Dehydrating Raspberries | Raspberry Powder
Dehydrating raspberries is an incredibly easy task that has little hands-on time. Step by step instructions and tips for using.
Raspberries are the perfect snack on the go or for the kids when they get home from school. They’re high in Vitamin C, Vitamin K, Manganese. They’re high in fiber and low in calories. Oh, and they taste incredible.
If you have raspberry bushes you know that you can have bushels of raspberries done at the same time time in June or July. Since they have such a short shelf life, usually only a day or two at the most, it’s best to pick them and then use them immediately.
For this reason, just after picking, We will dehydrate as many as will fit in our dehydrator and then we’ll freeze the rest on the day that we pick them. This way they are as fresh as possible for all of our raspberry recipes.
What you need
For this recipe, all you need is fresh raspberries. Try to find organic berries, if you grow them yourself, chances are they are organic because they aren’t really susceptible to many insects, only a couple.
Step by step how to
There are four different methods to dry raspberries at home. Each has it’s advantages and disadvantages but all of them are easy and require very little hands on time. We’ll cover two of these today.
In your commercial dehydrator
Step One
Sort through berries. Discard any that are really soft or have bad spots.
Add them to a colander.
Pro tip: If you are using your own, organic, unsprayed berries, you can skip the rinsing steps.
Step Two
Gently rinse them off under cold water.
Step Three
Allow them to drain for at least 10 minutes.
You can use a salad spinner to gently spin them a few times.
Pour out on paper towel to drain further. You want to eliminate as much moisture as you can to speed up the drying process.
Step Four
Arrange them out on your dehydrator trays lined with dehydrator liners.
Step Five
Slide the racks into the dehydrator.
Set your dehydrator at 125°F to 130°F / 60°C. Set timer for 24-36 hours. Check them after 15-20 hours to check on progress. The raspberries should crush into pieces between your thumb and fingers when they are totally dry.
See below for storage tips and usage tips.
Conditioning your fruit
Conditioning your fruit is an important step in the drying process, so don’t skip this step.
Conditioning is the process of testing the fruit to make sure that it is thoroughly dry.
Even a bit of moisture in a couple of pieces has the potential to ruin a whole batch.
Allow the dehydrated fruits to come to room temperature. Immediately place them into a glass mason jar. Place the jar in a dark area.
Shake the jar daily to break up any stuck pieces. Allow them to stay in the jar for 7-10 days, shaking daily.
If you see any moisture droplets collecting on the jar. You know you have moisture in them.
If you see any evidence of moisture or any condensation in the jar, re-dry the food in your oven or dehydrator. After re-drying condition them again. Once they are fully dry, pack in tight fitting glass jars.
If you see any evidence of mold during the conditioning process. Discard the product.
In your oven
Perform steps one to three above. Place a sheet of parchment paper over a rimmed baking sheet. Arrange fruit in single layer.
Turn oven to lowest setting. Usually 155-175°F / 90°C. Place baking sheet in the oven. Prop the door with a wooden spoon or heat safe spatula.
Dry for an hour. Remove baking sheet from oven and flip berries so that they don’t stick to rack. Place sheet back in oven. Dry another hour and flip back to the first side. After this you shouldn’t have to flip them again. Continue drying checking often so that they don’t burn.
They should take between 5 and 8 hours in the oven. Depends on the lowest temperature of your oven and the size of the berries.
See below for storage tips and usage tips.
How to make raspberry powder
Step One
Add dried raspberries to your food processor, blender or coffee grinder.
Step Two
Pulse until you have a fine powder.
Step Three
Strain the powder through a fine mesh sieve to remove seeds.
Just shake it, don’t use a spoon to push it through or you may get a lot of seeds.
Step Four
Store in jars in a cool, dark area of your home.
How to store them
The best way to store fully dried dehydrated foods is to vacuum pack single serve portions. Vacuum sealing larger portions exposes moisture to the product, from the air, every time the bag is opened.
Food can also be packed tightly into jars or other airtight container. The addition of a food safe silica gel pack (affiliate link) will help the foods stay moisture free.
Store them in a cool, dry, dark location for best results
Perfectly dried raspberries will last at least one year.
How to use them
- cakes, cupcakes
- quick bread
- muffins
- waffles and pancakes
- smoothies – just pop them into your blender
- topping for oatmeal, yogurt, pudding, and ice cream
- sprinkle some on your breakfast cereals.
- sauces
- We even used it for our Raspberry Chipotle Bacon.
Commonly asked questions
Yes you can but it not a preferred method. Berries should be thawed in the refrigerator and drained well. Frozen berries will take considerably longer to dehydrate. Be sure to use liners on your racks for your dehydrator.
Yes. Just pour hot water over berries and soak for about 10 minutes. Then drain water and use in smoothies, yogurt, ice cream and puddings.
No. In fact, if we use our own organic raspberries, we never rinse them first. Rinsing adds a lot to the drying time.
Technically, yes you can. If you do though, you will have to sort the berries carefully. Any that are moldy or are excessively soft should be discarded. It is always best to start dehydrating immediately after picking to preserve as much of your harvest as you can.
Dehydrating raspberries is incredibly easy. They take up a fraction of the space in your pantry that frozen raspberries will use in your freezer.
More raspberry recipes
More recipes for dehydrating produce
Dehydrating raspberries is an easy job that will preserve this quintessential summer fruit to use all year long. Dehydrating takes up less space in your pantry too.
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I hope you enjoyed the recipe today.
Enjoy. And have fun cooking!
Dehydrating Raspberries
Ingredients
- 1 quart fresh raspberries
Instructions
- Wash berries well. Gently use a salad spinner to remove a lot of the water. Pat dry with paper towel.
- Arrange them in a single layer on racks of your dehydrator. To use your oven, arrange the slices on a sheet of parchment paper covered rimmed baking sheet.
- Slide the racks into the dehydrator. If using oven, heat to lowest heat setting, usually 155-175°F/ 90°C. For oven, arrange berries on parchment lined baking sheet.
- For dehydrator, set temperature at 125°F / 52°C. Set time at 20 hours. Start machine. Check after 20 hours. If more time is needed, set timer for more time. It can take 36 hours to dry them or more.
- For oven, set timer to 2 hours. Prop door open with a heat resistant spatula or wooden spoon. The oven gets much hotter than a dehydrator so keep a close eye that they don't burn.
Conditioning
- This is an important step for food safety, so don't skip!
- Once fully dry, and cooled, place berries in a glass or plastic jar. Place the jar in a dark area. Daily, for 7-10 days, shake the jar to break them apart. If you see any signs of moisture or condensation on inside of the jar, dehydrate them again.
- Once fully dry, condition them again.
- See notes for storage tips.
See all of my favorite tools and gift ideas on my New Amazon Store!Check out Binky’s Amazon Store!Notes
- granola or trail mix
- cereals – they bump up the flavor and healthiness of everything from oatmeal and grits to cold cereals.
- Flavor vanilla pudding
- Ice cream for a raspberry flavored treat.
- Garnish cocktails and mocktails
- Muffins, cakes or quick bread
- Frostings
- Make raspberry powder to make it easier to incorporate them into some dishes.
Nutrition
Originally published July 22, 2022.
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Wow…this is really useful recipe. I’ve dehydrated a bunch and they are so good on my morning cereal!