Learn how to dehydrate your chili peppers with a dehydrator and grind them into homemade chili powders. Here is the recipe method, from the author of "The Spicy Dehydrator Cookbook".
How to Dehydrate Chili Peppers and Make Chili Powders
Dehydrating your chili pepper harvest is an excellent way to preserve your peppers. You can easily crush them or grind them into powders for use all year long. The method is very simple with a dehydrator.
Check out the video below.
What can you do with your dried chili peppers?
Grind them up to make your own chili powder, which is like cayenne powder, or keep them whole and use them as you might use a sun dried tomato.
They can be rehydrated with hot water and go great with many chili pepper recipes.
How to Dehydrate Chili Peppers to Make Chili Powders and Seasonings - The Recipe Method
First, wash and dry your chili peppers. Choose only fresh peppers. If they show any signs of rotting, throw them away.
Next, wearing gloves, remove the stems and slice the thicker peppers into rings and thinner peppers in half. Leave them whole if you prefer, but they will take much longer to dehydrate. The gloves are important when working with peppers because the oils from the peppers can burn your skin, and the pain can linger.
Need help? How to Stop the Chili Pepper Burn On Your Skin.
Place the peppers on the trays of the dehydrator. Spread them out evenly so the heat can distribute properly.
Turn on the dehydrator at 135-140 degrees F, or whatever setting your dehydrator recommends.
NOTE: I like to place my dehydrator in the garage because it will release fumes over time and you will notice the odor. Let the dehydrator sit anywhere from 5 hours to overnight.
It will very likely take longer than 5 hours, but much depends on the thickness of the pepper walls and how many peppers you're working with.
I personally turn mine on when I go to bed and check it in the morning. The peppers are usually dried by morning, but if not, just leave them in longer until they are dried.
Once they are dried, remove and grind them into a powder using a spice grinder. Some people have a separate coffee grinder dedicated to grinding peppers.
Strain out the powder and process the larger chunks until only chili powder remains.
Safety Advice
When working with hotter peppers, including superhots, it is important to wear gloves when handling the peppers both in raw and dried forms. The oils can get on your skin and cause burning sensations. See above.
Need help? How to Stop the Chili Pepper Burn On Your Skin.
Also, the powders are quite fine and may get into the air if you are not working in a well ventilated room, so you may want to wear a mask and goggles. Superhot chili peppers, truly, are called superhots for a reason.
Storing Chili Powders and Other Fresh Seasonings
Store the chili powder in baggies or containers, or use as you wish. Keep it in a dark place, like your pantry, for freshness.
How Much Chili Powder Comes from Fresh Peppers?
1 pound of fresh chili peppers will yield about 4 ounces dried pods. Ground down, it should yield 3/4 cup chili powder.
These are the products that I use to dehydrate chili peppers and make blends, and I personally recommend them. They are affiliate links - just an FYI. If you use them, let me know if you have any questions and I can help. Email me anytime.
Cookbook Recommendation
If you enjoy spicy cooking and dehydrating, I hope you'll check out my cookbook!
- The Spicy Dehydrator Cookbook, by Mike Hultquist (affiliate link, my friends!)
If you enjoy dehydrating chili peppers and other foods, I hope you will check out my cookbook, "The Spicy Dehydrator Cookbook". It is filled with recipes, information and techniques for making not only homemade chili powders and other spice blends, but recipes for making jerky, fruit and hot sauce leathers, healthy snacks, entire meals and so much more.
Recommended Product
- COSORI Food Dehydrator (Great Dehydrator!) (Paid Link)
- Buy a Food Dehydrator (Amazon Affiliate link, my friends!)
- Nesco Snackmaster Pro Food Dehydrator FD-75A
- For Dehydrating peppers and other foods. - Magic Bullet MBR-1701 17-Piece Express Mixing Set - For Grinding down the peppers for powders.
- For Dehydrating peppers and other foods.
- For Grinding down the peppers for powders.Try Some of My Seasonings/Powders Made from Dehydrated Peppers
- Homemade Ghost Pepper Powder
- Homemade Cayenne Powder
- Homemade Ancho Chili Powder
- Roasted Red Jalapeno Powder
- Citrus Lemon-Lime Salt
- Homemade Chili Powder
- Homemade Spicy Chili Powder
- Steak Seasoning Mix
- Homemade Rib Rub
- Homemade Cajun Seasoning
- How to Make Chili Flakes
- Make Your Own Spicy Salt Blends
- Making Seasonings From Strained Hot Sauce Pulp
- How to Make Hot Sauce from Chili Powders
Other Resources
- How to Dehydrate Chili Peppers - A shorter video with a longer discussion on drying chili peppers in general.
- Preserving Chili Peppers
- The Spicy Dehydrator Cookbook - by Michael Hultquist
If you enjoy this recipe, I hope you'll leave a comment with some STARS. Also, please share it on social media. Don't forget to tag us at #ChiliPepperMadness. I'll be sure to share! Thanks! -- Mike H.
How to Dehydrate Chili Peppers to Make Chili Powder - Recipe Method
Ingredients
- 1 pound fresh chili pepper pods
Instructions
- Wash and dry your chili peppers. Choose only fresh peppers. If they show any signs of rotting, throw them away.
- Wearing gloves, remove the stems and slice the thicker peppers into rings and thinner peppers in half. Leave them whole if you prefer, but they will take much longer to dehydrate. SEE NOTES.
- Place the peppers on the trays of the dehydrator. Spread them out evenly so the heat can distribute properly.
- Turn on the dehydrator at 135-140 degrees F, or whatever setting your dehydrator recommends.
- Once they are dried, remove and grind them with a spice grinder until they are a fine powder. Store the powders in baggies or containers, or use as you wish. Keep them in a dark place, like your pantry, for freshness.
Video
Notes
Nutrition Information
This post was updated on 8/28/18 to include new photos and recipe card. Originally posted on 4/14/14.
CJ says
I dehydrated in my oven, it has dehydrate setting. I set temp 10 degrees lower and let them go for roughly 24 hours. Perfectly dry and made a fabulous powder that is great! I used container Tucson grown Hatch mild peppers . Keep my plants going year round, oldest plant is in 3rd year of production and produces continually. Just harvested 20 popper size peppers yesterday from 3 plants.
Mike Hultquist says
Great! Thanks for sharing, CJ!
Jan says
May I dehydrate peppers in the oven?
Thanks, Jan
Mike H. says
Hi, Jan. You may, but don't go too high on temps, or the peppers will burn. Avoid direct heat.
Linda says
Hi Mike, I love your site! I have a tabasco pepper plant and it. I envisioned having a string of dried peppers for use in sauces, etc. Is that even possible, or do I need to dehydrate them? Next question, once they are dried, use them like red pepper flakes you get at the store? Coarse grind?
Thanks!!
Mike Hultquist says
Thanks, Linda. If I'm understanding correctly, you want to make a string of dried peppers? You can try to string them together first then dehydrate, but they shrink a LOT, so not sure how that would work. They're also pretty brittle and can break if you try to string them dried. Some people string them and dry them in the air, but it needs to be very hot and dry, or they can rot. Once they are dried, though, you can use them whole by rehydrating them and making pastes and sauces, or you can grind them into coarse flakes or fine powders. I hope this helps.
Linda says
Thanks! It looks like my best bet is to cut them in half lengthwise and dehydrate, then grind as needed, whether flakes or powder. I assume I use the seeds as well.
Mike H. says
Glad you've had fun with it, Linda. Enjoy!
Michelle A Rao (Em) says
Thank kindly Mike..............so you can this or seal it in canning jars to preserve it> alsoId like to follow you do you have a group? on Fbk? Have a Blessed day
Mike Hultquist says
I don't see why you can't seal the jars for further keeping. I don't have a group, sorry.
Linda says
I did banana peppers as i had a gallon jar I got for free. They are great on salads and sandwiches. They were strong as the jar was pickled. But those of us in my circle of friends who a!ready love them used them up quickly.
I love exploring new ways to make my food last longer. Dehydrating is like a craft project that creates useful results.
Mike Hultquist says
I agree, Linda. I love my dehydrator. Thanks for sharing!
Edwina says
We're planting peppers for the first time since my deceased husband last planted them. He grew them, I cooked them! lol I can't even handle most spicy foods. I always wanted to make him pepper powder and flakes but just couldn't get it right. I'm looking forward to trying your instructions this summer.
I do have one question though, do you dedicate your dehydrator for pepper use only or do you think it would it be safe to use it for other dehydrator uses?? We just bought a new really nice dehydrator recently because I enjoy dehydrating so many different foods from our garden and I don't want to ruin it for those foods if we won't be able to use it for anything but peppers once we use it that way the first time. I'd rather purchase a different dehydrator and dedicate it for peppers if it won't be a good idea to use it with other foods.
Edwina
Mike Hultquist says
Edwina, I do use my dehydrator for other things. I let it air out and have not had a problem. It's a legit concern, though.
James Saxon says
Hello
My recipe calls for 10 red dried chilies. How many spoons will that yield?
Thank you
James
Mike Hultquist says
James, it depends on the size of the dried chilies, as chili peppers vary greatly in sizes from type to type. Most recipes call for 1-2 teaspoons for milder, and 1-2 tablespoons for hotter, again depending on the recipe.
Lynda Green says
I have dries my first batch with the seeds. What am I to expect from the outcome? Will remove stems but I’m sure I will have Very, very hot peppers! But what about texture will they have obvious seeds? Be tough? Is it worth it?
Mike Hultquist says
Lynda, be sure to watch the accompanying video and you'll be able to see more clearly what to expect. Yes, remove the stems and seeds. The pepper skins should be very dry, zero moisture, brittle. You can crush them into course flakes or fine powders. Absolutely worth it.
Trish says
Hi! I love your website! It is so full of great information and recipes! I am trying to duplicate Taco Time’s hot sauce for my dad. I found a couple recipes that call for the dried arbol peppers. I was wondering if I could use ground instead? Would this affect the flavor? And what is the conversion from a dried pepper to ground? Do you have conversion charts available?
Thanks so much!
Mike Hultquist says
Trish, yes, you can use chili powder instead of the whole pods. I do have a conversion chart, and another page on making sauces from chili powders as well:
https://www.chilipeppermadness.com/frequently-asked-questions/conversions/
https://www.chilipeppermadness.com/recipes/how-to-make-hot-sauce-from-chili-powders/
Bruce says
I like to keep shaker containers left over, like old garlic salt shakers, seasoning shakers, etc, that I can clean and remove the labels and fill with my chili powders. I relabel them of course. I keep some in the kitchen so I can season my foods with whatever level of taste and heat I prefer on that food. Thanks for the conversion tables.
Mike Hultquist says
Yes, great way to keep them! I love it. Thanks, Bruce.