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Raisins are dried grapes. About 95% of their moisture has been removed through drying. Some are dried naturally in the sun; these tend to end up dark coloured. Others are artificially dried by mechanical heat, then treated with sulphur dioxide, to end up with a lighter, more golden colour.

Some Raisins are fumigated to give them a longer storage life. Some Raisin packers also coat their Raisins in a vegetable oil, to stop the Raisins from clumping together in the packaging and to give them a glossy appearance.

Raisins are sweet because as the fruit dried, the sugar remained in it and got concentrated.

It takes 4 1/2 pounds (2 kg) of fresh grapes to end up with 1 pound (450g) of Raisins.

Among the grapes used to make raisins, sultanas and currants are Flame Grapes, Black Monukka Raisins, Muscat Grapes, Sultana Grapes, Thompson Seedless Grapes and Zante Grapes.

Ninety-five percent of all raisins made in California are from Thompson Seedless grapes.

Cooking Tips
You can plump Raisins in warm water, a juice or alcohol before using. If you use warm water, let soak for about 5 minutes (no longer, or their flavour will leach out into the water). If juice or alcohol, let stand a few hours or overnight.

If your Raisins have become dry or sugary in storage, just plump them.

Recipes usually have you toss Raisins in with the dry ingredients so that the Raisins will coat themselves in the flour, making it easier for them to hold their place in a batter and not sink to the bottom of a cake, etc.

Because cake flour is not as strong as all-purpose or plain flour, chop Raisins into small pieces when cooking with cake flour so that they will sink less in what you are making. You can leave them whole when cooking with all-purpose or plain flour.

An easy way to chop a lot of Raisins is to put a light coat of oil on the blades in your blender, then whiz them for a few seconds. Just do about a handful at a time, tipping out the ones already chopped each time.

Equivalents
1 cup = 6 oz = 175g
2 3/4 cups = 1 pound = 450g
3 tablespoons = 1 oz = 30g
100g = 3 1/2 oz = 1/2 cup (generous)

Storage
Store in sealed bag or container. They will keep for several months at room temperature, or for up to a year in the refrigerator, or two years in the freezer. If frozen, there's no need to thaw them first before cooking with them or chopping them.

History
Current belief is that the Persians were the first ones to preserve grapes deliberately by drying them in the sun. Before then, man likely just discovered dried grapes on vines. The first written set of instructions on how to do this dates from before the 1st century BC.

The Phoenicians established vineyards in what is now Spain, and began trading Raisins with the Greeks and Romans. They were very valuable: 1 young male slave was worth two jars of Raisins.

Like many things, Raisins died out for a while in Europe with the fall of Rome. Crusaders returning to Europe in the 11th century re-introduced them. By the 1300s, they were known in England.

Spanish priests introduced grapes to Mexico and California.

Literature & Lore
"Have a Raisin--".
"No I thank you; I do not like wine in pills."
-- Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin


Language Notes
Our word "Raisin" is borrowed straight from the French, which in turn comes from the Latin word for a cluster of grapes, "racemus".

Also called:

See Also:

Grapes

Other entries for:

Raisins
Flame Raisins, Golden Raisins, Monukka Raisins, Muscat Raisins, Seedless Raisins, Sultana Raisins, Sultanas, Thompson Seedless Raisins

Other entries for:

Dried Fruit
Banana Leather, Currants, Dates, Dried Apples, Dried Banana, Dried Cranberries, Dried Pineapple, Figs, Prunes, Tamarind

Other entries for:

Fruit
Bananas, Bletting, Candied Fruit, Citrus Fruit, Drupes, Hard Fruit, Olives, Rhubarb, Soft Fruit