This is the only way I dry apples for the winter. It tastes better than candy

When we moved from a private house to an apartment, the question arose: how to dry apples in the oven? Previously, it was simple: I cut it, laid it out on a baking sheet and put it in the sun. And after a few days, the completely natural product is ready - either into pies or compotes. How now?! You can’t lay out fruit on the balcony.

I tried many methods, spoiled two buckets of village apples and finally found the perfect way!

Now I'll tell you everything. In fact, drying fruits in a regular gas oven is very simple - you just need to get used to it.

Preparing the apples

I dry the fruit directly with the peel. I choose dense, mealy varieties - the less juice in the apple, the less fuss. And the smell, don’t forget the smell! The more aromatic the fruit, the better the preparation will be.

Antonovka is very good for drying; if you see it on sale, be sure to buy it.

1. Wash the fruits and leave to dry. If you don't want to wait, just wipe dry, but that's extra work - and who likes that?
2. Cut the apples in half and remove the core.
3. Cut the fruits into slices 3-4 mm thick. If you have a slicer, don't hesitate to use it. It will save a lot of time.
4. Sprinkle the slices with lemon juice or water with diluted citric acid. Now the apples will not darken from the air.

There is a second cutting option - “decorative”.

1. Cut the core out of a whole fruit using a special thing - it looks like a metal tube with a sharpened end. After such a device, beautiful, even holes remain in the center of the apple.
2. Cut off the top and bottom of the fruit. The trimmings can be used for compote.
3. Use a slicer to cut the apples into neat circles.

If you dry this beauty, you will get real apple chips - the ones that are sold in bags and cost 500 rubles. for 400 gr.

You can dry it!

At what temperature should you dry apples?

If you have a convection oven, everything is simple.

1. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and arrange the fruit in a single layer. Place so that there is a small distance between the slices.
2. Set the minimum temperature. Ideally it's 60 ^OC, but it all depends on the stove. My friend’s minimum oven temperature is 100 ^OS, but it turned out okay.
3. Turn on convection.
4. Immediately place the baking tray with apples into the chamber. Let the fruit warm up with the oven.
5. Leave the pan in the oven for 6-8 hours. Turn the apples over from time to time to ensure they dry evenly.

When the slices become light and “rubbery” to the touch, the workpiece can be taken out. Do not bring the fruit to the state of crackers; they should be soft and pliable. Properly dried apple slices are so elastic that they can be folded in half.

If you have the most gas oven without convection

It's OK! I have exactly this one - cheap, no bells and whistles - and everything works out great.

1. Set the oven temperature to about 100 ^OWITH.
2. Place the fruits arranged on a baking sheet inside.
3. Do not close the door all the way. Leave a gap approximately the width of a matchbox.A small gap will allow air to move, creating the very convection that is needed for drying fruit.

To prevent the door from slamming, I used a wooden spatula for the frying pan.

The oven temperature will drop quickly. Don’t be alarmed, this is even good, because fruits are dried at 50-60 °C. But if the oven cools down too much, “turn on the gas.” Focus on your own sensations: your hand should be hot, but not hot, approximately like in a sauna.

Then proceed according to the scheme that I described above. In 6-7 hours the apples will be ready.

In this way, you can dry fruits in any oven - be it gas or electric.

Healthy chips

You can make delicious chips from apples - this is an excellent replacement for unhealthy sweets and chewing gum. My children started stealing thin, sweet slices of fruit straight from the baking sheet. I had to make another batch of chips to have enough for the winter.

1. Boil syrup from water and sugar in a 1:1 ratio. I make one glass at a time - this portion is enough for a kilogram of fruit.
2. Cool the syrup to room temperature.
3. While the syrup is cooling, remove the core from the fruit and cut into slices. I cut the fruits into rings - it’s more beautiful. Work quickly so that the flesh does not have time to darken, or sprinkle the slices with lemon juice.
4. Place the apples in a compact container, fill with syrup and leave in a cool place for a day. The fruits should be saturated with sugar.
5. Remove the apple slices from the syrup and place in a colander. When the liquid has drained, place the slices on a baking sheet. Don't forget the parchment - fruit soaked in sugar will stick tightly to the metal!

Dry the “syrup” slices using the same procedure. True, it will take a little more time, because the apples are saturated with moisture.It took me 10 hours to dry the sweet chips, but you can't guess.

You can add cinnamon, vanilla, cloves, orange zest or mint to the syrup. This makes it even tastier.

I added sweet chips to my oatmeal in the morning along with nuts and raisins. Made great homemade muesli.