Peanuts are a healthy nut with a pleasant taste. It is consumed raw, added to baked goods and other dishes. But this product contains a lot of moisture and oil, so without proper processing, peanuts begin to rot. The housewife is faced with the question of how to dry peanuts, for example, in the oven. There are other methods, depending on your kitchen appliances and how much time you can spend drying.
How to dry peanuts in the oven?
Drying in the oven is the easiest and at the same time longest method.Depending on how dry the raw material is, it may take half an hour or even an hour. You need to dry it on a baking sheet that is not greased with anything, but you can put baking paper on it.
Drying peanuts at home is as follows:
- First, the oven is heated to 175-180 °C (this will take about 15 minutes).
- Spread the beans in a thin layer on the baking sheet, even better if they don't touch each other. For this reason, process large volumes in several passes.
- After another 15 minutes, stir and increase the temperature to 200 °C.
- At the last stage, wait until the nuts begin to crack - this will mean they are ready. Do not leave the kitchen at the same time, otherwise you may miss the moment and the nuts will burn. Turn off the oven, wait 10-15 minutes and remove.
The oven is ideal for drying unshelled nuts. It is processed in much the same way as without the shell. The main thing is to check the nuts before drying. It's not just appearance that matters. If you feel that some of them are not sitting firmly in the shell, hitting the walls, then such peanuts will not work.
Unshelled peanuts are dried for 20-30 minutes in a deep baking tray. Temperature – 175-200 °C. To check if the peanuts are ready, take one bean and remove the shell. If the thin husk underneath comes off easily, then everything is done correctly.
Microwave drying
Compared to an oven, a microwave dries almost instantly. For this you will need a flat plate:
- Spread the beans in a thin layer on a plate.
- Place the plate in the microwave and cook for 1 minute. The required power is 800 watts.
- Mix thoroughly.
- At the same power, set the timer for 20 seconds, 4-6 times.After the fourth time, taste the peanuts before setting the timer again to determine doneness.
Peanuts in their shells should not be dried in the microwave, but the shells can be left on. Also, do not process more than 200 grams of beans at a time.
Drying in a frying pan
The drying pan should be deep, with thick walls and bottom. It is better to peel the beans; the rest of the skin will peel off on its own. Then spread them in a thin layer and place on low heat for 15 minutes. It is important to stir the beans constantly. To check, break one - if it turns golden, it’s ready.
Dry the peanuts in their shells in a frying pan. Before doing this, soak the nuts in water for 20-30 minutes, then wipe to remove debris. But no matter how you dry this product, immediately after cooking, transfer it to another container. If this is not done, the frying process will continue due to the heated pan.
Is it possible to dry peanuts in a slow cooker?
Peanuts can also be dried well in a slow cooker:
- Pour a glass of beans into the slow cooker.
- Turn on the "Baking" mode.
- Leave for half an hour.
The advantage of a multicooker is that you don’t need to constantly monitor drying. Just wait for the signal and take out the finished beans. Nuts without shells are used. You can immediately add salt to taste.
Using an electric dryer
The electric dryer takes the longest to dry among all kitchen appliances. The entire process can take from 18 to 26 hours. In this case, you should not leave the nuts unattended for a long time; they need to be turned over and checked for dryness. But the dryer can process a large volume of peanuts at once.
Heater
A heater is also a fairly convenient way of drying, although it takes a lot of time - about two weeks.You can dry, for example, on a radiator when there is heating, or using a stove. To do this, simply place the nuts in a safe container and place them over a heat source. Do not place them in a thick layer, maximum 15 centimeters. But even in this case, the peanuts need to be stirred periodically.
Air fryer
Drying using an air fryer is the second fastest after a multicooker. You can cook it in two ways:
- At 225 °C, the ventilation rate is high. Dry the peanuts for 10-12 minutes.
- If you dry on a high rack, which you first wrap in foil, then processing at 180° C will take only 5 minutes.
The advantage of the air fryer is high-quality drying and convenience. But there is a risk of drying out the nuts, so carefully regulate the temperature.
All methods are quite easy. Much depends on whether you can constantly check the readiness of the nuts, stir them, and also on the desired result.
