If you are a gardener, you are well aware that the harvest is about to come to an end and the endless amount of fresh fruits and vegetables will be lost if you have not taken some steps to preserve some of the fruits and vegetables that you have grown all summer. Many people are good at canning and freezing foods, but another form of preserving items is to dry them, especially foods like herbs and peppers.
Peppers are a very versatile food that many people consider a vegetable, but they are actually a member of the fruit family. Peppers are loaded with vitamins A and C. They come in a variety of colors, shapes, and sizes. Whether you prefer banana peppers, habanero peppers, bell peppers, or even cayenne peppers with a little work in drying these, you can enjoy them all year long.
Drying peppers can be a very economical way to preserve them and allows you to store them longer and easier as well. They will take less space, but will keep more of their flavor. Peppers can be dried in the sunlight or in a dehydrator. The dehydrator will shorten the drying process and there are some basic steps to follow to dry them in the dehydrator.
First, the peppers must be washed under cold water to remove any dirt or chemicals on the peppers. Once they are cleaned, cut the stems off. Slice the peppers lengthwise and remove seeds and fleshy core. Now the peppers are prepared for drying.
Lay the peppers in a single layer on a dehydrator tray and allow to dry. Depending on the size of the pepper strips this process can take up to 12 hours for them to dry out. For best results, you should be able to touch the peppers and they should feel dry but be flexible when bent.
Peppers can be stored in plastic resealable bags or containers. I tend to crush mine and put into an empty plastic spice container that is perfect for using to season my foods. These dried peppers can be kept at room temperature as long as they are not in direct sunlight. If storing pepper slices, you can rehydrate them by placing them in cool water for 30 minutes before you add them to a recipe and they will be fresh peppers again.
Finding a way to preserve the harvest to enjoy the garden all year long is the best thing about raising the food in the first place. Drying peppers is an easy and economical way of being able to enjoy them in the middle of the first snow storm.
Source: personal knowledge