drying peppers

[denemante]

Hey all - I've read here about various ways to dry hot peppers - lots of opinions. What I'm looking for is the easiest method with the highest chances of success. I'll have cayenne, ghost, scorpion and habaneros. They are all doing really well.

I may use some of the cayannes fresh. But the others - they are so extremely hot that they are almost useless fresh (if you have any ideas - let me know!) So my plan is to dry them, save the seeds, then make a powder. Then I can sprinkle a tad on anything I need to give a little kick. Seems like the best use considering how many I'll have.

I've heard you can string them up with a needle/thread and hang them in a window. My Atlanta windows only get about 3 hours of sun per day - and my AC is set to about 70.

Then apparently you can bake them, or use a dehydrator. All the same to me so long as it works!

Finally - anybody have a grinder that could be bought on Amazon to grind them up?

[dave103069]

I have always done it the old fashion way of air drying but I have had both good and bad experiences with this method. I have heard from many though that using a dehydrator is the best low maintenance way to dry peppers, although I have not tried it yet but do plan to try to find a dehydrator and give it a shot. I normally just freeze my peppers but would not mond have a powder to sprinkle when ever I want some heat..

Good luck

[TZ -OH6]

In winter I dry habanaros on (halved or quartered) eggcrate lighting pannels, but in summer-fall I use a dehydrator. I don't think they would dry other wise.

Small amounts of dried peppers I grind with a coffee/spice mill. For large amounts, I use my blender and then seive the fines out to get powder. I mix hot pepper powder with garlic powder, onion powder and powdered salt (powdered in the coffee mill).

[gixxerific]

I do the same as TZ with the dehydrator - grinder - garlic - onion.

[mattie g]

Mine get dried in a dehydrator.

NOTE: If you use a dehydrator, make sure to dry your hot peppers outside...unless you want to essentially get pepper-sprayed in your own house. But if that's what you're aiming for, then have at it!

[orgoveg]

Personally, I don't like any more heat than I get from a jalapeno unless I'm cooking with something that calls for some cayenne. I grow jalapenos, slice them in half, spoon the seeds out, and dry them in the oven or toaster oven. I'm an impatient type so I set the oven temperature at 275 degrees with the door cracked open. After a few hours, they turn out very dry with black skin. Then I simply crush them in a bowl and pour them into an empty pepper grinder (the disposable kind). I grind a little on food whenever I want a little kick and it's remarkably hot even almost a year later.

I used to set the temperature at 175 or 200 and wait all day. I also used to powder them in a coffee grinder. For me, that stuff just isn't necessary.

Having said all that, I'm not sure if I would have habaneros or ghost peppers in an oven that hot in my house unless I was planning to leave and wore a gas mask to take them out. A dehydrator probably makes more sense for that. So, I just realized that I probably haven't said anything helpful

[TZ -OH6]

I put my pepper dehydrator in a bathroom with the exhaust fan running.

[Gary350]

I have been drying peppers for years. Cut off the stem end then cut peppers down the middle. Scrap out the seeds and the vanes. Then cut the peppers into 1/4" strips. Small pieces will fall through the holes in the dehydrator but long strips will not. About 12 hrs in the dehydrator and they are dry. The dry strips break into small pieces very easy. I put bell peppers in zip lock plastic bags, they rehydrate real nice is soup and other food. Hot peppers I turn into chili powder with the spice grinder.

I love hot spicy food but I just can not eat them anymore. Old age sucks. Enjoy them while you still can.