Dried Apple

Name: Dried apple — apples (Malus domestica) that have been sliced, cored and dried, sold as rings, slices, chips or chunks. Some are sweet and chewy, and others crisp. Fresh apples have their own pages under Apples and Pears.

Description

Drying apples is an old method of preserving the autumn harvest through winter, and strings of apple rings hung by the fire or in the sun were a common sight in rural Europe and North America. The traditional method is to peel, core and slice the fruit, and dry it slowly with warm air.

Many commercial dried apples are treated with sulphur dioxide to keep their pale colour, while untreated ones turn brown. Dried apple can be chewy and sweet, or crisp when freeze-dried or baked. Apple chips are often sold as snacks.

Main nutrition value

Drying concentrates the apple's natural sugars and fibre, so dried apple provides dietary fibre and a modest amount of potassium, though much of the vitamin C is lost.

How best to be consumed

Dried apple is best eaten in small portions, on its own or with other foods.

1. Eat a small handful as a snack, with nuts for a more balanced bite.
2. Chop into porridge, muesli, salads or baking, in place of raisins.
3. Stew in water with cinnamon for a quick compote.
4. Choose unsweetened, no-added-sugar dried apple, and check the label for sulphur dioxide if you are sensitive.
5. Make your own by drying thin slices in a low oven or dehydrator.

Overconsumption could cause…

Drying removes water but leaves the sugar, so dried fruit is far more concentrated in sugar and energy than the fresh fruit.

1. Higher sugar and calorie intake than expected, since a handful holds the sugar of several apples.
2. Digestive discomfort, such as bloating or loose stools, from the concentrated fibre and sorbitol.
3. Reactions in people sensitive to sulphites, including some people with asthma.
4. Tooth decay, since dried fruit is sticky and clings to teeth.

GroupsDried FruitsRose family (Rosaceae)High fibreLow fatLow sodiumDried

Made fromApple

Related foodsDried ApricotsDried PeachDried PearDried CherriesDried PrunesDried Figs

Wikipedia — Apple, used for origin and general background: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple Wikipedia — Dried fruit, used for general background on drying and storing fruit: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dried_fruit