Dehydrated Strawberries are an easy way to make the most of a summer abundance of strawberries. They are as sweet as candy without actually being candy – the perfect kind of treat.
Table of Contents
🥘 Ingredients Needed
- Ripe Strawberries: Seriously, the more ripe your strawberries are – the better they will taste. If the strawberries are starting to get some soft spots, they will be super sweet and so good.
- Optional: lemon juice, sugar, or honey
🍽 Equipment Needed
- A Dehydrator – I use an Excalibur Dehydrator – it’s intense. We got it as a wedding present, and I use it for everything, from dehydrated cherry tomatoes and dried honey suckle blossoms to dried watermelon. I also have a smaller dehydrator that I got at Goodwill for $5 – it is the older version of this dehydrator. It works well, it just gets really hot, so I have to turn it off and let it cool down every few hours if it is running for a while.
- Alternatively, you can use an oven and a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a non-stick baking mat.
- A Cutting Board
- A Sharp Knife
🥣 How to Make Dehydrated Strawberries
Dehydrating strawberries is a really easy way to make a healthy, sweet treat.
STEP 1: Slice your strawberries into 1/4 inch pieces. There are two different ways to do this – I have shown them in options a and b. I slice the tops off (save them – see below), then either option a) slice them lengthwise, or option b) slice them through the middle in circles.
STEP 2: Lay the strawberries out on the tray of a dehydrator, ideally not touching each other so that they can dry fully on all sides. Optionally, you can drizzle them with a little lemon juice or sprinkle a little sugar on them, but we don’t think it is needed. (Picture 2)
STEP 3: Place the trays in the dehydrator, then set the temperature on the dehydrator to the fruit setting, on mine it is 135°F. If you are using a smaller dehydrator that doesn’t have temperature control, just turn it on. (Picture 3)
STEP 4: Set a timer for 6 hours, but check the fruit after a few (maybe 3 or 4) hours to make sure that everything is drying out as expected. It should take between 6 and 10 hours to try out fully – if cut evenly, they should all be done in 8 hours. (Picture 4)
Totally optional, but I like to also dehydrate the tops of the strawberries and feed them our dog as treats. Sometimes she acts like she likes them. You can also dry them out and save them to steep and make strawberry tea!
STEP 5: The final step is to “condition” your strawberries. If you put them into an airtight container when they are warm and fresh out of the dehydrator, you will trap moisture and they will likely grow mold or get soft.
Let the strawberries come to room temperature, then place them in an airtight container. I like to use glass jars over plastic because I have noticed that things like dried fruit, crackers, chips, etc. will start to absorb the taste of plastic after a while.
For about 7 days, check on your strawberries daily, shaking the jar around and checking for moisture. Once you are certain that the strawberries are completely dry, place a desiccant pack in the jar with them and place them in a dry place that doesn’t get really hot.
🙋♀️ Frequently Asked Questions
Strawberries take about 8 hours to dry. It is pretty difficult to cut every piece to the same thickness, so it could take anywhere from 6 – 10 hours for all the pieces to fully dehydrate.
You can absolutely dehydrate frozen strawberries. Either use pre-sliced strawberries or slice the strawberries while they are frozen – if you let them defrost, they will be really mushy and hard to cut.
Yep! Set your oven to the lowest temperature possible – mine is about 180°F – and spread the strawberries out on a baking sheet with a non-stick mat or parchment covering it. Bake for 2 hours, then flip the strawberries over. Continue baking for a half-hour, then check for “doneness” every 10 -15 from there on out. Strawberries can burn easily at this stage so watch them carefully. Let them cool and store immediately with a desiccant pack as they will most likely not be 100% dried out.
🍳 Serving Suggestions & Uses
Once your dehydrated strawberries have been properly conditioned, you can eat them as snacks, add them to trail mix, cereal, oatmeal, or desserts. They are also really good if you let them steep in lemonade (Peach Lemonade with Bourbon and dried strawberries?) or tea.
🥫 Storage/Shelf Life/Reheating
Dried strawberries will last a long time as long as they are properly conditioned and stored correctly. If you add a desiccant pack and store your strawberries in a dry place away from drastic temperature changes, they could last years.
What is a Desiccant Pack/Packet?
Desiccant packets are those little silica gel packets you find in your new shoes that say “DO NOT EAT!!” all over them. The idea is that they should actively absorb any moisture in the container that they are stored in so that whatever they are stored with does not; so dehydrated foods, leather goods, etc. Be sure that you use a food-safe brand and that you use the right size for your storage. (You don’t need a 50 gram pack in a small mason jar!)
I like to use Wisedry 5 gram Packs for most of my food storage. They are small enough for a jar, and the beads change color to a dark green when saturated with moisture so you know to change out the pack. (Once you take out a pack, you can “recharge it” by drying it back out and reusing it, which is also really cool.)
✏️ Helpful Tips
- Waiting until your strawberries are really ripe and are starting to get a little soft makes them super duper sweet. You can dehydrate strawberries at any stage of ripeness, but the riper they are, the sweeter they will be!
- Dehydrate a lot more than you think you will want. They are so yummy and you will be happy you made a lot. There really isn’t much of a time difference between slicing 15 strawberries and 25 strawberries and if you are already running your dehydrator, you might as well fill it up!
- If you are using a dehydrator that does not have temperature control, the strawberries might dry faster than if you set the temperature to 135°F.
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Dehydrated Strawberries
Equipment
- a wide mouth mason jar
Ingredients
- 1 pint strawberries at least, you can use as many as you can fit in your dehydrator
Optional
- lemon juice
- sugar or honey
Instructions
- Slice the strawberries into 1/4 inch pieces. There are two different ways to do this – I have shown them in options a and b. I slice the tops off (save them – see below), then either option a) slice them lengthwise, or option b) slice them through the middle in circles.
- Lay the strawberries out on the tray of a dehydrator, ideally not touching each other so that they can dry fully on all sides. Optionally, you can drizzle them with a little lemon juice or sprinkle a little sugar on them, but we don't think it is needed.
- Place the trays in the dehydrator, then set the temperature on the dehydrator to the fruit setting, on mine it is 135°F. If you are using a smaller dehydrator that doesn't have a temperature control, just turn it on.
- Set a timer for 6 hours, but check the fruit after a few (maybe 3 or 4) hours to make sure that everything is drying out as expected. It should take between 6 and 10 hours to try out fully – if cut evenly, they should all be done in 8 hours.
- Totally optional, but I like to also dehydrate the tops of the strawberries and feed them our dog as treats. Sometimes she acts like she likes them. You can also dry them out and save them to steep and make strawberry tea!
- Dehydrated strawberries are ready when they are chewy with a little bit of bend to them – kind of like the pliable but tearable texture of jerky.
- The final step is to "condition" your strawberries. If you put them into an airtight container when they are warm and fresh out of the dehydrator, you will trap moisture and they will likely grow mold or get soft.
- Let the strawberries come to room temperature, then place them in an airtight container. I like to use glass jars over plastic because I have noticed that things like dried fruit, crackers, chips, etc. will start to absorb the taste of plastic after a while.
- For about 7 days, check on your strawberries daily, shaking the jar around and checking for moisture. Once you are certain that the strawberries are completely dry, place a desiccant pack in the jar with them and place them in a dry place that doesn't get really hot.
- Enjoy when you want something sweet!
Notes
- Waiting until your strawberries are really ripe and are starting to get a little soft makes them super duper sweet. You can dehydrate strawberries at any stage of ripeness, but the riper they are, the sweeter they will be!
- Dehydrate a lot more than you think you will want. They are so yummy and you will be happy you made a lot. There really isn’t much of a time difference between slicing 15 strawberries and 25 strawberries and if you are already running your dehydrator, you might as well fill it up!
- If you are using a dehydrator that does not have temperature control, the strawberries might dry faster than if you set the temperature to 135°F.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is approximate and is automatically calculated, so should only be used as a guide.
