There’s nothing like the smell of fresh coffee first thing in the morning. Whether you drink coffee every day or just once in a while, it’s hard to beat that coffee taste and joy to the senses which can get better if you roast your beans. Benefits of roasting your own coffee are multiple from gaining a new hobby to taking control over the coffee making process.
You get to choose which type of bean you prefer, how much time you want to spend roasting your beans and how much you want to spend on them. The ultimate benefit is fresh, delicious and affordable coffee almost whenever you want it. Read until the end to learn the benefits of roasting your own beans and how to do it.
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You’ll Have Complete Control Over Your Coffee Experience.
When you roast your own coffee beans, you’re in control of everything from start to finish. You get to choose which type of bean you prefer, the roast level and how much time you want to spend roasting your beans.
You can experiment with different beans and roasts until you find exactly the type of coffee you love. You can also choose which flavors you want to infuse with your beans like vanilla, cinnamon or even pumpkin for the fall season.
An interesting benefit is you can control the amount of time your beans roast and the amount of heat they receive, as well as the speed at which they’re cooled down after roasting. You end up with the perfect beans for your tastes every time.
Roasting Your own Beans is a Great way to Learn About Your Favorite Beans.
If you’re new to the world of coffee, it can be hard to know which beans you like the most. Roasting your own beans is a great way to learn more about your favorite beans. You can experiment with different beans and roasts to find the one that’s perfect for you.
If you’re hosting a party or inviting friends over, it’s a fun way to get people talking and sharing ideas. When you know which beans you like best, you can purchase them roasted and ready to use so you can enjoy your self-picked beans anytime you’re in the mood.
Roasted Beans Will Stay Fresh for Longer than Unroasted Beans.
You may assume that roasted beans will go stale faster than unroasted beans but another one of the benefits of roasting your own coffee is in reality, it’s the other way around.
While you won’t be able to keep unroasted coffee beans for very long, roasted beans will stay fresh for about two weeks, keeping their aroma and flavors. That’s about the same amount of time unroasted beans will stay fresh. Though roasted beans have a longer shelf life, you can extend their freshness by storing them in an airtight container.
You can Experiment With Different Roasts.
While you can find green coffee beans in any grocery store, the roasted beans come in many different roasts. There are many different roast levels to choose from. You can experiment with light, medium or dark roasts until you find the one that’s good for you.
Most people prefer a medium roast coffee. You can also choose between single origin or blended beans. Single origin coffees are beans that come from one region. Blended coffees come from different regions or different beans from the same region.
You Can Enjoy The Smell of Freshly Roasted Coffee any Time You Want.
The aroma of freshly roasted coffee is something you can’t get from unroasted beans which is a good example of just one of the benefits of roasting your own coffee. Once you’ve roasted your own beans, you’ll never want to buy them roasted in a can again as the aromas that’ll drift around your house can’t be matched by processed bought beans.
You’ll Have Access to Better, Darker Roasts That are Only Available by Roasting Your own Beans.
Many grocery stores sell light and medium roasts, but they rarely offer dark roasts. If you want to enjoy a darker roast, you’ll have to roast your own beans. Darker roasted beans offer a bolder, richer flavor that’s perfect for a morning cup of coffee. You can also use darker roasted beans to make iced coffee during the summer months to keep you cool while enjoying a delicious cup of coffee.
No Chemicals Are Used so There’s no Chemical Aftertaste – Benefits of Roasting Your Own Coffee
Many canned coffees are roasted at high temperatures and with chemicals to keep them fresh for longer. While this is convenient, it also means there’s a chemical aftertaste you might not notice until you switch to fresh, roasted beans. There are no chemicals used in the roasting process, so there’s no chemical aftertaste allowing you to enjoy the full flavor of your freshly roasted beans.
Delicious, Fresh Coffee Almost Anytime you Want or use Them in the Garden
There are many ways to enjoy freshly roasted coffee beans. You can brew them as is, add them to your iced coffee or even make a delicious espresso drink. You can also grind your freshly roasted beans and store them in an airtight container to enjoy them as ground coffee beans. Roasted beans will stay fresh for about two weeks. Once they’ve gone stale, you can compost them or use them as a fertilizer in your garden.
What You’ll Need to Roast Coffee In an Oven at Home
Recommended equipment on Amazon (we may receive a small commission for purchases).
- A West Bend Stir Crazy Popcorn Machine has a stir rod which will help to even out the coffee roasting
- Add froth to your coffee with a Nespresso4 milk frother
- Coffee Scale with Timer for weighing and checking your beans
The good news is that you don’t need very much to roast coffee at home. When comparing costs, it’s important to think about the amount of coffee you’ll be making and how many roasts you’ll be able to do with your equipment.
- Coffee Beans: The most important thing you’ll need is coffee beans. You can roast almost any variety of beans at home and you can even mix different beans for even more flavor.
- Whisk: Once your beans are hot, you’ll need something to stir them with. A wooden spoon will work but a whisk is better.
- Scales: You’ll need a set of scales to weigh your beans and keep an eye out on roasting progress.
How to Roast Coffee: Step by Step
- Pre-heat your oven: You can either use a fan-assisted oven or set your regular oven to as high as it will go. The temperature will vary depending on the type of beans you’re roasting.
- Spread the beans: Place your beans in a roasting pan or a tray and spread them out. The amount of beans you use will depend on how many roasts you want to do.
- Roast the beans: When your oven is hot enough, put your beans in and start the timer. Keep an eye on the beans and stir them every couple of minutes during the roasting process.
- Cool the beans: As soon as your beans are a shade darker than you want them to be, remove them from the oven and let them cool.
- Store the beans: Once your beans have cooled, store them in an airtight container.
How to Roast Darker Beans
The trick to roasting darker beans is to maintain a steady temperature for a longer time period. This will help to develop more flavor and a deeper roast. Use a higher temperature: To start, you’ll need to use a higher temperature than you would for lighter beans. Maintain the right temperature: As soon as your beans start to roast, keep the temperature steady. Let the beans “smoke”: Once the beans are a rich brown color, remove them from the oven. Let the beans cool: Once the beans have cooled, break them up a little and store in an airtight container.
How to Roast Lighter Beans
The trick to roasting lighter beans is to keep the temperature lower for a shorter time period. – Use a slightly lower temperature: To start, you’ll need to use a slightly lower temperature than you would for darker beans. Maintain the right temperature: As soon as your beans start to roast, keep the temperature steady. Let the beans “smoke”: Once the beans are a light brown color, remove them from the oven. Let the beans cool: Once the beans have cooled, break them up a little and store in an airtight container.
A Couple of Tips and Tricks
Use a timer: Keep an eye on your beans during the roasting process but use a timer to remind you when to remove them from the oven. This will help you to maintain consistency in your roasting process.
Watch out for “first crack”: During the roasting process, you’ll hear popping and crackling sounds. This is “first crack” and it indicates that the beans have reached a light roast. Keep the beans out of the way: Once the roasting process is complete, the beans are hot and will burn if you’re not careful. Keep them away from anything that could melt or be damaged by the heat.
How to Roast Coffee with a Popcorn Maker
Coffee aficionados around the world know that using a popcorn maker as a home roasting device is not only fun and cost-effective—it also produces a fantastic result. The process is simple and doesn’t require any specialist knowledge, although it does take time. With practice, you can begin experimenting with different flavors and types of coffee to create your own signature roast.
Why Use a Popcorn Maker to Roast Coffee?
Popcorn machines are designed for one purpose, and that is to pop popcorn. They are not designed to roast coffee beans, so why would you even use one?
Popcorn machines have a built-in advantage over other coffee roasters because they are designed for large scale use. They are used to popping hundreds of kilos of kernels in large quantities at a time, so they can handle much larger batches than a domestic coffee roaster. Popcorn machines also tend to be very cheap, so they are a great option if you are just starting out and are on a budget.
How to Roast Coffee with a Popcorn Maker?
Before you begin, note that the popcorn machine needs time to heat up before the beans will begin to roast. This waiting time varies between different machines so be sure to read the instructions carefully.
Once you have your popcorn machine heated and ready, here are the steps for roasting coffee with a popcorn maker: Firstly, decide how much coffee you want to roast. This will depend on the size of your popcorn machine, so you will need to experiment until you get the quantities right.
Keep in mind that coffee beans expand by about 1/3 when they are roasted, so you will need to allow space in your popcorn maker for the beans to grow. Next, measure out the coffee beans and place them into a paper or cloth bag.
You can also place the beans in an oven tray if you don’t have a bag. Make sure that the beans are not too tightly packed or they won’t roast properly. Now, place the popcorn machine on a counter or table that is near a wall socket. This way, the machine will be near enough to the wall to plug in, but not so close that it touches the wall.
Put the popcorn machine on the highest setting and allow it to heat up. Once the machine is heated, add the coffee beans to the machine and close the lid. Wait for the beans to finish roasting; a cracking sound signifies the beans are becoming ready and then empty the machine.
Tips For using a Popcorn Maker
- Use a popcorn machine that has a rotating drum or one that is heated from the bottom. These are the best machines to use for roasting coffee.
- Make sure you use a paper or cloth bag. You can also roast coffee beans in an oven tray, but they will need to be stirred more often.
- Coffee beans are extremely hot when they are roasted and will leave a stain on anything they come into contact with.
- Empty the beans out of the machine as soon as they are roasted. If you leave them in the machine, they will begin to cool and will be hard to grind.
In Conclusion – Benefits of Roasting Your Own Coffee
There are many benefits of roasting your own coffee. Those benefits include the uptake of a new hobby, a house full of wonderful aromas, having more control over your roast beans from light blends to darker blends. Notwithstanding those boons to roasting your own beans, they’ll last longer and keep nuanced flavors longer. Enjoy your new hobby and please roast carefully and always read the instructions if you’re using a popcorn maker.
- You may like: Lafeeca Espresso Machine 19 Bar Review (With Milk Frother)
- Read: Best Budget Espresso Machines With 20 BARS
- Try Nespresso milk frother reviews
- An interesting coffee read: Which Countries Beans are Best for Dark Roast?
