How To Make Dehydrated Kiwi Chips (Better Than Store-Bought)

Health & Lifestyle
Cooking Ideas
How To's

Dehydrated kiwifruit is an excellent way to get your snack on while still enjoying the amazing healthful benefits we get from eating kiwifruit. They're perfectly portable and you can enjoy them anywhere, anytime.

Garnish your SunGold® Kiwifruit Breakfast Power Bowl with them.

Add another layer of crunch to your Shades of Green Super Foods Salad.

Or just grab a handful when you're on the go running errands or just hanging out with friends. Dried kiwi slices are a perfect grab-and-go snack. Just like potato chips — only much better!

Most importantly, they're incredibly easy to make.

Why Should I Dehydrate Kiwifruit at Home?

"But every time I go to the grocery store, I find a wide variety of prepackaged dried fruit. Why should I dehydrate my own kiwifruit?"

Dehydrated fruit is available in most grocery stores. But commercially available dried fruit is treated with sulphur dioxide prior to the drying process. This enhances the color of the fruit after it has been dried. This might make dehydrated fruits look prettier, sulphur dioxide could trigger asthma symptoms in some people.

Store-bought dried fruit may look better, but you can easily make your own dried kiwifruit in no time, at home for a fraction of the price — and with no sulphur dioxide!

(Plus, there's a way you can keep your dried kiwifruit looking as lush and vibrant as store-bought dried kiwifruit. Keep reading — we'll show you how.)

Is Dehydrated Kiwifruit Less Healthful?

Dehydrated kiwifruit retains much of the healthful vitality as fresh kiwifruit. Of course, dehydration kiwifruit removes all of the water content from the fruit, so it shrinks during the drying process, leaving it small and energy-dense.

By weight, dried fruit contains more than 3.5 times the fiber, folate and life-enriching minerals of fresh fruit. That said, kiwifruit does lose a bit of vitamin C in the dehydration process. But with both Zespri SunGold® and Zespri Green kiwifruit you’ll still have 100% of your daily value of vitamin C.

Zespri Green is an excellent source of vitamin C, having more than an orange and covering a full day’s requirement. Our SunGold® variety has even more Vitamin C than Green — and three times more than an orange! - "Green vs Gold Kiwifruit"

And remember, you're not making candied kiwifruit slices, you're not adding extra sugars or calories to the dried kiwi chips.

Do I Need a Dehydrator to Make Dried Kiwifruit?

Using a fruit dehydrator is the simplest way to make dried kiwi. But you don't have to run out and buy one if you don't already have one. You can make it with just a bit more preparation with a baking sheet and an oven. There are three main ways you can make dried fruit:

Sun-dried
Oven-dried
In a dehydrator

But no matter which process you use to dehydrate your kiwifruit, make sure your kiwifruit is ripe:

Generally speaking, store-bought Zespri SunGold® kiwifruit will be ripe and ready to eat when you purchase it. Zespri Green kiwifruit, however, might be firm to the touch. You can check if your green-variety kiwifruit is ripe in the same way you would peaches or avocados:

Hold the kiwi in the palm of your hand.
Gently press the fruit.
If it gives a little, it is ripe, ready, and at its best.

- "How Do I Ripen Kiwifruit?"

Oven-Dried Kiwifruit in Two Simple Steps

You’re just 3 steps away from making delicious dried kiwifruit in the oven. And it couldn't be easier.

Instructions

Slice kiwifruit into ¼-inch discs.
Bake on a drying rack over a cookie sheet at 150-170 degrees for 3-4 hours.

Zespri Tip: You can certainly peel Zespri Green kiwifruit before slicing. But the skin is nutrient-dense, edible and quite delicious. So, leave it on and enjoy the extra benefits.

Store in an airtight container; otherwise, moisture will seep back into the fruit.

Dehydrating Kiwifruit in a Dehydrator

Using a dehydrator for dried kiwi takes a bit longer than using an oven. Food dehydrators tend to run at a temperature lower than ovens. This ensures even, steady "cooking" but it requires more time.

Simply follow the instructions that come with your dehydrator and you'll be eating deliciously dried kiwifruit in virtually no time.

Final Tips for Dehydrating Fruit

Store-bought dried fruit uses sulphur dioxide to preserve color and keep the fruit looking lush and vibrant. But your homemade dehydrated kiwis can still look pretty without it by using powdered ascorbic acid (better known as vitamin C), which you can find at your local grocers.

Combine one cup of water with 2 tablespoons ascorbic acid.
Dip your fruit into the mixture before dehydration.
Dehydrate as normal.

Not only will your dehydrated kiwis look just as good as the ones you find in the store, but this process will restore some of the vitamin C lost during dehydration.

Dehydrated kiwifruit is a wonderful option for a mid-afternoon snack or a special treat between meals. Dried kiwi is tasty and delicious while retaining most of its healthful vitality. If you're on a Paleo diet, dehydrated kiwi chips are Paleo- and AIP-friendly.

Try it for yourself and let us know how it goes. We're sure you and your family will love it!