Pat the cheese dry with paper towels to remove as much moisture from the exterior as possible. Cottage cheese should be drained and strained through cheesecloth to get rid of the excess water content.

Shred the cheese with a box grater or food processor. This is not necessary with cottage cheese because it already consists of small pieces, but blocks of cheese dry better in small shreds. If you prefer not to shred the cheese, you can cut a block of cheese into thin slices with a knife.

Line the trays of a food dehydrator with paper towels. This step is optional, but is especially important for wet cheese such as cottage cheese, or if the pieces are oily or small enough to fall through the holes in the trays.

Spread the cheese on the paper towels in a thin layer for grated cheese and cottage cheese curds. If you elected to slice the cheese, place them in a single layer with a small space between each piece.

Stack the trays in the food dehydrator. Set the dehydrator to its lowest heat setting or between 125 and 135 degrees Fahrenheit. The maximum temperature is 140 F because food cooks rather than dehydrates at this temperature.

Leave the cheese in the dehydrator for six to 10 hours or until completely dry. Hard cheeses with low moisture such as Parmesan cheese will take much less time than cottage cheese. Rotate the trays once every two hours, moving the bottom trays that are closest to the heating element to the top, and the top trays to the bottom.

Remove the dry cheese from the dehydrator and spread it on a tray to cool. Grind the cheese to powder form in a coffee grinder, food processor or blender, if desired. While not required, you can place the tray of cheese in the freezer for about 30 minutes before grinding.