Are Dried Fruits Good Fruits?

A common idea is that sulphur dried fruits should not be used because vitamins have been destroyed by this method. You probably know that sulphur fumes are used during the drying of light colored fruits such as peaches, apricots and pears to preserve the natural color. This affects vitamins A and C only slightly, but vitamin B, is entirely destroyed.

Since prunes, raisins and most figs are naturally dark; they are not processed with sulphur but are dried in the sun. Sun-drying does little harm to the B vitamins, but the vitamin A is largely destroyed by the exposure to heat and air as it takes longer to dry fruits in the sun. Since you need all these vitamins for balanced diet fruit compote consisting of both types of dried fruits would therefore provide a suitable balance of these vitamins.

No dried fruit need be cooked. Just wash the fruit in lukewarm water once or twice to remove any foreign matter, place them in a container for which you have a lid, pour on enough boiling water to cover the fruit, cover them with a lid and let remain overnight. They will be plump and soft, and will keep several days if placed in the refrigerator. Although most need no sweetening, brown sugar or honey may be added to the fruit before the boiling water is poured on.

 
The Church of God, New World Ministries P.O. Box 5536 Sevierville, TN 37864