Dried Mulberries

Name: Dried mulberries — mulberries (Morus alba or Morus nigra) that have been sun-dried, sold as small, chewy, wrinkled berries, usually pale cream (white mulberry) or dark purple-black (black mulberry). The fresh fruit has its own page under Berries.

Description

Fresh mulberries are soft and spoil within a day or two, so drying has long been the main way to keep them. Dried mulberries are a traditional food in Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Central Asia, where white mulberries are sun-dried on rooftops and sold in bags as a sweet snack, and where they are ground into flour in mountain communities that rely on them in winter.

Dried mulberries taste honey-sweet, with a slightly chewy, fig-like texture and tiny crunchy seeds. White mulberries in particular have become popular in health food shops, as a lower-sugar-tasting alternative to raisins, though they are still concentrated in natural sugar.

Main nutrition value

Dried mulberries are a concentrated source of natural sugar and energy, and provide dietary fibre, iron and some calcium and protein for a dried fruit.

How best to be consumed

Dried mulberries are sweet and chewy, and best enjoyed in small amounts.

1. Eat a small handful as a snack, with nuts.
2. Add to porridge, muesli and yoghurt in place of raisins.
3. Mix into baking, granola and energy bars.
4. Simmer in water for a lightly sweet tea.
5. Choose unsweetened, no-added-sugar berries and store them in a sealed jar.

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. High natural sugar and calorie intake if many are eaten at once.
2. Digestive upset, such as bloating or loose stools, from the concentrated fibre and sugar.
3. Blood sugar effects in people managing diabetes, if portions are large.
4. Tooth decay from sticky dried fruit.

GroupsDried FruitsMulberry family (Moraceae)Dried

Made fromMulberry

Related foodsDried FigsDried JackfruitCurrantsDried AmlaDried AppleDried Apricots

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