Drying peppers in the oven...Why not?
- Thread starter Roguejim
- Start date
It will affect the flavor a bit, too. Any hotter than 120 or so will give them a slightly toasty or possibly charred flavor.
110-120 in the oven on a cookie sheet is how I dry all my peppers since I don't have a food dehydrator (yet). It takes forever for thick-pod types like habs and most Anuums, but it does work. For my Bhuts, I slice them in half, seed them, and let them go for about 3+ hours on each side. After that, it's straight to the coffee grinder.
Also, make sure to leave the oven door cracked! You're drying, not cooking. Therefore, I recommend some sort of ventilation to avoid that vapor cloud you walk into upon entering the kitchen while drying large batches. It appeals nicely to the nose, but the eyes (such as the unsuspecting wife's) will not soon forgive you
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Also, make sure to leave the oven door cracked! You're drying, not cooking. Therefore, I recommend some sort of ventilation to avoid that vapor cloud you walk into upon entering the kitchen while drying large batches. It appeals nicely to the nose, but the eyes (such as the unsuspecting wife's) will not soon forgive you
.I've dried peppers in the oven on the absolute lowest setting lots of times and the results were better than the dehydrater i'm curently using. The only reason i stoppped is because people would come by and start hacking and they'd leave soon after that! don't think it was 150 degrees though. i liked the smell but others acted like they were gonna die!
It has to be way more expensive to dry in an oven, that for me would be enough to spend the money for a dehydrator.
I agree, a dehydrator with a fan is the only way to go. I always slice the peppers in 1/2 as the skin is a natural barrier to the drying process.
I usually deseed after drying as the seeds have a bitterness to them. some times I crush the dried peppers for flakes, and others I process though a coffee bean grinder to make powder.
I also dry spaghetti sauce in my dehydrator and then powderize it in the coffee bean grinder. I do this for homemade spaghetti sauce for backpacking. it re-hydrates easily this way.
I usually deseed after drying as the seeds have a bitterness to them. some times I crush the dried peppers for flakes, and others I process though a coffee bean grinder to make powder.
I also dry spaghetti sauce in my dehydrator and then powderize it in the coffee bean grinder. I do this for homemade spaghetti sauce for backpacking. it re-hydrates easily this way.
My oven is commercial with firebrick lining. The pilot is 24/7/365. The temp is 115 or so. It works fine.
It's also kickascz for putting parts in to preheat before you paint them !
It's also kickascz for putting parts in to preheat before you paint them !