Dried Tart Cherries (Albaloo)

Dried tart cherries are sour cherries dried into soft, ruby red fruits with a bright sweet and sour flavour. They are lightly sweetened to balance their natural tartness, so the first taste is fruity and sweet and the finish is a clean, mouth-watering sourness.

Tart cherries are a different fruit from the dark sweet cherries sold fresh in summer. They are grown for cooking and drying, and it is that sharpness that makes them so good in baking and savoury dishes, where sweet cherries would taste flat.

How to use them

Scatter them over salads with feta and toasted nuts, stir them into rice pilaf and albaloo polo style dishes, or fold them into granola, scones, cookies and brownies. They pair well with dark chocolate, almonds and pistachios in bark and trail mix, and cook down into a quick sauce for duck, lamb or chicken. Technique tip: soak them in warm water, tea or orange juice for ten minutes before baking so they stay plump.

Details

Also known as

Sour cherries, Tart cherries, Albaloo, Aloo Balu, Griottes séchées (French), Guindas deshidratadas (Spanish)