How to Make Sun Dried Tomatoes

Sun drying usually takes place during the summer months when days are sunny, hot, and long.

1. 1
   Find an area that has full sunlight for the majority of the day. Choose a really hot day. For optimal results, the temperature should be over 90 °F (32 °C) with humidity less than 60 percent.
2. 2
   Set up a screen for laying out the tomatoes. You can use a screen made for drying purposes or an old window or door screen that has been scrubbed clean. Set the screen up on a table, and raise the screen by placing small boards or bricks at the corners. This will allow air to circulate around the drying tomatoes.
3. 
   3
   Place the tomatoes on the screen, skin side down. Arrange them so there is space between the tomatoes; you do not want them touching. Proper drying requires adequate air flow for each individual piece of tomato.
4. 
   4
   Cover the tomatoes with cheesecloth. Place boards or bricks around the screen, then place the cheesecloth over this. The cheesecloth should cover the tomatoes but not touch them. Hold the cheesecloth in place by placing more bricks on top of the bottom bricks.The cheesecloth will help keep bugs off and birds out, as well as falling debris from trees.
5. 5
   Check on the tomatoes every so often. They can take anywhere from 1 day of full sun to 2 weeks to properly dry. Make sure to take them in at night. After the sun goes down, humidity levels tend to rise and you do not want your tomatoes to absorb any moisture (which would basically undo any drying that has already occurred).

   • The tomatoes are completely sun dried when they have a leathery texture and are not sticky. They should feel dry but not cold to the touch. Do not over dry them so they become brittle. The finished product will be much darker than the original.
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1. 1
   Preheat the oven to 150 °F (66 °C). Drying tomatoes in the oven requires the lowest setting on your oven. If it is above 150 degrees, leave the oven door open slightly to reduce the heat.
2. 
   2
   Arrange the cut tomatoes on a baking sheet so they are not touching one another. They will have to be turned and tossed periodically through the drying process since there is no air circulation with a baking sheet.
3. 3
   Heat the tomatoes in the oven until they have a leathery texture but are not sticky. This may take 6 to 12 hours.
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