A process for successive preparation of pungent aromatic powder and pungency free colourant from chilli

Dried chilli pericarp powder is extracted with a mixture of solvents consisting of CI-C3 alkanols or ketones (75 -98 parts v/v) and water (2-25 parts v/v) .Chilli pericarp powder is loaded in to an extraction coloumn and extracted with solvent mixture maintaining a material to solvent ratio of 1:8 to 1: 12 to retrieve an extract consisting mainly the pungent and aromatic constituents of chilli which on desolventization yields pungent aromatic powder which is dispersible in water. The spent pericarp powder in the coloumn is subsequently extracted with solvents like acetone, hexane, ethyl acetate or dichloromethane preferably with acetone while maintaining a material to solvent ratio of 1:6 to 1:10 to obtain an extract containing constituents responsible for colour which further is desolventised by distillation to obtain a viscus colorant free from pungency and aroma.