Roasting coffee beans at home is now so easy with the results often as good as those beans which have been professionally roasted.
There is a wide choice of roasters available. Everyday kitchen equipment such as popcorn maker or frying pans can be used. The most important thing is to make sure the equipment is clean. Left over butter or oils could really affect the taste of the coffee.
Dark roasts contain a little less caffeine than lighter roasts, but they lack the acid taste of the latter. Be sure to start with quality beans, of course!
The beans will need to heat to between 460F (223C) and 530F (262C), so be prepared for some smoke. That’s easily taken care of with a small room fan or stove top exhaust. Beyond the smoke there will be an odor, so your first experiments should probably be done with the windows open and no one home.
Turn up the heat and get those beans in the roaster! (You may need to disable your fire alarms for a short while).
Many roasters have an in-built thermometer, but having an extra thermometer may be a good idea when you use the frying pan method. Candy making thermometers are ideal for this purpose.
How strong you like your roast depends how long you let the beans roast. The beans start out green, then turn yellow then brown. The darker brown the bean the darker your roast.
When the beans begin to heat up you make hear a loud back when the bean bursts. This is because the heat puts pressure of the surface of the bean. Don’t worry, this is perfectly normal. You should here this sound after about four to seem minutes. Make sure you keep stirring the beans every 30 seconds or so.
The sugars inside will begin to caramelize (turn brown and ‘burn’ slightly) as the roasting continues. Again the degree is a matter of taste. Check the color every 30 seconds or so.
Roast long enough and sometimes a second loud crack will occur. At this stage the beans will be quite dark and for some palates a little overdone. Beyond the second crack you’re really just burning the beans and boiling away the sugars. The results will be too harsh for most.
Transfer the beans to a metal colander, then agitate them. The reason you need to agitate the beans is to remove the fine skin ‘chaff’ that results from roasting. Once this skin is removed the beans are ready to use.
Roasting is a trial process. You will need to try a few batches with different roasting times before you find your perfect roast to get the perfect flavour from your coffee. It may be an idea to remove the beans for the heat a little early as the heat within the bean will mean they still continue to cook for a little while after you have removed them from the heat.
For the popcorn popper style roasting, be sure to get one that allows you to stir up the beans to keep them moving around and not sticking to the surfaces. For the stove top style, a cast iron skillet works great. Be prepared for lots of stirring and viewing. Roasting coffee beans happens quickly!
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