Every detail matters in making good coffee, including the quality preparation of coffee beans. It is no coincidence that the degree of roasting and other nuances are indicated on the packaging. The taste of the finished drink, its aroma and beneficial properties for the body depend on how you roast coffee beans at home.
What is roasting for and its types
As a rule, coffee is delivered to us ready-made, the buyer only has to pour it into a Turk or coffee maker. But true gourmets prefer to prepare it completely independently, from the preparation of raw materials to the final preparation of the drink.
They do not trust anyone with the roasting process either. This is the main component of success the taste of coffee, its aroma, flavor and aftertaste depend on it. During the process, you can provide coffee beans with an unrivaled taste, or you can hopelessly spoil them.
There are eight degrees of roasting of beans:
- Cinnamon – coffee beans acquire a light brown hue, are slightly larger in size and emit the aroma of freshly baked bread. A rare type of roasting for fine connoisseurs;
- Light or continental roast – light brown color of beans without oiliness;
- Medium – coffee beans are roasted to an even brown or chestnut color with no oily sheen at all;
- City – with this method, the coffee beans acquire a deep, rich shade of dark brown and increase in size evenly. Oil stripes are visible on the smooth surface;
- Full City or Seattle style – dark brown or reddish-dark beans with a light oily film;
- Dark – black oily grains;
- Italian – black, very oily grains smell of burning. An amateur’s method.
- French – the darkest roast, coffee is roasted to a very dark reddish or black color with a rich oily film. As a result, the coffee drink becomes stronger and tart. Only dense fruits grown in highland areas are suitable for this method. The finished drink has a strong smoky flavor, so not everyone likes it.
How to Roast Beans at Home
There are many ways to roast at home, from simple methods for beginners to professional recipes.
But the exact instructions for proper roasting of coffee beans depend on the power of the stove or the device on which the procedure is carried out, on the selected degree, and finally, on individual preferences and other conditions.
The easiest way to roast coffee is in a frying pan or saucepan on a gas or electric stove . The frying pan should be aluminum without a non-stick coating, impeccably clean, otherwise the coffee beans will absorb the smell and taste of other dishes that were previously cooked in it. There should be no carbon deposits or grease, ideally buy new cookware and use it only for this process.
Roasting at home is done on a medium flame of a medium burner. The frying pan must first be heated on the fire for 15 seconds. Green coffee beans are poured onto the hot surface and immediately begin to stir with a wooden spatula or whisk. From this moment, the roasting time is counted on a stopwatch. It is better to roast in small portions of 100 grams, in case of failure, so as not to spoil a lot of the product at once. In addition, this way the coffee is easier to stir.
The main thing is that the grains must be constantly turned over, not a single grain should be in one position for more than a second. This is the only way to roast them evenly and thoroughly.
As soon as the contents of the pan begin to make a uniform crackling sound, we begin the countdown. This period is called grain development and should not be more than 25% of the total roasting time. On average, the total roasting time is 8-15 minutes (depending on the temperature), which means grain development is 2-4 minutes. If you overroast the coffee, it will acquire an unpleasant smoky taste or even a bitter burnt taste.
After this, the pan is immediately removed from the heat, and the coffee is poured onto a previously prepared metal baking sheet. You cannot leave them on the pan, even if you have already removed it from the heat they will burn and the drink will be spoiled. The baking sheet should not be damp or dirty under any circumstances.
The faster the grains cool down, the better; to achieve this, you can place them near an open window.
