Proof...hmmm I'm not sure..but I find the texture to be greatly improved..I'd rather eat soft chewy dried fruits in my cooking/baking than dried chewy stuff. LOL
Soakers can be as simple as water or juice, or alcohol. Whatever you want to try.

Depende on what you are putting them in....I ahve bade a beef stew with dried cherries and lots of Vidalia onions and balsamic vinegar...I didn't soak them first. I often pout dried fruits into breads and find that with all the kneading and rising thay get well hydrated....but for as ayce, or in a muffin or cookie I soak them....the liquid can be anything from port wine to OJ to brandy to apple juice to plain water.
Linda C

I agree that it depends what you are putting them in. If putting them in something with lots of liquid, I don't see a point in hydrating them first. Also it depends on the results you want. For a chewy cookie, I usually don't rehydrate them because I like the chewy tart burst.

For the cranberry walnut bread, I have been soaking them in water because that is what the recipe says. They don't get kneaded into that bread; the soaking water is added to the bread so it may also spread some of the cranberry flavor into the dough.

Where they are soaked in alcohol (e.g. raisins in whiskey for bread pudding) the flavors combine to produce a different effect. I think the result is more intense. I would match the soaking liquid to the flavor you want in the final recipe rather than to the fruit - water or apple juice would be more neutral, OJ for citrus. I haven't used port or brandy, but when using whisky or rum the alcohol flavor is very present in the finished product - great in bread pudding but possibly not right in some other dishes.

Just using some logic - (you could do a test yourself to satisfy your curiosity).... and a little past experience.

If you use rehydrated dried fruit that has been soaked in a hot or cold liquid mixture or steamed until softened, there WILL BE more flavor because of the additional liquid that now has picked up the fruit flavor IN the fruit.

I dehydrate a lot of foods at home and they need to be rehydrated before I can use them in most recipes. Most commercially dehydrated foods are more moist than home-dehydrated foods and don't always need rehydrated.

Rehydration depends on a lot of things:

- the type and size of the fruit

- what you're using the fruit for (type of recipe)

- will hydration affect the end product by contributing to the hydration and is rehydration needed for the correct hydration of the recipe

- if not rehydrated, it will absorb hydration and may affect the hydration of the recipe it's used in

- how dry is the fruit to begin with

If you are using fruit you have dehydrated at home, you may find it almost 'crispy' and must be rehydrated to perform properly in a recipe.

Methods Used For Rehydration:

Hot Water: 1:1 soak in hot water (1 c. fruit and 1 c. water), but that's not a given, just a general guideline. It may take much less, or more. This can take from 5 minutes to 1 hour depending on the type and size of food. If you add any remaining liquid from soaking the fruit to the recipe, it will also add a lot of flavor.

Cold Liquid: Water is the common liquid used for rehydration, but you can also use fruit juice, cider, milk, yogurt/kefir, wine, liquor, even vinaigrette, or a combination of those things. Be sure to refrigerate foods that are being reconstituted in milk or other perishable liquids or if the rehydration time takes longer than 2 hours.

When using hot or cold liquid to rehydrate dried foods, you can add most flavorings, spices or herbs which is yet one more benefit to rehydration of dried fruit. If you are adding sugar or a sweetener, do so at the end of the rehydrating time.

Steaming: This method helps to prevent the loss of nutrients that occurs when foods are submerged in liquid to rehydrate them. To steam, place the dried food in a steaming basket and place over boiling water until the food softens. Allow 5-30 minutes, depending on the size of the pieces of fruit. A good time to steam dried fruit is to help soften it just before you need to chop or blend it.

Standing: If you live where there is a lot of humidity in the air, many dried foods can be left standing uncovered and it will absorb moisture. That's why it's important when dehydrating foods at home to be sure to store it as soon as it has cooled, or it can rehydrate from the humidity which can contribute to spoiling or molding while in room-temperature storage.

I also put some dried apples in a plastic bag along with a few drops of water. Seal the bag and refrigerate it for a couple of hours to rehydrate it.

Microwaving: Different foods rehydrate at a different ratio of food to liquid when using the microwave. Most rehydrate best if the food is covered with plastic wrap or a lid, and allowed to sit after it's briefly "nuked". This is actually another form of steaming. It doesn't take very long to plump a few raisins/currants/cranberries, etc.

Be careful using the microwave - it's easy to overcook the foods and that destroys not only the texture, but the flavor. Depending on how much you are trying to rehydrate in the microwave, stir it once, especially if the pieces are large.

-Grainlady