Dried tomatoes are a must for a tapas appetizer or to garnish various salty cakes and colorful salads. In this cooking lesson, we’ll learn how to make oven-dried tomatoes from scratch. You can make sun-dried tomatoes similarly but you will need good weather and a lot of time ahead.
You can buy ready-made dried tomatoes since this takes quite a long time to do, but so far I have not found any good products at my convenience, so it’s probably better that to know how to make them for yourself! Here we go:
how to make oven-dried tomatoes
Ingredients list: dried tomatoes
- 4-6 tomatoes
- A pinch of salt
- A tablespoon of sugar
- A tablespoon of olive oil
- 2-3 cloves of garlic
- 2-3 sprigs of thyme
Cooking Instruction
1. Peel the tomatoes as indicated in this post.
2. Cut them into quarters.
Deseed (remove the seeds with a knife).
3. Gather the tomatoes in a bowl and add a little olive oil.
4. Add sugar and salt, and mix.
Marinate for half an hour to an hour (salt and sugar will extract a portion of the water contained in the tomatoes).
5. Crush the garlic cloves with the flat side of a knife.
6. Arrange tomatoes on a non-stick tray.
7. Bake at 360°F (180°C) and immediately lower the temperature to 195°F (90°C). Open the oven door occasionally to vent the moisture from the tomatoes (you can also block the door with a wooden spoon).
Leave to dry for 2 to 2 and a half hours. Return the tomatoes two or three times on the mat.
You can let the tomatoes dry for a longer or shorter time, depending on what you want to do with them.
How to preserve dried tomatoes:
- In an airtight container with a little olive oil in the fridge.
- Frozen: by cons tomatoes lose their color when thawed, so it is best to warm them a bit in oven.
Uses:
- Decorating your hot and cold dishes.
- Add in a mixed salad.
- Cut into cubes for salty cakes, cupcakes or cocktail snacks
- Tapas on toasts rubbed with garlic.
Read also: How to make Oven-Dried Tomatoes
