Dried fruit have a highly concentrated flavor and plums are one of the favorites. They are a great addition to various fruit cakes in winter, as well as an indispensable and well-known fruit flavor in the preparation of oshav.
To dry plums, we must first prepare them. For this purpose, wash them well, by trying to remove the dirty grayish layer on them. We need to make sure that the skin of the plum is completely clean, because after the drying, it would be difficult to wash and clean afterwards due to its wrinkled surface.
After doing this, we have to wait for the fruit to dry from the water at room temperature.
The best drying method, not only for plums, is to leave them in the sun for a long time. This way, according to some esotericists, they also absorb highly concentrated, vital energy that only the sun can emit.
So, if this is your choice, then you need to put the well-washed and dried plums on a flat tray - preferably wooden, arrange them and space them apart from each other. Then take them out to the balcony where they can stay in direct sunlight for 2 weeks.
Monitor regularly how the drying process develops and if necessary, turn the plums periodically, as well as move the very tray on which they are placed. To protect them from dirt or flies, you can cover them with gauze. However, it must be at a distance from them and not "cover" them tightly, so that there is a constant flow of air around them.
You can also arrange plums on a cardboard sheet to place in the sunniest spot in your room.
Another faster way to dry plums is to dry them in an oven. For this purpose, choose a suitable tray. Arrange the plums in it and leave it in the oven for a total of 18 hours on low heat - 50°C.
It is preferable to store the dried plums in a ventilated place. They can be left on a wooden tray or stored in paper bags, but they should not be too tightly closed.
The already dried plums should also not be left in water for a long time when soaking them, because this way their taste qualities are lost.
A good solution in such a case is to put them straight into the prepared oshav, for example. When the dried plums are used to make fruit desserts or fruit cake, you can also leave them dry without soaking them. They will soak up liquid from the cake juices and soften. You can even dip them in the syrup you are going to use and that way they will become quite soft and at the same time release their amazing flavor and aroma in it.
