What to do with dried out raisins?

[Myrtle]

I have some raisins that have become hard. Does anyone have any tips on how to use them, or how to make them soft again?

 

[ChesterV]

If you want to make your raisins soft again....you can do one of two things--

1. Put your raisins in a heat proof bowl. Pour boiling water over them....just enough to cover them.
Let them steep for a couple of minutes. Remove them from the hot water and place them in another bowl.
Let them sit for a few minutes.

2. Put your raisins in a shallow baking bowl. Cover them with water (just to the top of the raisins). Place the dish in a microwave. Cook on medium/high for about 2 minutes. Drain the water from the raisins and let them sit in the bowl until cool.


Dried raisins are good for use in anything that has a lot of moisture in it. Even really dried out dry raisins:

Pudding
Custard
Fruit Pies
Cobblers


You can also make your own raisin rum for use in desserts, ice cream toppings, to put in breads, puddings, pies....

Get a canning jar (with lid), fill it with the dried raisins. Pack them down just a bit.
Pour your favorite rum or brandy over the raisins, and fill it up till the liquid is just over the raisins.
Put the lid on tight.
Sit it in a cool, dark area for a couple of days.

You should have some nice, plump "drunk" raisins!!!
LOL
Drunk raisins are really good, warmed up and put over crepes and whipped cream!

 

[Winterybella]

Thanks for that information @ChesterV. I honestly never thought of the raisins drying out. Recently I bought some that looked like miniature raisins. Anyway, I dont think I can top @ChesterV's answer. I might not even recognise if mine were dry.

 

[Diane Lane]

I was thinking the same thing about using them in rum or brandy, that would for sure plump them back up. I wasn't aware of the microwave and boiling water tricks. I have had some in the past that were particularly dried out, but I still ate/used them. I bought some recently that have a funny taste, more like prunes than raisins. I'm not sure what caused that, but I'm still eating them.

 

[Myrtle]

If you want to make your raisins soft again....you can do one of two things--

1. Put your raisins in a heat proof bowl. Pour boiling water over them....just enough to cover them.
Let them steep for a couple of minutes. Remove them from the hot water and place them in another bowl.
Let them sit for a few minutes.

2. Put your raisins in a shallow baking bowl. Cover them with water (just to the top of the raisins). Place the dish in a microwave. Cook on medium/high for about 2 minutes. Drain the water from the raisins and let them sit in the bowl until cool.


Dried raisins are good for use in anything that has a lot of moisture in it. Even really dried out dry raisins:

Pudding
Custard
Fruit Pies
Cobblers


You can also make your own raisin rum for use in desserts, ice cream toppings, to put in breads, puddings, pies....

Get a canning jar (with lid), fill it with the dried raisins. Pack them down just a bit.
Pour your favorite rum or brandy over the raisins, and fill it up till the liquid is just over the raisins.
Put the lid on tight.
Sit it in a cool, dark area for a couple of days.

You should have some nice, plump "drunk" raisins!!!
LOL
Drunk raisins are really good, warmed up and put over crepes and whipped cream!

Thanks for the tips! I never thought of softening them by soaking in boiling water. I should try that, and hopefully I can use up all my dried up raisins!

 

[Zyni]

Those are good tips. Drunk raisins sound like a good idea.

I would caution you to inspect your dried out raisins very carefully before using them though. They could have tiny worms in them. I had a box of raisin bran cereal that was a bit out of date, and I was going to try to "refresh" it by warming it through and adding it to some granola bars (which I've done many times with good results). After warming, I noticed a bit of ... movement. Ewwww!

I guess it's fairly common, but I didn't that know that before.

I haven't had raisins or raisin bran since.

 

[ChesterV]

Those are good tips. Drunk raisins sound like a good idea.

I would caution you to inspect your dried out raisins very carefully before using them though. They could have tiny worms in them. I had a box of raisin bran cereal that was a bit out of date, and I was going to try to "refresh" it by warming it through and adding it to some granola bars (which I've done many times with good results). After warming, I noticed a bit of ... movement. Ewwww!

I guess it's fairly common, but I didn't that know that before.

I haven't had raisins or raisin bran since.

Hmmm, I've never heard of raisin worms before!!!

More than likely it was a meal bug or something that laid eggs in the fruit part of the cereal. The same meal bugs that can burrow through other containers to get into flour, cornmeal and such.

Boiling the raisins will kill anything inside them. Although not sure about still eating them.
"Canning" them in rum or brandy will kill anything living inside the raisins also.

 

[ChesterV]

Raisins are a dried fruit that has been used for millenia, simply because they literally take forever to dry out.

As with ANY fruit......it can be dried out to the point of turning to dust, but can be "resurrected" pretty easily with boiling water and/or heat.

Sugared or salted dried fruit can last even longer, because it has been "cured" by soaking it or packing it in sugar or salt before or during the drying process.

 

[ChesterV]

Thanks for the tips! I never thought of softening them by soaking in boiling water. I should try that, and hopefully I can use up all my dried up raisins!

Be wary of using too much water or leaving the raisins in the water too long, as they can lose a lot of their flavor.

If you want to just resurrect the raisins for straight eating purposes, then you might put a bit of sweetener and flavoring in your hot water when steeping them.

 

[cupcakechef]

Those are good tips. Drunk raisins sound like a good idea.

I would caution you to inspect your dried out raisins very carefully before using them though. They could have tiny worms in them. I had a box of raisin bran cereal that was a bit out of date, and I was going to try to "refresh" it by warming it through and adding it to some granola bars (which I've done many times with good results). After warming, I noticed a bit of ... movement. Ewwww!

I guess it's fairly common, but I didn't that know that before.

I haven't had raisins or raisin bran since.

Yikes!! Extra protein, maybe? Haha!

I've done the water refresh for raisins before too, but yes - absolutely inspect whatever you're trying to resurrect! If it's gone bad it's usually because it's been exposed to air for too long and it could definitely have bugs or something in there - not cool!

 

[Trellum]

I love to use raisins to make a very simple fruit dessert, I use raisins, apples, pineapple, papaya and cantaloupe. I use some cream and condensed milk for the sauce. Sometimes I use pecans and it's awesome!

 

[Becky]

You can also make your own raisin rum for use in desserts, ice cream toppings, to put in breads, puddings, pies....

Get a canning jar (with lid), fill it with the dried raisins. Pack them down just a bit.
Pour your favorite rum or brandy over the raisins, and fill it up till the liquid is just over the raisins.
Put the lid on tight.
Sit it in a cool, dark area for a couple of days.

You should have some nice, plump "drunk" raisins!!!

This idea gets my vote

 

[Zyni]

Yikes!! Extra protein, maybe? Haha!

I've done the water refresh for raisins before too, but yes - absolutely inspect whatever you're trying to resurrect! If it's gone bad it's usually because it's been exposed to air for too long and it could definitely have bugs or something in there - not cool!

Yeah, yuck. I was embarrassed to even post it. It's not like my place is dirty and has bugs though. It was the product, and I didn't feel right about not sharing the info. I've known others who have had similar issues, and if you look it up, you'll see that it is fairly common. Ewwww. I am so off raisins right now.