The purpose of this research was to study the optimum strategy of the interrupted drying technique for rough rice. The effects of interrupted drying on drying rates, cracking enhancement ratios, and the performance of a commercial circulating rice dryer were evaluated. The results indicated that the required interrupted period of grains with moisture of ranging from 18 to 20% was 2 around 3 hours. The interrupted drying technique can significantly increase the drying rate. The dryer performance e.g. fuel-consumption rate, drying rate, and drying time were all affected by interrupting the drying process, as expected.