Dates

As with any dried fruit, pitted dates are healthier than pitted dates.

Almost all dates sold in Russia are not dried, but canned in sticky glucose syrup. Some packages say so.

The glucose syrup is very likely to be corn syrup (mostly in the US, but in other countries it is wheat or who knows what).

Dried dates are preferred over those processed in syrup.

figs

Perhaps you have tried this divine fruit in its full form in the southern resorts. But fresh figs come to us only processed with the help of harmful technologies. Because capricious. Therefore, it is better to eat dried figs rather than fresh ones..

When choosing dried figs, it should be remembered that a quality fruit has light beige, light brown, the figs themselves quite soft.

Also, its slightly flattened shape should also testify to the high quality of dried figs.

Some are sometimes scared off by a white coating on figs. However, in fact, this is not a drawback, but a pleasant bonus in the form of glucose that has come out (it is precisely such figs that are surprisingly sweet).

But if figs have an unpleasant salty-sour taste if it is rough to the touch, its shelf life has already expired.

Raisin

99% of light raisins sold in shops and markets are treated with sulfur to give a beautiful golden yellow color (see above for details).

This is what raisins fumigated with sulfur dioxide look like:

Light grapes should ideally turn dark brown during the drying process. Raisins should not be uniformly yellow, soft and oily.

Dark grapes, when dried, turn black with a bluish bloom.

This is what the best raisins look like:

The best varieties of raisins in the bazaar are tossed into the air for display, and as they fall, they knock like small pebbles. The raisins have a petiole specially left.

US Reality: "Many varieties of dried fruit, including raisins and dates, can be coated with GM soybean oil."

Dried apples

Peeped in the recommendations for drying apples: “Apples are kept for 2-3 minutes in a 0.1-0.2% solution of sulfurous acid (1-2 grams per 2 liters of water) or fumigated with sulfur dioxide, burning sulfur for 5-10 minutes (2 grams per kilogram of apples). Such pre-treatment of raw materials reduces the oxidation of enzymes and eliminates the darkening of the surface of the circles of apples during drying.

For more information about the possible side effects of such drying, see the beginning of the article.

dried bananas

See above for fat treatment.

Attention! Candied fruits disguised as dried fruits

Do not confuse dried fruits and candied fruits: candied fruits belong to a dessert, not useful products.. They are often made from tropical fruits.

They are boiled in sugar syrup, dried, and even painted with who knows what. In appearance and taste, it is very easy to distinguish.

There are plenty of calories in them, but the benefits are doubtful.

Although some nutritionists advise replacing sweets with candied fruits.

Walnuts

There should be no dots, spots, extraneous yellowness, mold on walnuts.

Peanut

Often they bring very “non-ecological” from China. Better to use in moderation. And it is often contaminated with an invisible poisonous mold - aflatoxins. Eat half a kilo, and write, it's gone ...

An example of fumigation of dried fruits with sulfur

Do you think that dried fruits should not be washed? See then how dried fruits are fumigated, how they are dried right in the dust of the road and stomp on them with dirty boots!

1. Sulfur for fumigating raisins

2. Now they will put sulfur on hot coals ...

3. Burning sulfur is placed inside the "gas chamber"

4. Poisonous “steam room” for raisins

5. Unbearable waste, next to be impossible!

6. Sun dried raisins properly. But then you have to wash it.

7. Ready raisins (pay attention to how the guys pour this food product).

Where to buy full-fledged, high-quality, properly dried dried fruits?

Consider the following five ways:

1. You can go to the nearest market and choose fruits that are more or less acceptable in terms of quality and processing technologies. The tips above will help you. Although, of course, most of the dried apricots, prunes, raisins lying on the shelves of the markets do not stand up to criticism. But relatively cheap.

2. In shops and supermarkets the situation is no better: many dried fruits sold there have undergone (like many market ones) severe heat treatment, after which they were brought to “brilliance and gold” with sulfur dioxide, glycerin, cheap oil - all the shortcomings that were mentioned in the article.
Often, the choice of more or less acceptable dried fruits on the market is wider than in the store.

3. Exist online shopping under the Sunfruits brand, paying attention to the quality of their products and carefully selecting suppliers, according to what is stated on their websites. These stores operate in different cities.

Or you can look at Igor Golubev, who has already earned a good reputation, in his eco-shop.

The quality should be good, but as they say, trust and verify. What we learned above in the article.

4. There is still enough expensive online stores such as Samuryuk (samuryuk.ru) or i-mne.com.
The numbers on the price tags sometimes inspire awe. And the quality?! Well ... you have learned to check ?!

5. Or you can buy a good electric dryer for fruits and vegetables and use it at home.

A household electric dryer will provide you with the highest quality, tasty, clean and cheap dried fruits and dried vegetables. It will no longer be necessary to worry about who, how, with what hands, with what tricks and “sulfur-soldering” technologies dried and processed fruits and vegetables.

A household dryer will quickly and with maximum preservation of all useful substances and vitamins dry for you personally purchased, tested or even harvested vegetables, fruits, mushrooms. From persimmons to watermelons, from blueberries to honey mushrooms, with a dryer your imagination is not limited.

For example, you can dry not only vegetables, fruits, mushrooms, but also greens, herbs ... A real find for those who value their health and want to eat good healthy food, and not just anything. Any other ideas? Write in the comments!

A couple of years ago, I collected materials on the Internet on this topic. The reason was oranges first. On New Year's Eve, they bought huge beautiful oranges on the street. She planned to make candied fruits from the skins according to a recipe from an old book.

One lay on the windowsill, painted 5 years ago with good oil paint. A day later, he stuck to the windowsill, so much so that it turned out to be torn off only with the paint. As you know, old paint can be dissolved with paint, so it became clear that oranges are dyed. The desire to make candied fruits from the crusts immediately disappeared.

After a while, dried fruits surprised me. The packaging said "Ready to use" and I decided that they do not need to be washed. Such a beautiful and tasty dried apricots, but something made me sick of it.

I took a magnifying glass and read on the reverse side that it must be washed thoroughly.

After that, I read about all the risks associated with fruits and vegetables. I hope someone will find my collection useful.

How vegetables, fruits, dried fruits are processed

Methyl bromide
Fruits are treated with methyl bromide to kill pests before being exported.
Fungicide
Fruits are usually treated with sulfur dioxide or fungicides to prevent mold.
banana gas
To prepare a batch of bananas for retail, the product must be brought to a certain degree of maturity, for which they are created at a certain temperature and treated with the so-called banana gas. The components of our banana gas are two gases: high purity ethylene and nitrogen. Bananas get a "push" to ripen from the effects of temperature and gaseous environment. After carbonation, bananas are ventilated to remove residual gas and gradually cooled to a temperature of 12°C.
There are different opinions about banana gas, here is one of them.
Banana gas refers to food gas mixtures and is intended for processing green bananas during their ripening in special aeration chambers. Banana gas is an absolutely safe analogue of a natural substance that bananas naturally release during ripening.
Wax
Apples are treated with a thin layer of paraffin or wax. This not only gives the fruit a delicious glossy sheen, but also allows it to be stored for almost two years. Washing off the wax coating by simply rinsing the apple with tap water is impossible. It should be brushed under hot water for at least a few minutes. Also, oranges and peppers are treated with wax.
Sulphur dioxide
In dried apricots without chemicals, molds quickly form, in small quantities they are not visible. Therefore, dried apricots and raisins, which are sold in stores and on the market, are usually treated with sulfur dioxide before they are put on sale so that they do not deteriorate for a long time, so that the fruits retain their original color. (in a simple way: fumigate with sulfur).

E-code: E220

Name: Sulfur Dioxide

International name: Sulfur Dioxide

Description: Obtained by burning sulfur

Function: Preservative

Impact: Dangerous

Potential effects: Asthma; bronchospasm; bronchoconstriction; hypotension; anaphylaxis; bronchitis; destroys vitamins A and B in food; mutagen in animals

Possible Food Uses: Dried fruits, beer, cider, fruit juice, gelatin, wine, pickles, soft drinks, dried coconut, vinegar.

Pesticides
For those who do not know, pesticides are chemical elements that can fight many harmful microorganisms. Many gardeners are very fond of using these same pesticides, moreover, they begin to do this even in the process of fruit ripening in order to prevent the attack of all kinds of insects, fungi, etc. Unfortunately, pesticides are not only harmful to insects, they adversely affect the human body.

Diphenyl
They are treated with citrus fruits, in particular oranges, so that they do not rot. Biphenyl is colorless, odorless, and tasteless, so people can't see or hear it, and quite often don't wash the fruit before peeling it off. Biphenyl remains on the fingers, and we safely eat it with dessert. And the worst thing is that even children eat it.

What are preservatives:

Preservatives are food additives that increase the shelf life of food by protecting it from spoilage caused by microorganisms (bacteria, yeast, mold). In the EU codification system, preservatives are assigned indices E 200 - E 297. The list of preservatives with indices E includes mainly acids of organic compounds and their derivatives, as well as some types of gases (sulphurous, carbon dioxide), complex substances with antibiotic properties, inorganic compounds , other natural and synthetic substances.

Common salt, ethyl alcohol, acetic, sulphurous, sorbic, benzoic acids and some of their salts are considered the most used preservatives.

Classification of preservatives. These nutritional supplements can be divided into 2 groups. The first ones are actually preservatives, their action is directed directly to the cells of microorganisms. The second group - substances with a preservative effect. They adversely affect microbes by regulating the acid-base environment, water activity, or oxygen concentration.

General requirements for preservatives. In the modern food industry of any civilized country, certain requirements are imposed on preservatives. First of all, they must be harmless to humans. Also, additives should not enter into a chemical reaction with the materials from which the product packaging is made. Preservatives should not reduce the nutritional value of foods or impart an off-taste or odor to the food. Although in some cases, the preservative just gives the products the desired taste, such as vinegar when pickling or making sauces.

Practical use. Preservatives can be bactericidal (kill microorganisms) or stop or slow the growth and reproduction of microorganisms. Their effectiveness against different microorganisms is not the same. Therefore, preservatives are often used not separately, but in combination with each other.

Usage. Methods for using preservatives are different. Some, such as sorbic acid (E 200) or sodium benzoate (E 211) are introduced directly into the product, mainly in the form of solutions. Others are intended only for surface treatment of products and containers, for example, citrus fruits are sprayed with diphenyl (E 230), orthophenylphenol (E 231) and sodium orthophenylphenolate (E232), and dry vegetables and fruits are treated with sulfur dioxide (sulfur dioxide E 200).

About dried fruits

Sulfur compounds contribute to the development of diseases of the respiratory system and gastrointestinal tract, and can also cause allergies in a child. Therefore, try not to buy dried fruits for children if the package contains E220-226 inscriptions.

For example, take a sweet raisin of a transparent golden color. When buying raisins for compote for a child, many parents try to buy this one, mistakenly believing that it has a light golden color, because it is made from light grapes.

But dark raisins are also made from light-colored grapes, it's just that when dried, all the grapes darken. To obtain a golden amber color, raisins are dried with sulfites, which stabilize the golden color and act as preservatives. Also, do not look for the most golden and beautiful dried apricots or dried apricots on the market. They are also treated with sulfites.

Dried apricots, dried without additives and preservatives, have a not very attractive appearance, and their color is brown and faded.

Prunes are common dried plums. To choose prunes without preservatives, pay attention to their appearance. For baby food, choose prunes that are shiny black rather than brown and sticky to the touch. Prunes should not be too sticky and have a brown color, all these are signs of improper processing of plums, which were boiled in water for a long time before drying or soaked in plenty of burnt sugar syrup.

How to wash fruits, dried fruits and vegetables

Washing fruits washes away not only dust and sand from their peel, but also pesticides left over from spraying trees.

Fruits should be washed with a plentiful stream of running water, using special soft brushes. It is best to use soda when washing fruits, rubbing the peel with powder, then rinsing with water.

To wash imported fruits bought in markets, you need to use harder brushes, and you need to wash these fruits, first by pouring boiling water on a sieve, and then with soda powder and a brush, so as not to be treated with wax applied to the peel.

Instead of soda for washing imported fruits, you can also use unscented baby soap - it removes the wax film from the fruit peel well.

Nutritionists advise to hold imported fruits after washing in cool water for one hour - the water will take away some of the artificially applied to the fruits and harmful substances from the fruits. The shiny skin of an imported apple is an inanimate wrapper that does not need to be eaten at all. The most reasonable thing would be to peel off and discard this peel, especially if the fruit is intended for a child.

Washed fruits and vegetables should not be stored for a long time, they should be eaten immediately.

When cutting and peeling both vegetables and fruits, you need to use special knives made of extra-strong plastic, designed specifically for fresh fruits, or stainless steel knives that do not oxidize under the influence of fruit juice - then there will be no loss of vitamins.

Yellow spots under the skin of fruits or vegetables indicate a high content of nitrates in fruits. You should not eat foods with such signs. To reduce the amount of nitrates in vegetables and fruits, you can soak them for a day in cold water by putting the bowl in the refrigerator, but when soaked in water, some of the vitamins are also lost. The most correct thing is to more carefully inspect the fruits when buying.

You don't need to wash the cabbage. For cleaning, all the top leaves are removed from the head of cabbage, getting to absolutely clean ones. In cabbage, you need to throw away the stalk and the thickest leaf petioles - they have the most nitrates.

Rhubarb, spinach, herbs, green onions must be cleaned of roots, thick stems and yellow leaves. First, the greens need to be soaked in a very roomy bowl, while the salad is disassembled into separate leaves. Rinse the greens like this, changing the water 2-3 times. You can add apple cider vinegar or a little baking soda to the water. Then the greens can be rinsed on a sieve under running water. Water for washing greens and salad should be cool. You can dry the greens on a towel, in a closed room, inaccessible to flies and dust.

When washing a leek, you need to cut the stem lengthwise to wash out the dirt that has got into the upper outlet.

Cauliflower and broccoli are cleaned of darkened areas and soaked for half an hour in cool salt water (1-2 tablespoons of salt per 1 liter of water). You can add vinegar to the same water, 1 tablespoon per 1 liter of water. Insects caught in the inflorescences will soon float to the surface.

To clean root vegetables - potatoes, beets, carrots, radishes, horseradish, radishes, daikon, you need to carefully clean them from the ground. Then you need to pour the roots with warm water and let stand. Root crops need to be washed with a brush, rinsing under running water, and only after that they need to be cleaned.

Citrus fruits should be scalded with boiling water to get rid of preservatives on the skin, then washed under running water.

Watermelon or melon should be washed with a brush.

Pineapple is washed whole, unpeeled, then boiling water is poured over the skin, after which the pineapple can be peeled and cut.

Bananas, pomegranates, apples, pears, plums, persimmons should be washed with running cool water with baby soap, or by rubbing the fruit with soda powder.

Peaches and apricots should be washed with running water and soap or soda, and then peel the fruits from the upper peel.

Cranberries, lingonberries, gooseberries, currants, cherries, sweet cherries are washed in a sieve, in small portions, under running water.

Raspberries, laid in a sieve in a thin layer, should be dipped in a bowl of water for 1 minute, shaking the sieve. So do 2-3 times, changing the water. Then leave the berries in a sieve to glass the water.

Strawberries are poured into a bowl of cool water and gently mixed by hand. Change water 2-3 times.

Strawberries do not need to cut off the tails before washing! It is best to wash strawberries in a colander, in small portions, dipping them in a bowl of water and changing the water. In Spain, strawberries are washed with white wine. We can pour grape or apple cider vinegar into the water for washing strawberries, 1 tablespoon per 1 liter of water - it will keep the berries strong, at the same time cleaning them of microbes.

For grapes, you need to make a plentiful shower, if the bunches are too tight, you need to cut the petioles with scissors into several parts. It is not necessary to tear grapes from a bunch before washing.

Dried fruits, especially of bright, brilliant color, have a sulfur film on the surface. Dried fruits must first be thoroughly washed with cool running water, and then poured over with boiling water, or better, soaked in boiling water for 10-15 minutes.

Peeled seeds and nuts, as well as seeds, must first be washed with warm water, and then poured over with boiling water. After that, nuts and seeds can be dried in the oven.

When washing fruits and vegetables, you need to use a lot of water. It is unacceptable to wipe fruits with a napkin instead of washing!

Dried fruits, which can be found in large quantities on store shelves, can be not only unhealthy, but also dangerous to eat. It all depends on what drying method was used to obtain them.

The value and usefulness of dried fruits has been confirmed by many studies. Dried apricots, raisins, dates, figs, prunes contain many vitamins that are so necessary for our body and, especially,.

All these valuable properties are preserved in the "correct" dried fruits - dried fruits that have not been subjected to special treatment with toxic chemicals, including dyes. It is this fairly cheap method of quick drying of fruits, which allows you to save resources, significantly increase the shelf life of dried fruits and give them a “marketable” look, is used to obtain most dried fruits.

The safest and healthiest are only those dried fruits that were obtained in the traditional way - natural drying.

To obtain dried fruits, the following types of drying are used:

- drying in the sun. The fruits obtained in this way are hard, not the best option.

- drying in the shade allows you to get semi-soft fruits. Compared to drying in the sun, this is the best way.

- handling toxic chemicals(sulphurous gas - sulfur dioxide, additive E220) and heat treatment. Such dried fruits are the most common in the market. They have an attractive appearance, but they are unsafe for health.

This is one of the easiest and most affordable ways to get dried fruits. Firstly, sour gas treatment much faster than natural drying. Secondly, after such processing, the fruits remain soft, under-dried and weigh more than ordinary dried fruits devoid of moisture. Thirdly, as a preservative, sulfur dioxide helps such under-dried fruits not to deteriorate. Sulfur dioxide kills bacteria, but it is also toxic to humans. Note: dried fruits processed in this way are not eaten by pests!

The use of chemicals for "drying" allows even unripe fruit to be used. They are immersed in boiling water sodium hydroxide(caustic soda). Under the influence of this, the hard peel cracks, and the fruit is more easily dried. And in order to kill the bacteria that start in the cracks of the peel, the fruits are treated with the same sulfur dioxide.

Another way to get dried fruits - smoking with liquid smoke- no less dangerous carcinogen. To add shine, the surface of dried fruits is treated with fat or glycerin.

After treatment with these and similar substances, dried fruits become shiny, their color intensifies - bright dried apricots, shiny prunes, golden raisins ... Appetizing, but unsafe.

Such dried fruits should never be eaten unwashed. But even the usual rinsing under running water will not be enough. In our body, sulfur dioxide, under the influence of liquid, turns into a weak solution of sulfurous acid, which irritates the mucous membrane of the digestive system, which over time can cause a number of diseases.

How to wash dried fruits?

To get rid of sulfur dioxide, which is most often used for drying, dried fruits should be soaked in cold (!) Water. Only in such water will sulfur dioxide dissolve. And what will happen if, out of habit, dried fruits are washed in hot water? In this case, sulfur dioxide will not dissolve, but will remain on their surface.

1. Pour dried fruits with cold water for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

2. Drain, rinse under running cold water.

3. Rinse with boiling water.

Dried fruits such as dried apricots or raisins can be prepared independently. All that is needed for this is, which you can also make yourself from improvised materials.