Abstract
Fruits of 'Manita', a red pepper cultivar, and 'HL', a cultivar bred for single-harvest, cultivated by direct sowing method were harvested simultaneously. The red fruits were freeze-, sun-, indoor-, hot-air $(65^{\circ}C)$, and excessive hot-air (50% longer time) dried. For Manita. ASTA values of freeze- and indoor-dried red pepper were the highest $(153.6{\sim}168.4)$, and those of sun- and hot air-dried ones were $119.2{\sim}131.5$. Excessive hot-air drying decreased the redness by about $9{\sim}15%$ compared to normal hot-air drying. For HL, ASTA values $(150.3{\sim}171.7)$ of indoor-dried red peppers were much higher than other dried peppers. Red pigment in HL was destroyed easily during sun drying, showing values of only $49.2{\sim}69.2$. By excessive hot-air drying, the redness did not decrease, compared to normal hot-air drying. The organic acid contents of both cultivars were higher in sun- and hot-air-dried ones than freeze- and indoor-dried ones. Copsaicinoid contents of both cultivars decreased up to 22% by excessive hot-air drying compared to normal hot-air drying. Sugar contents were lower in all drying methods other than freeze drying for both cultivars.
