Rehydrating Dried Figs

March 21, 2007  •  Fruit, Technique

I guess success really does breed success. I’m so enjoying doing my dinner journal that I felt compelled to create yet a new blog – this one devoted solely to posting all the culinary tips that run through my mind every day. My comments will cover everything from gadgets I can’t live without to techniques to ease your cooking tasks to indispensable information about ingredients. Please feel free to share your ideas and tips back with me through the comment button.

So here goes…my first tip!

If a recipe calls for fresh figs (which have a very short season) and you can’t find them, purchase plump dried figs and cover them 1 inch over the top of the figs in a pan with boiling water (stove turned off). Cover the pan and let them set for 2-4 hours and they will plump up so beautifully your guests will think they’re fresh. As a bonus, I discovered that the soaking liquid makes a great fruit tea to drink, or boil it to reduce it down and use it as a drizzle over ice cream.

Comments

52 Comments  •  Comments Feed

  1. Mollie says:

    Thanks for the tip. I’ve read on other sites to only let the figs sit in boiling water for a minute or two. Is there a reason you recommend letting them sit in the water longer? Thanks again!

    October 12, 2014 at 2:05 pm

  2. Michele says:

    Mollie, I guess it depends on the dry figs you are using – mine were exceptionally dry and did better sitting longer.

    October 13, 2014 at 6:29 am

  3. Christine says:

    Hi Michele. So glad to have found your post. I was able to catch some organic black figs but when I went back for more it was too late. Rehydrating it is!

    Question: can rehydrated figs be roasted? I’m making both Honey Fig Jam and infusing vodka and gin; the gin recipe calls for roasted figs (& sage). It’s supposedly a fairly good copy of an amazing drink found only at Chambar in Vancouver, BC. It’s one of those that you dream of having again…..

    Anyway, I’m going to rehydrate turkish figs for jam and I can put them in the vodka. It’s just the roasting that’s in question.

    Thanks so much!

    July 26, 2015 at 3:46 pm

  4. Michele says:

    I’ve never roasted them after rehydrating them, but I don’t know why it wouldn’t work. All the roasting is going to do is caramelize some of the sugars in the figs to develop flavors. I’d give it a try!

    July 26, 2015 at 4:04 pm

  5. Pascale says:

    really good idea about soaking the dried figs Thank you for this!

    December 22, 2015 at 6:25 am

  6. Marie G says:

    Thank you for this suggestion. It worked like a charm. I served them with bacon on Cornish hens so they were roasted and delicious – so was the ‘fig tea’.

    December 30, 2015 at 12:37 pm

  7. Terri King says:

    Just wondering why dried figs are so hard to eat?

    January 19, 2017 at 1:36 pm

  8. Michele says:

    I find dried gifs just a little tough so prefer soaking mine.

    January 29, 2017 at 11:15 am

  9. PIERRE ROUGEY says:

    Thanks Michele for your explanation over dried figs, very helpful!
    Pierre.

    February 8, 2017 at 2:57 pm

  10. Michele C. says:

    Thank you for the tip. I recently purchased dried Turkish figs, and they gave the driest skin I’ve ever seen on a dried fruit. I’ll try this method. Oh and we spell our name the same way. Hehe. Thanks for the post.

    February 21, 2017 at 8:23 pm

  11. Dan Stroh says:

    Sounds to easy but practical. Thanks

    March 7, 2017 at 9:50 am

  12. Anita says:

    Thank you so much for your tip on re-hydrating figs. I want to make jam but was only able to get dried figs. The recipes I came across gave no indication of weights or measurements. Am looking forward to trying your tip out! Best wishes Anita Greyling

    October 22, 2017 at 3:57 am

  13. Jeanneeliz says:

    Cooking with Michele.comThanks for the tip. I have a great salad recipe that calls for fresh figs. My friends want me to bring the salad for Thanksgiving dinner but fig season is over. Thanks to you, now I can bring my salad.

    November 15, 2017 at 7:08 pm

  14. Eric Samson says:

    I have abag that are chopped to a little bit smaller than raisins. Boiling water over them and they are good and soft in less than an hour so I put in Grape Nuts and yoghurt and ate them.

    November 16, 2017 at 1:36 am

  15. Julieann says:

    All i can find is sun dried figs. I make a fig and prosciutto ravioli and was wondering if i can do the same with them? They come in a ring and are somewhat hard

    May 27, 2018 at 2:47 pm

  16. Michele says:

    Give it a try!

    June 3, 2018 at 7:59 am

  17. Anne Stroud says:

    For how long can the reconstituted figs be kept? Keep in some of the water/tea?

    September 7, 2018 at 9:00 am

  18. Michele says:

    Anne, I’ve never reconstituted them without using them right away, so I’m afraid I can’t answer that with any certainty. I would say keep them covered in the liquid used and in a covered container in the refrigerator.

    October 4, 2018 at 3:59 pm

  19. Shane Simmons says:

    Hi Michelle
    I have dried figs, but they feel (and taste) juicy. I am making fig balsamic vinegar for Christmas gifts. Do I need to rehydrate them first.? The recipe calls for fresh figs, but they are out of season.

    December 11, 2018 at 10:16 am

  20. Michele says:

    Shane, sorry I missed your question until today. If the figs are really juicy I’m guessing you can use as they are and skip the rehydrating part.

    December 18, 2018 at 4:25 pm

  21. Kathie says:

    Thank you for this idea with figs

    December 22, 2018 at 4:27 pm

  22. Michele says:

    Well you are welcome Kathie!

    January 15, 2019 at 7:39 am

  23. Mark Taylor says:

    I read somewhere that fruit juice could be used to re-hydrate figs so I’m going to try using prune juice since it has a similar flavor. I’m going to try both boiled and room temperature fruit juice as well as the boiled water method.
    Thanks

    February 27, 2019 at 3:12 pm

  24. Christy Lupien says:

    Thank you Michele! This worked great for using re-hydrated figs for my flatbread recipe.

    June 18, 2019 at 8:42 am

  25. Jane says:

    Thank you for how to plump dried figs! That is exactly what I was looking for.

    My Mother used to make Fig Bran Muffins. I think she used the classic Kellogg’s All-Bran recipe.

    But, she used canned figs! These are very hard to find nowadays. I bought some dried figs and I’m going to try making the muffins with plumped dried figs instead of canned.

    She used to make the bran muffin batter, fill a muffin tin about half full, then put a canned fig in, then cover the fig with more batter. Then, bake them.

    These muffins were delicious! Especially warm with butter. I’m hoping this will produce a close approximation of what she used to make.

    August 11, 2019 at 3:18 pm

  26. Ted Williams says:

    For those of us who are sugar and carb sensitive does anyone know the Glycemic Load (GL) of reconstituted figs? Is it the same as fresh figs or dried figs or neither?

    October 29, 2019 at 4:19 pm

  27. Michele says:

    I’m sorry that I don’t know that Ted!

    November 5, 2019 at 8:46 am

  28. Sindia says:

    Hi Michelle,

    I am rehydrating my black mission figs as I write this comment! Thanks for the tip!! My question is if you think these will be a good substitute for the fresh figs required in a beef tenderloin recipe I want to prepare for guests?

    The instructions are: 1. Preheat oven to 325ºF (160ºC). 2. Rub 1 tbsp (15 mL) olive oil, cracked pepper and salt over tenderloin. 3. Heat 1 tbsp (15 mL) olive oil in an ovenproof medium-size skillet on high heat. Sear tenderloin on all sides, about 1 minute per side. 4. Transfer tenderloin to plate and tent with foil. 5. In same pan add 1 tbsp olive oil and sear FRESH FIG HALVES for 2 mins on each side or until carmelized. Remove and reserve with tenderloin. 6. In the same skillet add 1 tbsp (15 mL) olive oil and shallots and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until soft. 7. Add port, balsamic vinegar and thyme and bring liquid to a boil. 8. Place tenderloin on top of the shallots and place figs around the tenderloin. Bake on middle rack in oven for 50 to 65 minutes or until desired doneness.

    So they will be in the oven for an hour and not sure if they will dry out and harden up again. (Sorry for the lengthy post!)

    December 4, 2019 at 11:21 am

  29. Michele says:

    Sindia, I don’t think they will harden up but you could always just add them at the end for a few minutes to heat up.

    December 17, 2019 at 3:33 pm

  30. Bob says:

    Michelle,

    I am going to make a fig & onion jam & I was going to rehydrate my dried figs using a Ruby Port. Have you ever tried this method & what do you think?

    May 13, 2020 at 6:08 pm

  31. Michele says:

    I think that would be delicious Bob!

    May 20, 2020 at 2:21 pm

  32. Barbara Johnson says:

    I really needed this to make a crostini with my figs & cheese. Glad it will be so easy!

    June 8, 2020 at 8:05 am

  33. Charles says:

    Good info re converting dried to fresh-like figs. One other Internet blogger suggests ‘dusting’ the figs before pouring hot water over them. I wondered about that and why? His blog doesn’t have a comments section.

    January 6, 2021 at 1:42 pm

  34. Michele says:

    Sorry but I don’t know what dusting the figs means!

    January 17, 2021 at 5:38 pm

  35. Robert Rose says:

    Thanks for the advice.

    February 2, 2021 at 4:34 pm

  36. PegT says:

    I am doing pork tenderloin in an agrodolce sauce, which calls for fresh figs and grapes. I can’t find fresh figs but am not sure about dried figs in this recipe? What’s your thinking? I am tempted to try dates which I like more than dried figs. Would appreciate your thoughts.

    May 6, 2022 at 7:51 am

  37. Michele says:

    Sorry for the dallied response as I’ve been down with the flu. 🙁 I think dried figs would be a better choice because dates are so much more sugary and stickier and I don’t think they work as well.

    May 15, 2022 at 11:34 am

  38. Domenic says:

    Just thought about this as I was eating a few dried figs
    After re hydrating. How long do they keep. And where can I store the rehydrated figs.
    I love figs. Plump fresh figs.
    So hard to find.

    June 11, 2023 at 6:13 am

  39. Michele says:

    So sorry I missed your comment – I’ve been traveling a lot! I keep anything like that in the freezer just to be safe. Once rehydrated they would be like a fresh food and spoil quickly.

    August 7, 2023 at 1:49 pm

  40. Lona says:

    Thank you so much!!! Making cornbread with figs!!

    October 19, 2023 at 11:15 am

  41. Heidi says:

    If a recipe calls for a pound of fresh figs but I only have dried figs, would I use a pound of dried figs or a pound of dried figs that have been reconstituted? Thanks!

    August 12, 2024 at 6:34 am

  42. Michele says:

    Sorry for the late response – I’ve been recovering from surgery! I would use the weight once they are rehydrated.

    September 3, 2024 at 2:30 pm

  43. دانلود آهنگ فارسی جدید و بروز ایرانی says:

    Thanks for sharing your info. I truly appreciate your efforts and I
    am waiting for your further post thank you once again.

    June 11, 2025 at 5:49 am

  44. راحت با یک ضربه محکم خرید کنید says:

    First of all I want to say fantastic blog! I had a quick question in which I’d like to ask if you don’t mind.
    I was curious to know how you center yourself and clear your mind prior to writing.

    I’ve had a tough time clearing my thoughts in getting my thoughts out there.
    I truly do take pleasure in writing however it just seems like the first
    10 to 15 minutes are generally lost simply just trying to figure out how to begin. Any
    ideas or tips? Thanks!

    June 11, 2025 at 3:51 pm

  45. 整骨學徒 says:

    https://taxwisdom4.wordpress.com/2025/06/09/22/
    Make a stunning impression in this floral printed ball gown featuring wrap-around ties
    that highlight your waist and handy hidden pockets.

    June 17, 2025 at 11:57 pm

  46. Collin says:

    cookingwithmichele.com
    cookingwithmichele.com

    June 18, 2025 at 6:25 am

  47. 學按摩 says:

    https://easymindset2.wordpress.com/2025/06/16/29/
    Montage by Mon Cheri designer Ivonne Dome designs this big day line with the
    sophisticated, fashion-forward mom in mind.

    June 19, 2025 at 7:05 am

  48. 撥筋課程 says:

    https://cz-marketing-194.b-cdn.net/research/cz-marketing-(192).html
    If there was a price for the most popular mother-of-the-bride costume, we might happily give it to this one.

    June 20, 2025 at 11:29 am

  49. 整骨學徒 says:

    https://jekyll2.s3.us-west-002.backblazeb2.com/je-20250505-20/research/marketing-(322).html
    The safest wager is for the mom of the bride to wear an identical color to the bridesmaids to stay on-theme.

    June 21, 2025 at 4:20 am

  50. agencia de marketing digital says:

    Me siento renovado después de leer este artículo, ¡gracias por eso!

    June 21, 2025 at 5:51 am

  51. 經絡按摩證照 says:

    https://filedn.eu/l4uw5uiN1qUR9BCabqOgPER/cz-marketing-373/research/cz-marketing-(356).html
    Usually a pleasant knee length dress is ideal to beat the new climate.

    June 21, 2025 at 11:00 pm

  52. best crypto Signals Telegram says:

    Thank you for the good writeup. It in fact was a amusement
    account it. Look advanced to far added agreeable from
    you! However, how could we communicate?

    My web-site … best crypto Signals Telegram

    June 22, 2025 at 12:36 am