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Dried apricots aredried fruit of theapricot tree.
Apricots have been cultivated inCentral Asia since antiquity, and dried ones were an important commodity on theSilk Road. They could be transported over huge distances due to their longshelf life. Before the 20th century, they were ubiquitous in theOttoman,Persian, andRussian Empires.[citation needed]
In more recent times,California was the largest producer, before being overtaken byTurkey,[1] where about 95% of the dried apricot production is provided by theMalatya Province.[2]
Small apricots are normally dried whole. Larger varieties are dried in halves, without thekernel or stone. Mediterranean or Turkish varieties of dried apricots are typically dried whole and then pitted, whereas California varieties are halved and pitted before drying.[3]
In the countries of the formerSoviet Union, the small ones, dried as a whole are known asuryuk (урюк),[4] and the larger ones, dried cut in halves, are known askuraga (курага).[5] Apricots, dried as wholes, with pits removed through the hole where the stalk is attached are calledkaysa/qaysa (кайса).[6] "Kaysa" is from Turkishkayısı,appricot (which in its turn comes from Arabic),
When treated withsulfur dioxide, the color is vividorange.Organic fruit not treated with sulfur vapor is darker in color and has a coarser texture.[7] Generally, the lighter the color, the higher the SO2 content.
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