Most drying plants of small capacity for vegetables and fruits are convective without recirculation of the drying agent. Such dryers have a high energy consumption and cannot be attributed to energy-saving installations. (Research purpose) The research purpose is in developing a functional and technological scheme of an energy-efficient thermoelectric dryer that provides a reduction in energy costs during the drying process while maintaining high quality indicators of the finished product and increasing the drying efficiency. (Materials and methods) The methods of system analysis and synthesis of existing knowledge in the field of research on the development of energy-saving dryers, based on the provisions of the theory of drying, heat and mass transfer and thermoelectricity were used. (Results and discussion) The article presents the structural and functional-technological schemes of a convective condensation dryer with recirculation of the drying agent based on Peltier thermoelectric elements. The technological process and the principle of operation of a convective dryer of the condensation type with the use of a thermoelectric assembly operating in the heat pump mode were described. The article proposes a general method for calculating the heat and energy parameters of the dryer based on the heat balance equation. The thermal energy withdrawn by the hot circuit of the thermoelectric assembly, and directed to heating the cooled and drained air, exceeds the energy consumed from the electrical network. The uniform transverse blowing of the drying box with an air ensures uniform drying of the product. (Conclusions) When the drying box is cross-blown and the air flow is relatively fast, the moisture evaporation process is accelerated, the drying time is reduced and the drying quality is improved. It was revealed using preliminary technical and economic calculations that the proposed design provides a reduction in energy consumption compared to traditional dryers by up to 25 percent.