The New Complete Book of Food
The Most Nutritious Way to Serve This Food
Ounce for ounce, dried apricots are richer in nutrients and fiber than fresh ones.Diets That May Restrict or Exclude This Food
Low-fiber diet
Low-potassium diet
Low-sodium diet (dried apricots containing sodium sulfide)Buying This Food
Look for: Firm, plump orange fruit that gives slightly when you press with your thumb.
Avoid: Bruised apricots. Like apples and potatoes, apricots contain polyphenoloxidase, an
enzyme that combines with phenols in the apricots to produce brownish pigments that
discolor the fruit. When apricots are bruised, cells are broken, releasing the enzyme so that
brown spots form under the bruise.
Avoid apricots that are hard or mushy or withered; all are less flavorsome than ripe,
firm apricots, and the withered ones will decay quickly.
Avoid greenish apricots; they are low in carotenes and will never ripen satisfactorily
at home.Storing This Food
Store ripe apricots in the refrigerator and use them within a few days. Apricots do not lose
their vitamin A in storage, but they are very perishable and rot fairly quickly.Preparing This Food
When you peel or slice an apricot, you tear its cells walls, releasing polyphenoloxidase, an
enzyme that reacts with phenols in the apricots, producing brown compounds that darken
the fruit. Acids inactivate polyphenoloxidase, so you can slow down this reaction (but not
stop it completely) by dipping raw sliced and/or peeled apricots into a solution of lemon juice
or vinegar and water or by mixing them with citrus fruits in a fruit salad. Polyphenoloxidase
also works more slowly in the cold, but storing peeled apricots in the refrigerator is much
less effective than an acid bath.
To peel apricots easily, drop them into boiling water for a minute or two, then lift them
out with a slotted spoon and plunge them into cold water. As with tomatoes, this works
because the change in temperature damages a layer of cells under the skin so the skin slips
off easily.