Most people think that the best part of summer is enjoying a succulent tomato right off of the vine, still warm from the late afternoon sun. While there may not be anything more satisfying, I do think there is something more delicious. My favorite part of summer is taking those juicy tomatoes and drying them in the oven for later use. It’s easy and nothing quite like a dried tomato can hold the essence of a tomato in suspended animation.
If you’ve never dried tomatoes before, you don’t know what you are missing. While plum tomatoes are the best to dry, from the picture above you can see that any tomato can be dried and preserved. Plum and grape tomatoes can be sliced lengthwise, but its best to slice round varieties across the axis.
All you need is a warm oven and some time. Lay out your sliced tomatoes, cut side up in the case of plum tomatoes, on a cookie sheet. I lined mine with a Silpat sheet for easy cleanup. Set your oven on the lowest setting possible, mine is somewhere around 200°, and find yourself a good book.
The tomatoes will take 8 – 10 hours to dry depending on thickness, but you’ll know they are done because they turn into leather. They’ll be a little sticky from the juice drying, but they should not be squishy. You’ll be able to tell if they are still holding moisture. If they are, put them back in for another hour.
![P1040183 [1024x768]](http://www.eatingcleveland.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/p1040183-1024x768.jpg)
They’ll even become a bit translucent as you can see from this photo. You’ll have to keep yourself from eating these once they are done, they are that good.
Dried tomatoes have a ton of uses. Not only can you eat them as a delicious and healthy snack, but there are countless recipes in which they can be used. I like to toss them with garlic and olive oil for pasta, but my favorite is using them in a sun dried tomato cream sauce for chicken and pork.
Tagged with: Oven Dried Tomato Recipe • Sun Dried Tomato Recipes • Sundried Tomatoes
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September 15th, 2008 at 7:21 am
How do you store the tomatoes?
September 15th, 2008 at 8:03 am
In the past I have just stored them in a zip top bag in my pantry without any ill effects. I’ve also seen that they can be frozen as well.
This last time though, I actually tried canning them in olive oil. I did a couple of jars and they looked pretty good. Not only does it preserve the tomatoes, but you also get some great flavored olive oil.
September 15th, 2008 at 10:01 am
Great tip! I didn’t realize these were so easy to make. I’ve bought them from the store (packed in oil) and they are so expensive!
October 23rd, 2008 at 9:50 am
When you canned them in olive oil, I assume you put them in a boiling water bath — like regular boiling water canning? How long did you process them?
November 22nd, 2008 at 6:15 am
Randi: Actually, you don’t need to put them in a boiling water bath. You just stick ‘em in oil. I dip them in red wine vinegar first, but no other processing.
August 17th, 2009 at 10:04 am
If you’re going to put these in olive oil, please refrigerate or freeze them or you can poison yourself. Olive oil doesn’t kill botulism that may occur in tomatoes.
In all home food preservation, please be safe, especially with tomatoes.
December 16th, 2009 at 2:46 pm
[...] mint-cacao macaroons–delicious! I also bought a bunch of tomatoes to take Grace C. up on her recommendation of dehydrating them for the Winter. And I picked up a bunch of apples for my famous apple crisp. I [...]
February 8th, 2010 at 10:56 am
I made oven sun-dried tomatoes about 8 years ago, refrigerated them in jars in olive oil, and just used the last of them yesterday. Making more from some frozen tomatoes from my garden today.