Persimmons are one of the healthiest fruits in the world. They are sweet and delicious, and they can be added to your winter diet. Persimmons have manganese, iron, vitamin C, and beta-carotene, as well as important phytonutrients that have all kinds of health benefits. Persimmons cultivation in Tajikistan has expanded significantly in recent years. The total area of this crop in Tajikistan is more than 3000 hectares. The soil and climate of Tajikistan are favorable for growing persimmons, and up to 30-35 tons can be obtained from each hectare. In Tajikistan, mainly Japanese varieties Goshogaki, Zendzhimaru (chocolate) and Hiakumi (Korolek) are grown. Local varieties Kulchakhurmo, Serhosili Vakhsh, Bolazzati Dehmoy and Peshpazi Shirin are also widespread in Taj Persimmons are used mainly fresh. Also in Tajikistan, persimmons are stored in cold stors for 3-4 months and sold in January-February. Its shelf life in the cold stors is not very long. Therefore, in most countries of the world persimmons are also stored in the form of shock freezing and sold in supermarkets. In recent years, persimmon drying has also been introduced in Tajikistan. People often choose to dry persimmons because if stored properly, they will last six to twelve months at room temperature.
Here are the best methods for drying persimmons at home and storing dried persimmons for later use.
How to Dry Persimmons?
The following are methods for drying persimmons at home and storing dried persimmons for later use:
-we can slice them and place them in a dehydrator or oven,
-or we can dry them in the sun for three or four weeks.
How to prepare persimmons for drying
The first step to preparing your persimmons for drying is to thoroughly wash and dry the fruit. You should run it under cool running water and wipe away dirt and debris with your fingers. It is very important to make sure that they are clean since any dirt or other contaminants may dry into the fruit and have an effect on how it tastes after you dry it.
Drying persimmons in a dehydrator
– Once you finish drying the persimmons, you should place it on a cutting board and remove the cap. You want to remove any white pith because it will be difficult to chew once you have dried your persimmons. Remember that persimmons will shrink when you dry the slices, so you shouldn’t cut away much of the usable fruit. You do not need to peel the persimmons, but you can cut away any skin that you find is discolored.
– Once you have removed the cap, you can slice the persimmon into slices that are between one half and one-quarter of an inch. You should cut it the same way you cut a tomato. Generally, you should be able to cut eight or ten slices out of each piece of fruit.
– Now your persimmons are ready to go in the dehydrator. You can place the slices right on the rack, and separate them from each other. You can turn the dehydrator on between 45 °C and 65 °C . You will need to allow the persimmons to dry for at least 20 hours without any interruption.
Once it has been 20 hours, check on the persimmons. You should notice that they have changed to a deep orange-red color with a wrinkled surface. It should be soft and gummy and melt in your mouth. If they aren’t ready yet, you can leave them for another hour or two, and take them out when they are just right.
Drying persimmons in the oven
If you don’t have a dehydrator, you can dry persimmons in the oven, but you might lose some of the flavor and texture.
– Remove the cap.
– Slice the persimmons.
– Preheat oven to 75 °С.
– Place the persimmon slices side-by-side on a baking paper that is on a baking sheet
– Dry persimmons in the oven for 5-6 hours flipping persimmons a few times until they are dried out.
– You should leave the oven door slightly open for better air circulation.
You can speed up the process by turning your oven to 120 °С and drying persimmons for 2 hours. Just make sure you check the persimmons after every half an hour. There is a danger that you bake your persimmons instead of drying.
Small equipment for cleaning, cutting and packing persimmons can be used to increase the amount of production and start a business. Below are examples of several machines.
DARIBO 4th generation small fruit peeler has a wide range of applications. It can be used to peel oranges, persimmons, apples, pears, peaches, passionfruit, kiwi and other similar round and oval fruits.
Cutting machine Gamma-5A
Vacuum sealer Caso VC 6
Hang-drying persimmons
There are different kinds of persimmons, and if you choose to hang them to dry in the sun, you will want the hachiya persimmons. You want fruit that is slightly under-ripe where they are firm.
-You need to prepare it differently because you will peel the persimmons and leave the stem. The stem is necessary for hanging your persimmons to dry. Use a carrot peeler to peel all of the skin.
-Next, you will hang your persimmons in indirect sunlight in a well-lit spot in the house or on a screened patio. Ideally, you want your persimmons to get four or five hours of indirect sunlight each day.
-Next, you need to let the persimmons dry for four to six weeks. You can massage them every few days to help them release moisture and sugar as they dry. When they are ready, the outside will wrinkle, and they will shrink to about half their size.
Remove them from the twine, and let them sit on a baking sheet covered with a clean kitchen towel at night for another week. This allows the sugary coating to cover the fruit.
It should be noted that during the harvesting season the price for persimmons in Tajikistan is very low (within 0.7-1.0 somoni, i.e. $ 0.06-0.09). And the farmers said that they sold dried persimmons from 25 to 35 somoni ($ 2.3-3.1). If we calculate that from 4 kg of fresh persimmon, 1 kg of dried persimmon is obtained, then the difference from each kilogram is 25/4 = 8.25 somoni. This product also has a good export potential.
Used literature – internet resource -https://www.dryingallfoods.com › drying-persimmons