It is important
to know that nutritive value of dried food, as well as flavor and
appearance,
is best protected by low temperature and low humidity during storage.
Dried fruits are
a good source of energy because they contain concentrated fruit sugars.
Fruits also contain a rather large amount of vitamins and minerals. The
drying process, however, destroys some of the vitamins, especially A
and
C. There are more calories in dried foods on a weight-for-weight basis
because of the concentration of nutrients. For example, 100 grams of
fresh
apricots have 51 calories, while 100 grams of dried apricots have 260
calories.
Exposing fruit to
sulfur before drying helps retain vitamins A and C. Sulfur destroys
thiamine,
one of the B vitamins, but fruit is not an important source of thiamine
anyway. Many dried fruits are rich in riboflavin and iron.
Vegetables are a
good source of minerals and the B vitamins thiamine, riboflavin, and
niacin.
Both fruits and vegetables provide useful amounts of the fiber (bulk)
we
need. Save the water used for soaking or cooking dried foods because
this
nutrient-rich water can be used in recipes to make soups, sauces, and
gravy.
