Delicious Sun-Dried Tomatoes

Homemade sun dried tomatoes on the dehydrator tray.

Originally published October 1, 2011.

Reposted September 16, 2023

I had a big red mixing bowl full of ripe heirloom cherry tomatoes fresh out of my garden. They had been sitting on the kitchen table and I was wondering what do do with them all. I used  them in salads,  tacos, and made a bit of salsa but there was still more left and more to come off the vines. 

I saw a great recipe for stuffed cherry tomatoes. The flesh and pulp were scooped out and filled with feta cheese and herbs. But I did not have any feta cheese on hand. Hey ! What about sun-dried tomatoes?  I looked up my favorite site, Pick Your Own and found it was very easy to make my own. I went out into my shed and found the Excaliber dehydrator. I have had it since I moved to Utah 14 years ago. It has an ample 4 shelves and temps up to 145 degrees. I set the dial for 140 degrees. And began to wash and slice each tomato in half.  I chose to leave my skins on as these were small . I gently removed the seeds by pushing them out with my thumb.

My dehydrator is wonderful. It is an Excalibur. 

I was happy to have enough to fill the 4 trays. They looked so pretty. I pushed in the racks and plugged her in. Soon the house smelled of tomatoes baking in the sun.

Homemade sun-dried tomatoes are delicious!

About 8 hours and they were done. I tasted one and then another and then another. To me they tasted like candy.

Home Made Sun-Dried Tomatoes

The big bowl of tomatoes made two portions. The tomatoes shrink to 1/4 their original size. I sealed them in a Ziploc and placed them in the refrigerator where they will keep for 18 months. I use them for pasta and snacking. These will be gone soon. I am looking forward to making more. 

There is nothing better than tomatoes right out of your garden but if you do not have a garden you can buy tomatoes at the market. Roma tomatoes are best because they have more flesh and less seeds and water content.  I would like to grow some of those next year.

Deborah Moon Moen
Little Utah Farm

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