Coffee - The Joys of Roasting

No one can deny the great taste that comes from roasted coffee beans. The great thing is that roasting coffee beans is a very simple process.

To get a professional taste from roasted coffee beans does not require special machinery and tools. Of course there are coffee roasters available for purchase and these work great. However, if you just have a popcorn popper or even a stove top pan you can get the same results.

What will determine the outcome is the type of beans you buy. You need to start with good beans to have a good roasted coffee in the end. Remember that dark beans will have less caffeine, but they do not have quite the acidity of the lighter beans. So choose based on your preferred taste.

Roasting beans can be intimidating at first because of the smoke and the smell. But don't be alarmed. That is just part of the process. The beans need to reach temperatures from 460F (223c) and 530F (262c). This is going to create some smoke so be sure you have good ventilation.

If you have a smoke detector near your kitchen that is prone to go off with the lightest whiff of smoke it may be wise to disable it before you begin.

It is good to have a temperature gauge to know what temperature your beans are reaching. If you have a coffee roaster it will most likely have a thermometer.

You can determine when your beans are completely roasted by your own preference. The beans will change colors during roasting, from green to yellow and then to brown. For a dark roast allow your beans to continue until they reach a darker brown color.

Moisture in the pot will cause the beans to swell and burst. Don't be alarmed when you hear popping noises coming from your pot.

You need to keep an eye on your beans to be sure you do not roast them to long. Check the beans every half minute or so. The sugars in the beans will caramelize and burn a bit. You will determine how much according to your taste.

If you roast the beans to long you will burn them, cooking all their sugars away. You will be left with a really strong flavor, really to strong for most coffee drinkers.

Once roasted drain the beans and allow them to cool. Then shake them to remove their outside skin and sift that away from the bean, perhaps using a mesh cooking screen.