Drying Characteristics of Bottle Gourd (Lagenaria siceraria) by Hot Air Drying (HAD) and Open Sun Drying (OSD): An Experimental Study

Vegetables and fruits are indispensable part of human diet and can be regarded as the fuel for physiological processes. Despite large numbers of national food production still does not meet the needs of the population. The wastage during handling from point of production to consumer’s places, lack of appropriate preservation & storage systems causes considerable losses, thus reducing the food supply significantly. The dent in the food production caused by crop failures as well as significant seasonal fluctuations in availability can be ignored out by food conservation e.g. by drying. In this regard some of the vegetables have been traditionally processed by drying to extend their storage life well beyond few weeks and make it available in off season. The main objectives of the study are the drying character of bottle gourd slices using the different drying methods and the effect of temperature on drying rate have investigated.