Dehydrating Peppers

CraftyFox · Dec 3, 2018

So, I tried air drying most of my peppers this season, after the frost hit. That was a flop and I lost almost all them to mold. Recently, I harvested all my pods off the Piri-Piri and tossed them in the dehydrator on 95F.. It's been 5 days, if not more, and I'm just wondering where I'm going wrong here. We are talking thin-walled peppers here.. and how do you even know if they are dry? I'm used to drying mushrooms, which are pretty easy to test for moisture.
I'm using a Presto w/ temp control.
Thanks for your insights!

skullbiker · Dec 3, 2018

I usually used to go at least 110 on temp and cut stem end off of pepper or cut a slit in it so the inside can dry faster.

rghm1u20 · Dec 3, 2018

I do mine at 70 Celsius (you convert

). How do I know they are dried? If I can bend them, they are not dry. If they broke, they are dry. Simply.

dragonsfire · Dec 3, 2018

yup 110-115F max, and put slits in them so the moisture can escape easier. Sounds like you place is humid, so that can be a problem.

CraftyFox · Dec 3, 2018

skullbiker said:
I usually used to go at least 110 on temp and cut stem end off of pepper or cut a slit in it so the inside can dry faster.

dragonsfire said:
yup 110-115F max, and put slits in them so the moisture can escape easier. Sounds like you place is humid, so that can be a problem.

Thanks for the quick responses.. Can I do this w/out worrying about viability of the seeds?

CraftyFox · Dec 3, 2018

rghm1u20 said:
I do mine at 70 Celsius (you convert ). How do I know they are dried? If I can bend them, they are not dry. If they broke, they are dry. Simply.

Thanks. Sounds similar to mushroom moisture testing then, most refer to as "cracker dry". That's kind of what I was looking for, but haven't hit it yet.. Still lots of flex in them.

rghm1u20 · Dec 3, 2018

CraftyFox said:
Thanks. Sounds similar to mushroom moisture testing then, most refer to as "cracker dry". That's kind of what I was looking for, but haven't hit it yet.. Still lots of flex in them.

I cut them before drying, they dry faster. And another thing you have to pay attention, is that when your dehydrator stops, don't let the peppers there, because even if they are dry, they will be soft again, will re hydrate from the moist in the air.

CraftyFox · Dec 3, 2018

rghm1u20 said:
I cut them before drying, they dry faster. And another thing you have to pay attention, is that when your dehydrator stops, don't let the peppers there, because even if they are dry, they will be soft again, will re hydrate from the moist in the air.

I learned that lesson all too well with mushrooms! Shut the dehydrator off to let it cool down, got sidetracked and started smelling something like sweaty feet a couple days later. :rolleyes:

skullbiker · Dec 3, 2018

CraftyFox said:
Thanks for the quick responses.. Can I do this w/out worrying about viability of the seeds?

I always remove seeds to save from a few choice pods before any processing.

dragonsfire · Dec 3, 2018

As long as your below the 115F then the seeds will be fine.

Art Couture · Dec 16, 2018

I did my first run of dried peppers this season. Used an old Decosonic (circa early eighties) convection oven. Process took about 45 - 60 minutes per batch. Three batches equaled 8 ounces of dried pepper flakes (I did not fine grind) Just did it to get rid of peppers I didn't plan on saucing and just wanted a pizza topping. They seem to be very dry, but like you, I worry about mold. Periodic checks keep me satisfied.