4 best ways to properly dry onions at home for the winter

Bulbs of different varieties are grown in many garden plots. Getting a good harvest is half the battle. The main thing is to preserve it. Any summer resident needs to know how to dry fresh onions for the winter. After all, if you follow the instructions and recommendations of experienced gardeners, you can create a delicious spice. Homemade preparations are much better than store-bought ones, as they retain the taste and bitterness of natural vegetables.

Why dry onions for the winter?

There are many benefits to drying vegetables at home. Among them, gardeners distinguish:

1. When storing, dried onions do not require the same amount of hassle from the housewife as fresh ones.
2. Delicious dried onions can be added to any dish to give the food a nice spicy taste.
3. The volume of turnips is reduced, which means a smaller room will be required to store them.

Features of drying onions

Each type of onion has its own characteristics. They are important to consider when drying vegetables. If you do not follow the recommendations based on the variety, the housewife will violate the cooking technology and ruin the harvest.

Sevka

Sets are most often planted for long-term storage of the heads. To dry onions, you need to follow the algorithm:

1. The ripened sets need to be sorted out, removing bruised or rotten vegetables.
2. The selected vegetables must be laid out outside, in an area where there is a lot of sunlight.
3. If the weather does not allow drying onions outside, you need to prepare the space in a well-ventilated area. Having laid out old papers or cardboard on the floor, you need to evenly distribute the seedlings over them. Do not use newspapers or magazines for drying, as paint and ink are poisonous.
4. Regular drying and stirring of onions for a month will give excellent results.

Onion

The drying process of onions takes half as much time. Step-by-step instruction:

1. When the bulbs are finally ripe, you need to leave them on the beds for 2-3 days.
2. After collecting turnips, it is necessary to dry them for 2 weeks in a dark room with good ventilation and a temperature above 24 degrees Celsius.

Chernushki

If you properly dry nigella, which is most often used for planting next year, you can get a bountiful harvest.To do this you need:

1. The next day after collecting and clearing the soil, spread it on the floor in a room where the temperature is slightly higher than room temperature.
2. In the second week, drying is carried out in a room where the temperature reaches 27 °C-28 °C.
3. The third and final week is drying in a room where the temperature exceeds 35°C.

Green onions

To dry green onions, just wash and cut the feathers, and then distribute them evenly on a flat surface.

The slices are constantly turned over for 4-6 days to achieve results.

Product selection and preparation

Before starting the drying process, it is recommended to get rid of:

• bulbs damaged during harvesting;
• rotten turnips;
• vegetables whose skin has been peeled unevenly;
• broken or sometimes pressed onions;
• turnips infected or damaged by insects.

Before drying, you need to peel the onions and cut them into rings.

Methods for drying onions at home

Thanks to modern devices, there are many options for how and where to dry onions. However, we should not forget about traditional time-tested methods.

Outdoors

To dry the harvested crop outside, you need to be sure of the weather. If according to forecasts there is no rain in the coming days, then you can begin the preparation process in the garden area. A flat place with enough sunlight during the day is suitable for this.

In this area it is necessary to level the dry soil or lay out pre-prepared straw bedding.

Any surface that is not capable of accumulating moisture is suitable for drying.

In an electric dryer

An electric dryer is an ideal unit for quickly processing vegetables.At the same time, the beneficial qualities of onions will not be lost, and the taste will be no less rich and developed. It will take 7.5-8 hours to dry the turnips. Set the device to a temperature of at least 60 degrees Celsius. Place the cut rings inside, and after cooking, place them in fabric or paper bags.

In the oven

This method is similar to electric drying. Place the onion rings on a baking sheet greased with a small amount of vegetable oil. 3 hours at 80 degrees is enough to dry vegetables.

In a convection oven

An air fryer is a great way to quickly dry onion rings. It is enough to spread them evenly on the wire rack and turn them over every 3 minutes. In 40 minutes the pieces will be ready.

Signs of a well-dried onion

The correctness of drying is determined by the husk. If the skin of the bulbs gradually dries out and begins to rustle, it means that the right conditions for drying have been chosen. If too much husk remains in the area, it is recommended to lower the room temperature.

Terms and conditions of storage

Dried onions are ready when they give off a slight spicy smell and the layers of husk have peeled off and lifted. This will happen after 2-4 weeks or within a day, depending on the method and conditions.

Possible problems

Each drying method has its drawbacks. To get a tasty product, you should beware of the following difficulties:

1. If it rains while drying the turnips, it is necessary to increase the onion preparation period by 4-5 days.
2. If pests are found that spoil the bulbs, you need to find the most affected vegetables and process the rest. This doubles the drying time.

Drying onions for the winter is an activity that does not require a lot of time or special skills from the housewife.However, only with hard work and the desire to make high-quality preparations will you be able to create a tasty spice that will retain its properties for a long time.