Acceleration of the drying rates of paprika fruit with drying oil and cutting

Paprika fruit (Capsicum annuum L.) were dipped in water (control), cold oil (10% plus 2.5% K2CO3) for 3 min, or hot oil at 65 °C, and left whole or were cut in halves or small pieces. The fruit were dried at 45 °C and ground. The quality of the powder was assessed before and after 8 weeks of storage at 37 °C. Both oil dips and cutting accelerated the drying. Hot oil dipping of whole fruit halved the drying period compared to the control, but cutting the fruit into small sections accelerated the drying most, reducing the drying times by 81%. Combining the oil with fine cutting did not further accelerate drying. The oil dips changed the structure of the surface wax, increasing the water permeability; the cutting opened alternative routes to the cuticle for water movement. Colour intensity and stability increased slightly for cut fruit, but was unaffected by oil. The aroma of water-dipped samples was ‘hay-like’, while that of the oil dipped samples was ‘nutty’.