Dried Peach

Name: Dried peach — peach (Prunus persica) halves or slices that have been dried, usually with the skin on or peeled, and often treated with sulphur dioxide to preserve their golden colour. The fresh fruit has its own pages under Stone Fruits.

Description

Peaches are native to China, and drying them has long been one of the ways to enjoy the short-season fruit all year. Dried peaches are a traditional preserved fruit in the Mediterranean, the Middle East and North America, where halved fruit was sun-dried in orchards in warm regions such as California.

Dried peaches are chewy and tangy-sweet, with a more concentrated, sometimes slightly sharp flavour than fresh peaches. Untreated dried peaches are brown and much darker, while sulphured ones keep an orange colour.

Main nutrition value

Dried peaches provide concentrated natural sugar and fibre, as well as potassium, iron and vitamin A (from carotenoids), though much of the vitamin C is lost.

How best to be consumed

Dried peaches are chewy and tart, and suited to small portions.

1. Eat a few slices as a snack with nuts or cheese.
2. Chop into muesli, porridge, salads and baking.
3. Stew in water with a little spice, then serve with yoghurt.
4. Choose unsulphured, unsweetened dried peaches if you are sensitive to additives.
5. Store in a cool, dry place in an airtight container.

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 sugar and calorie intake from eating many pieces at once.
2. Reactions in people sensitive to sulphites, including some with asthma.
3. Digestive upset, such as bloating, from the concentrated fibre and sugar.
4. Tooth decay from sticky dried fruit.

GroupsDried FruitsRose family (Rosaceae)High fibreLow fatLow sodiumRich in potassiumDried

Made fromPeach

Related foodsDried ApricotsDried AppleDried PearDried CherriesDried PrunesDried Figs

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