How to choose high-quality dried longan? Tips for choosing dried longan

The flesh of high-quality dried longan should be full and thick, with a uniform shape. When you peel off the longan shell and look at the flesh inside, it is brown in color under the sun. Dried longan is a kind of food made from longan after a certain drying process. It can be used to soak in water or make soup. It has the benefits of calming the mind, enhancing memory, delaying aging, nourishing blood and beauty, and lowering blood lipids. How to choose high-quality dried longan, are you interested?

Contents of this article

1. How to choose high-quality dried longan

2. Tips for selecting dried longan

3. Do you need to remove the shell of dried longan when soaking it in water?

How to choose high-quality dried longan

Dried longan is a common food ingredient, so there are too many different qualities of dried longan on the market, which makes you dazzled and afraid to buy it easily every time. When choosing dried longan, you can distinguish the quality by observing the shell and pulp.

(1) Look at the shell

When looking at the shell of dried longan, choose the ones with a lighter color, so that the quality will be better. If white spots appear on the shell or the end of the stem, it means that the flesh inside is likely to be moldy and deteriorated. The more white spots there are on the shell, the more serious the mold is. So choose dried longan with a clean shell without spots.

(2) Look at the dyeing

Good longan has a normal yellow-brown or brownish appearance. Dyed longan has a bright yellow appearance. Wipe the shell with a paper towel. Good longan will only leave a little shell powder, while dyed longan will fade significantly.

(3) Look at the flesh

The flesh of high-quality dried longan should be full and thick, with uniform shape. Remove the longan shell and see if the flesh inside is brown in the sun. If it is, the longan is of good quality. If the color is too dark, it may be caused by over-baking. If the flesh is light brown, it may be bleached.

(4) Look at the depression

The shell of high-quality dried longan should be full and without dents, while the surface of low-quality dried longan often has dents. This means that the longan flesh is not full before drying, the flesh is small and the core is large after drying, and it does not have a good storage environment during transportation.

(5) Look at the size

Good longans are graded according to their size, and are now commercially divided into 6 grades: Grade 1 with a fruit diameter > 2.90 cm; Grade 2 with a fruit diameter of 2.89-2.75 cm; Grade 3 with a fruit diameter of 2.74-2.60 cm; Grade 4 with a fruit diameter of 2.59-2.45 cm; Grade 5 with a fruit diameter of 2.44-2.30 cm; and Grade 6 with a fruit diameter of <2.30 cm. The size of the longan has no effect on its nutritional value, but it will affect the taste after soaking and the thickness of the flesh when it enters the mouth. The larger the size of the dried fruit, the higher its value. Of course, no matter which size of dried longan you choose, it should be of uniform size, not uneven in size.

Tips for choosing dried longan

In addition to observation, when purchasing, especially bulk dried longans, you can also touch them with your hands to feel the texture of the longan shell and pulp. This can help us judge the storage condition of the longan and avoid purchasing spoiled pulp.

(1) Dry and wet

When peeling the shell, you can observe the dryness and humidity of the shell. The shell of good longan is dry and crisp, and it is easy to break when peeling. The shell of inferior longan is damp and not easy to break when peeling due to moisture or water immersion. It is not recommended to buy damp dried longan, as the storage conditions are harsh and it is easy to mold. At the same time, you can also observe the dryness and humidity of the pulp. Good dried longan is baked at moderate humidity and the pulp is firm. It tastes sweet and not greasy, with the fragrance of longan. If the pulp feels more watery and the taste is lighter, it may not be baked enough or the merchant may have soaked it in water to increase the weight. It is generally believed that the humidity of about 23% is the best and most suitable for storage.

(2) Shaking

When buying, you can also pick up a longan and shake it in your hand. If the flesh is full and thick, the dried longan with shell will not make a sound after shaking; if there is a clear sound and you can feel the shaking, it means that the flesh is relatively dry and it is best not to buy it. Or it may be caused by over-baking, which will also produce a shaking sound. Over-baked dried longan tastes bitter and has low nutritional value, so it is not recommended to buy it.

(3) Rough

The surface of fresh longan feels a little rough to the touch. When making dried longan, high-quality dried longan will put the fruit in a shaking cage and add fine sand to shake and knead it, which will wipe off the rough part of the shell and make the surface of the finished product smooth. Inferior dried longan is only simply dried during production, so the skin is rough and feels uneven.

Do you need to peel the dried longan when soaking it in water?

Dried longan can be soaked in water with the shell. Whether to remove the shell or not depends on personal habit.

The shell of dried longan is also a kind of traditional Chinese medicine. It has the effects of dispelling wind, detoxifying, healing sores and promoting tissue regeneration. The dried longan can be soaked in water with the shell. It is best not to remove the longan shell. However, some people want to soak the dried longan pulp in water, then you can remove the shell, but the efficacy will be reduced.