Many methods of preserving food have lost their original purpose, which is to extend the shelf life of food in order to keep it for later consumption. Due to the wide availability of refrigeration for storing food, today many of these preservation methods are instead used to enhance the flavor or experience of food, or for nostalgic reasons.

The main culprit in food spoilage is bacteria. Over time a variety of techniques have been developed to slow down or prohibit the growth of food-spoiling bacteria. The most ancient method for preserving food and creating an environment hostile to bacteria is drying. Since before recorded history people have dried herbs, fruits, vegetables, meats and fish to store them for use at a later time.

There are many techniques for drying food, including dehydrating, smoking, sun-drying, air-drying, baking and salting. Today our focus is on the simple method of sun-drying since it lends itself to preserving the tomatoes that are available in abundance at the farmers market.

Sun-dried tomatoes are a staple in Italian cooking and are in common use throughout the Mediterranean region. Most of us buy sun-dried tomatoes in a jar or can at the supermarket but it is very easy to make them yourself. Buy tomatoes in sufficient quantity at the farmers market to have some for eating fresh and others for drying.

Cut the tomatoes in pieces of more or less equal size. The cut will depend on the size of the tomato; small ones may be cut in half, while larger ones will need to be quartered. The important thing is to have all pieces about the same size so that they dry equally.

The other ingredient is sun. Select a hot morning when there is no rain in the forecast for the next 2-3 days. Put the cut tomatoes skin side down on a baking sheet and place the baking sheet in the sun. Hot, sunny and dry days create the best environment, but we dry our tomatoes throughout the summer even in our humid Valley climate.

The challenge is to expose the tomatoes to the sun without having birds, squirrels, or other creatures eat them. We have found that a picnic fly net works very well if weighted down with stones to deter hungry thieves.

Depending on the sun, you will need 2-3 days of exposure. Leave the tomatoes out in the sunlight all day and bring them in each night. They are finished when they have a rubbery texture but are still soft and can be bent. At this point transfer them to a container with a sealable lid and fill the container with the best olive oil you can afford. The tomatoes will last a week in the refrigerator, but experience has taught us that they often disappear within hours.

Next week we will provide a very simple recipe for a pesto made from sun-dried tomatoes that will have you drying your own tomatoes all summer long.

For the best selection of vine-ripened tomatoes come to the Harlingen Farmers Market, every Saturday from 3 - 4:30 p.m., 712 N. 77 Sunshine Strip in the courtyard at El Mercado Mall.