The effect of drying methods and pre-treatments on the quality of dried Byadagi chilli (Capsicum annuum Linn.) were investigated. The temperature of open yard sun drying around 37°C and solar tunnel drying around 60°C was used. The quality parameters viz., moisture content, colour (L*, a*, b* values), ascorbic acid content, capsaicin content, titrable acidity and aflatoxin content. The solar tunnel-dried (STD) sample gave more bright-red colour and contained higher ascorbic acid content than the open yard sun-dried (OYSD) samples (P<0.05). The aflatoxin content was monitored using Enzyme Linked Immuno Sorbent Assay (ELISA). The Byadagi chilli dried in solar tunnel dryer showed less aflatoxin content than open yard sun drying. In addition, the unique visible attributes in the STD and OYSD samples were bright and dull, respectively.
Drying chilli, quality, ascorbic acid, capsaicin, aflatoxin
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