How to Dry Eggplant/Dehydrate Eggplant in a Dehydrator

Jul 19, 2021

Introduction to eggplant：

Eggplant loves high temperature, the suitable temperature for seed germination is 25℃-30℃, and the suitable temperature for seedling development is 25℃-30℃ during the day and 15℃-20℃ at night. Eggplant has higher requirements for light time and intensity. Under the condition of long sunshine and high intensity, eggplant grows vigorously, the flower bud quality is good, and the fruit yield is high.

Eggplant processing steps：

1. Material selection
Choose fresh eggplants that are large, tender, delicate, free of diseases and insect pests, and free of rot as raw materials.
2. Cleaning
Cut off the stalks and sepals of the selected eggplant with a knife, and rinse in clean water for later use.
3. Pre-cook
Add clean water to the pot and boil, pour in the washed eggplants, cover the pot, and when the water in the pot boils again, take out an eggplant and check the degree of cookedness. If the eggplant has turned dark brown and soft, but If the eggplant is not fully cooked, it means that it has been cooked. You should immediately remove the eggplant with a strainer and place it on a bamboo sieve or bamboo curtain to dissipate heat and let it cool.
4. Slicing
After the pre-cooked eggplant has cooled down, cut the eggplant in half, and then cut each half into 3-4 pieces. Do not cut, so that the eggplant petals are still connected together.

Eggplant drying process：

First drying: After cutting the petals, place the eggplants on the grid plate one by one with the cross section facing upwards, insert the grid plate into the material truck, and push the material truck into the drying room. The temperature is set at 58°C. The time is 12 hours, and it can be salted after the heat is dissipated without turning and drying.
Use ceramic pots or jars for salting. Place the sun-dried eggplants in a basin (cylinder) with the cross section facing upwards, sprinkle a layer of ground salt on it, and knead it evenly with your hands to make all the salt powder stick to the eggplant petals. The amount of salt used is according to the weight of the eggplant after sun-dried, and 5 kg of salt is added for every 100 kg. After rubbing the salt, place the eggplant in the pot (cylinder) with the cross section facing upwards, until the eggplant is 3-4 cm above the mouth of the pot and the center of the pot protrudes. Salt for 12 hours.
Second baking: After salting, put the eggplants one by one on the grid plate. The temperature is set to 65°C for 15 hours, and the moisture is continuously drained. The final moisture content of the eggplant can reach 13%. When the eggplant turns black and brown and can be broken, it is a semi-finished product.
Soaking and drying: Soak the dried eggplant petals in clean water for about 20 minutes, and let it swell and become soft by absorbing water. Then take it out with a strainer and put it in the drying room for drying. The drying temperature can be set between 60°C and 65°C. Drying until the eggplant petals has no water juice, the quality is slightly less than that of the first soaking, but it is still 45-50% heavier than semi-finished products. The purpose of soaking is to remove part of the salt and the bitterness of eggplant.

Recommendation of eggplant dryer/drying machine

Commercial 100-3000kg/h large amount of dehydration wide application and easy operation

Heat pump drying machine use the principle of inverse Carnot cycle. It absorbs low-temperature heat energy in the air, which becomes high-temperature heat energy after efficient heat collection and integration by the heat pump system, and is transported to the drying room for cyclic heating and drying of materials.It refers to exhausting the hot and humid air in the drying room directly to the outside of the drying room through dehumidification device, and then replenishing natural fresh air.

Hot air circle drying machine belongs to high temperature heat pump unit. Its working principle is: the working fluid of the heat pump is compressed by the compressor, becomes high temperature and high pressure gas, enters the condenser, condenses and liquefies the heat, and is used for air heating in the drying room. The moisture in the material is vaporized and evaporated by the form of hot air, and the evaporated water vapor is discharged by the moisture discharge system, thereby achieving the purpose of drying the drying material.