Candied Rhubarb (Sour Straws)
- Bonny Acres Farm
- May 29
- 5 min read
Updated: May 29
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Remember getting to pick out a candy from the store and debating whether to choose something sweet or sour? Those days are long gone for us on the farm, but this recipe will make you reminisce about the times that you reached for the Sour Punch candy over the Cookies and Cream Hershey chocolate bar.
Does this recipe contain the artificial colors, preservatives, and sweeteners that you'd expect in its candy counterpart? Nope! Is this recipe a simple process and only three ingredients? For sure! What impressed us most of all is that these rhubarb sour straws replicate the taste of the candy almost 1 for 1!
With the sweetener being honey and the color coming naturally from the rhubarb, you can rest assured that you're not going to experience a major glucose spike, and the kids won't be zonked out on Red 40 with their bottom eyelid twitching.
Prepping the Rhubarb
The leaves of the rhubarb plant are poisonous. When harvesting, remove the leaves immediately and discard.
We're grateful for our herdshare members; they always grace us with something great from their own gardens, and the rhubarb used for this recipe was one of those gifts!
Clean the stalks of any dirt. Pull off a strip or two of skin to give the brine more surface area to penetrate the stalk, and cut to about 3 - 4 inches long. Pull off a strip or two of the skin to give the brine more surface area to penetrate the stalk. You can also slice in half length-wise to increase the surface area for the brining process—the more surface area, the sweeter the treat in the end.
Making the Brine
Oftentimes, when we hear the word "brine," we think salty and savory, pickled and sour. This brine is a sweet one meant to counteract the sour of the rhubarb and balance the flavor out. We use filtered or well water and a raw local honey for our brine, the ratio being 4:1, water:honey. Warming the water slightly will help the honey dissolve when you're ready to stir the brine.
You can substitute the honey for maple syrup (3:1, water:maple), coconut sugar (3:1, water:coconut sugar), or cane sugar (2:1, water:cane sugar). For a dry sugar, you're going to have the best results warming the water before mixing.
We used a half-gallon Ball Mason jar for the brining process. Add the prepped rhubarb strips and pour the brine into the jar. You may want to use glass fermenting weights to hold the strips under the brine. We suggest a minimum of 2 hours to soak before dehydrating. The longer you allow these to brine, the sweeter they'll be in the end. You can leave on the counter overnight, or leave in the fridge for a few days if you're aiming for sweeter.
Dehydration and Storage
To prevent a sticky countertop, lay a sheet of parchment or a tea towel to lay your dehydrator racks on before putting on the brined rhubarb. Spread the rhubarb out evenly without having any strips touching each other. Place in your dehydrator and set the temp for 140F and time for 10-12 hours. If your strips are thinner, check at 4 hours, and again every hour to make sure you don't allow the strips to become too dry. Remove any that are ready as you go. You want a little flex but nothing squishy. Going too long is fine, but expect a tougher bite!
Once done, allow the strips to cool for 30 minutes and store in a mason jar for a week, or in a mylar bag with a desiccant packet for two to three months. For anything you're storing longer, it must be devoid of any water and moisture or it will spoil in storage.
A dehydrator will give the best results, but an oven will work as well, depending on how low your oven will go; plan to adjust the time depending on the temperature. Our oven gets down to 170, with a metal spoon to prop the door open to allow moisture to escape, we would follow a similar time frame, but check earlier and more frequently for doneness.
Looking for a dehydrator? We love our Cosori dehydrator! We do beef jerky and dried fruit in it all the time!
Our daughters ate these rhubarb sour straws up like it was nobody's business! Keep in mind that these are high in fiber, and eating 7 whole stalks of rhubarb is a LOT of fiber to eat at once.
Recipe
Ingredient List
Sweet Brine
Water - 4 cups
Raw Honey - 1 cup
Rhubarb
Rhubarb - 8 - 12 stalks
Instructions
Prepare the brine
Gently warm water and add to a half-gallon mason jar or similar vessel
Stir in the honey until dissolved
Prep the rhubarb
Wash off any dirt or debris
Peel off two strips of skin or cut lengthwise for the brine to penetrate
Cut into desired lengths, we did 3-4 inches
Brine rhubarb a minimum of 2 hours, overnight on the counter, or in the fridge for a few days. The longer the brining, the sweeter the end result
You may want to place fermentation weights on top of the rhubarb as it is brining to keep it submerged
Spread brined rhubarb on dehydrator racks, evenly distribute, and avoid any touching
Dehydrate 4-12 hours, depending on the size of the rhubarb
Check at the 4-hour mark and every hour after to remove any dried pieces, look for a little flex but not squishy, going too long will result in a tougher bite
Allow the strips to cool for 30 minutes and store in a mason jar for a week, or in a mylar bag with a desiccant packet for two to three months
Notes:
If a dehydrator is not available, reduce your oven to the lowest temperature (no lower than 140F) and check doneness earlier than the 4-hour mark and with greater frequency.
You can substitute the honey for maple syrup (3:1, water:maple), coconut sugar (3:1, water:coconut sugar), or cane sugar (2:1, water:cane sugar). With a dry sugar, you're going to have the best results warming the water before mixing.
These are high in fiber; eating 7 whole stalks of rhubarb is a LOT of fiber to eat at once.
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