Shrivelled is Best

With summer time and tomato season just around the corner, now is the time to plan for making enough sun dried tomatoes to last the entire year. Nothing perks up a meal like the taste of sun dried tomatoes. What many people do not realize is just how easy it is to make your own sun dried tomatoes in the comfort of your own kitchen.

Go to your local market or supermarket and look for big plum tomatoes. You can buy them by the bucket and then, you decide just how many you would like to dry. Make sure you get the plum tomatoes since they produce the best end result. Keep in mind that they will shrivel into almost nothing, so the more you use the more you have in the future. What looks like a lot of tomatoes will fit into a quart-size zip top bag! This is why they are so expensive in the super market.

Start by pre-heating your oven to 95 degree C, remember to lower the temperature if you use a fan oven. Wash the tomatoes, and slice them about 1/4 inch thick. You don't even have to peel them. Lay the slices out on the baking tray, making sure not to touch sides. Place in the oven, and WAIT! This can take anywhere from 6 to 10 hours, but baking them faster will ruin the consistency and the flavor. Periodically check the tomatoes, as sometimes the tomatoes around the edges of the baking sheet will bake faster than the ones in the center of the baking sheet. Rotate positions, if necessary, to keep appearances uniform.

You will be able to tell when your tomatoes have completely baked they will have the consistency of fresh raisins. If they are undercooked they will be too wet and sticky; if they are overcooked they will be dark brown and dried out. Sometimes certain slices will be done before the rest, simply remove them to a plate and continue baking the rest. Keep your eye on them.

Bring the tomatoes to room temperature on the baking sheets. Transfer them to quart-size zip top bags, and place in the refrigerator. They will last indefinitely. They also taste wonderful right out of the bag! Be careful, though you can consume about 4 tomatoes without even thinking about it, and you'll need to buy more tomatoes to "sun dry" before you know it!

For the real I am, put your baking tray in the garden on a really hot summers day with just a bit of light muslin to cover the tomatoes, (just to keep the flies off), leave out all day and bring indoors as late as possible, if they are not baked put them out again the next day. This method will give a stronger flavour.