Drying chilli's in a food dehydrator?

[Scottishnewbie]

Just picked a whole load of chilli peppers this afternoon and rather than freezing them i'm wondering if they'd dry in the food dehydrator - anyone got any ideas?

i then want to make chilli powder (which we use most of) so I thought i could mabe just whizz them up afterwards...thoughts?

[OllieMartin]

It's pretty straight forward.
Just put them in the dehydrator until they're crisp (you'll know when they're done by the loss of their juicy, squidgyness) and then put them in a blender to produce powder.

I tried smoking mine in a smoking bag, but it retained too much of the moisture so they just burnt a little. I pulled them out and dehydrated them. They're a much deeper red than the normal ones, but have yet to try any in cooking.

[kernowyon]

I dry my chilli's in the airing cupboard and when crispy give 'em a whizz in a coffee grinder attachment on the Kenwood. makes really good chilli powder but word of warning - take care when you open the grinder. micro-particles of chilli powder in the eyes/nose makes you dance round the kitchen a bit

[rustylady]

Mine are currently decorating the curtain track in the kitchen (not used for curtains - I have a roller blind). Used a large needle and some embroidery cotton - six strands together, pierced through the stalks, and now hung over the track in bunches of a dozen or so. Look very decorative and will dry gradually.

[zazen999]

I'm drying them the same way as Kerno - and will munch them down in a food processor once all the fresh ones have been used - but I process them outside and with a teatowel covering it and leave it for a while after munching stops as last year I did it in the kitchen and was crying for hours after - very painful.

[Scottishnewbie]

thanks folks...I'll make sure I put some good dance music on when i open the food processor then so at least when I'm dancing round in agony I@ll have some good music to do it to!!! Did any of you take the seeds out and the green bit off the end or just whizzed up the whole lot?

[rustylady]

Don't use the green bit. You can use the chilli seeds.

[zazen999]

Yeah - I just broke/sliced off the green bits and whizzed. Then coughed spluttered and gagged and cried and kicked myself for not putting it outdoors.

OH likes making his weekly chilli and we mix it up and gauge the average amount needed for one pot of chilli and then he knows how much to put in each week. If we use fresh I have to lick and gauge so that we don't either have lukewarm or mental hot chillis....