I’m a little worried. Worried that I’m putting out too many tomato posts. As if there could be too many tomato posts? Anyway, when life gives you too many tomatoes, make oven-dried tomatoes. We had a kabillion, zillion of these smaller, very sweet tomatoes this year; they were about 2 1/2 inches in diameter.
Oven Dried “Sun Dried” Tomatoes
I had a dehydrater years ago, which I used a lot when I first got it then it ended up in the scary under the stairs closet. It might even be there still – really, who knows what’s in there, lol! Maybe it even migrated to the garage or Goodwill.
Now I use my oven – with mixed results. The first time, I just laid the tomatoes out on sheet pans and honestly, meant to rotate them! The ones on the edges got a little dark. The second time, I placed them on a rack and what a huge difference it makes in time and even drying. They’re all mixed together in my photos, and honestly even the dark sun-dried tomatoes are sweet and wonderful. I made a lot more, a LOT more, but we were all eating them like candy…
The real deal is there is no “exact” time or even a general time to dry your own tomatoes. It varies from oven to oven and tomato to tomato. Use a rack, over a sheet tray lined with foil if you have one, or be prepared to watch carefully, turn and remove the tomatoes individually as needed. And then write the approximate time down for next time!
If you’re looking for another option for an excess of tomatoes, check out my post on Slow Roasted Tomatoes. They were excellent, too!
Oven Dried “Sun Dried” Tomatoes
Oven Dried Sun-Dried Tomatoes
Prepare one or two sheet pans by covering with foil. If you have a rack, place over the foil lined pan.
Wash tomatoes, slice in half pole to pole and remove seeds and any large, hard bits from the center. Place cut side up on sheet pans or rack.
Turn oven on to 250 degrees and bake until the juices are gone, and the edges have just begun to crisp, then turn oven off and prop open door until cool.
Store in the refrigerator or freezer in Ziploc bags. May be placed into very clean jars and covered with olive oil, where they will keep for several weeks in the refrigerator.
Small tomatoes will take two to four hours, larger tomatoes will take longer.
Before baking, tomatoes may be salted, or herbs or garlic powder may be sprinkled over them. If tomatoes are bitter, a small amount of sugar can be sprinkled over them at the point when the oven is turned off.
I’ll be sharing this recipe on Fiesta Friday #138 , Angie’s Link Party – and I’m hosting this week with the incomparable Johanna of French Gardener Dishes.
I hope you’ll join us there as well as on Throwback Thursday, a weekly endeavor that includes myself and a couple of great blogger/friends!
28 thoughts on “Oven Sun-Dried Tomatoes”