Fruit Powders
Preserving fruits has been part of all cultures as a means to use them during the off-season. The methods employed have been diverse and in part based on the cost, buying power and technology. Sun-drying fruits is one of the first methods employed for preservation. However it is a technique that cannot be applied to all fruits, for example, oranges. Preservation methods such as refrigeration is popular, but again the fruit has limited shelf life, as it will not keep for long periods in the fridge.
Air-drying fresh fruit is a fairly recent technique, where the fruit juice is reduced to a free flowing, water soluble powder under hot air. It is the same technology used to make skim milk powder, soup powder etc. These powders are hygroscopic and hence once opened, the container must be sealed properly.
Some of the benefits of fruit powder is that, it is natural, it does not need any special means to preserve it other than a cool, dry place and has no added sugar. So when you feel like a fresh, natural fruit juice, just dissolve the fruit powder in water and you will get the original juice, retaining all of its natural flavour.
Natural fruit powders can also be used in many culinary applications – for example, marinades, sauces, ice-creams, milk shakes, smoothies, cake mixes, cookies – in fact, it is only limited by your imagination! Why resort to artificial flavourings!
Nature Shop will soon be offering natural fruit powders as an ingredient, as well as a range of ready-to-use Organic Spice-flavoured Fruit Mixes to tempt your palettes…
