How To Make Cayenne Pepper Powder
Read on about drying cayenne peppers and learn how to grow, dry, and store your own cayenne pepper powder. Say goodbye to buying this at the store for good!
Homemade Cayenne Pepper
It might seem silly to make your own cayenne pepper powder, and maybe it is. It’s not too expensive at the store, although more expensive now with so many prices rising. It’s easy to get, and maybe you don’t even use it very often.
If you’re not a gardener, it definitely makes more sense to buy it at the store. But if you are a gardener (or live by a cool Farmer’s Market!), it’s a fun and fairly easy thing to grow, and the homemade stuff is miles apart from what you can find at the store.
And it is one more drop in the bucket of things you can start growing for yourself instead of being reliant on the store for. Plus, it has this amazing fruity flavor that is missing from the stuff that’s been sitting on the shelves for who knows how long.
Growing Cayenne Peppers
This post is more about using the peppers than growing them, but here are a few things to keep in mind.
- Peppers love sun! Plant them in the sunniest place you have
- Starts (plants started at the nursery for you) are easier to grow than seeds, especially if you’re a beginner
- If you live in a cooler climate, you will need to start pepper seeds indoors and then transfer them outdoors carefully when it’s warmer
- My favorite place to buy seeds is Azure Standard. This is an affiliate ink, and I may earn from qualifying purchases. They have great selection, are a family company in Oregon, and use really high quality products (including Cayenne Pepper seeds!)
- While plants from the nursery are easier, they may not have the best selection. Cayenne may be much easier to find as seeds
How to Dry Cayenne Peppers
There are a few different methods to drying Cayenne Peppers. My favorite, by far, is the dehydrator. In fact, it’s probably one of my most valued tools I have as an urban homesteader. It is such a great time saver for preserving your harvest. It’s just a quick, easy, often less labor intensive way of preserving.
The Top 3 Methods…
Dehydrate
Dehydration can really vary a lot, and you may see all different times and temperatures recommended. You really need to play around with it, and see what works best for you.
I usually start at 145 degrees for 10 hours. Depending on their size, and weather, you may need to add more time, sometimes much more. In the end you want them very dry, almost crispy.
This is the dehydrator I use. Affiliate Link, I may earn from qualifying purchases. Love it!
Air Drying
If you don’t have a dehydrator, you can dry these in your kitchen, garage, or other area of your house. They look beautiful!
Get a needle and thread, and put it through the stem of each pepper to make a long string of them: think garland or clothesline. Hang them on the wall or ceiling and let dry until brittle, and almost crispy. This method will take weeks, and works best if you live in a warm, dry environment.
Oven Drying
Preheat your oven at its lowest temperature setting. Put whole peppers on cookie sheet, and bake until brittle, rotating often. This again will vary, and will take several hours, depending on your oven and temperature. Three hours would probably be the fastest, but it could take up to 10-14.
Note: This method will make the air in your house spicy. Use caution!
How to make Cayenne Pepper Powder
This is really just a few steps! After your peppers are dry, it comes together really quickly.
- Dry peppers with whichever method you chose from above (dehydrator, oven, or air).
- Using gloves, remove stems and seeds. Usually after you remove the stems, most of the seeds will sprinkle out easily. You don’t need to get all of them. The more you leave, the spicier your powder will be.
- Place peppers in blender or spice grinder and pulverize. You want the powder to be very dry and very fine, so it stores well.
- Let the powder settle a bit, so you don’t get sprayed with Cayenne when you open it—that will burn!
- Once your powder is ground, store it in a glass jar, in a cool dry place, for up to a year.
Use in all your favorite dishes.
Cayenne Powder Recipe
Cayenne Pepper Powder Recipe
Equipment
- Food Dehydrator If you don't have a dehydrator, you can air dry them, or dry them at your oven's lowest setting.
- High Powered Blender or Spice Grinder
Materials
- Fresh Cayenne Peppers If you don't have fresh, use dried, and follow the rest of the directions below.
Instructions
- Harvest Cayenne Peppers from plant.
- Spread them out on dehydrator shelves to encourage air flow.
- Dehydrate them at 145 degrees for 10 hours, as a starting point. This can vary a lot, and you may need more time depending on weather and size. In the end you want them very dry, almost crispy.
- Wearing gloves, remove top, and sprinkle out seeds. You don't need to get all of them. The more you leave in, the spicier it will be.
- Add peppers to spice grinder or blender and grind into a fine powder.
- Store in glass spice jars for up to a year.
Notes
What to do with Dried Cayenne Peppers
I use this as a flavoring in almost everything I cook! When I’m heating oil for soups, sauces, and dishes, I usually sprinkle in a little to infuse the oil with flavor. This is a pretty mild method. If you like things very spicy, just add more.
Other things you can do with homemade Cayenne:
- Tacos
- Dips
- Chili
- Hot Sauce
- Margaritas
- Salad Dressings
- Wellness Tonic (See below)
Wellness Tonic
As someone who runs cold, this is a beverage I have most nights. This is my own version of Vitamin C shock therapy, and does wonders for my energy, immunity, digestion, and keeping down inflammation.
Looking for More Spice?
Be sure to check out our recipe for how to make your own simple garden hot sauce!
To Make Wellness Tonic
Add a few tablespoons of honey to a mug. Sprinkle with a little Cayenne, Ginger, and 1 teaspoon of Turmeric. I also empty 4-5 vitamin C capsules in and mix it all together. Then add a couple tablespoons of lemon juice. Mix and add hot water. Stir and enjoy!
How to make Ground Cayenne Pepper
This post focuses on ground Cayenne because it’s a really easy and convenient way to store them. But you can also dry them and store them whole until you’re ready to use them. In this case, just store dried Cayennes in a glass jar in a cool dry place for up to 6 months.
Is this something you might try? What are your favorite ways to serve Cayenne?
For more on gardening, check out these helpful posts:
- How to Harvest & Dry Your Own Herbs
- New Year, New Backyard Vegetable Garden
- Make your own Vegetable Stock for Free
- How to Make your own Garlic Powder
- How to Grow & Harvest Horseradish
- Heat it Up: How To Make Your Own Simple Garden Hot Sauce
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Be careful grinding dehydrated peppers. Even low end heat cayennes are brutal when aerosolized. Put a paper towel over your grinder cup (I used a coffee grinder) before you grind them. And do it outside. You lose a bit to the paper towel, but you don’t get “nuked”. I ground some Carolina Reapers outside this year like this and had zero issues. Also, dehydrate in your garage. I got in trouble dehydrating cayennes indoors last year, haha.
Hi Dave, Yes, you definitely want to be careful! I usually just give it a little time to settle before I open it up, and that does the trick.
Carolina Reaper powder?! Wowza! What do you use it for?
Thanks for your comment!