Coffee Roasting Tips

The process of transforming green coffee beans into brown ones is called roasting. Roasting changes the chemical and physical properties of the coffee beans. During the process, the bean increases in size and there are significant changes in its taste, color, smell and density. The heat generated during the roasting process causes the changes in the chemical reaction of beans, turning carbohydrates and fats into aromatic oils. It also burns off moisture and carbon dioxide. If you are looking for some tips on roasting coffee, go through the following lines.

Coffee Roasting Tips

The appearance of the coffee beans would alter after a few minutes of roasting, with the color changing from green to lighter yellowish. The beans would also start emitting a grassy aroma.
On roasting, steam would come out of the beans, as the water present in them starts releasing.
Two distinct popping sounds are heard during coffee roasting, known as the first and second 'crack'. This is because the sugars in the beans start to caramelize resulting in the release of more water. Thus, the structure of the bean breaks down and oils starts releasing.
If you want very light coffee, stop the roasting process after the first crack. At this stage, the beans are called the Cinnamon Roast. They are dark brown in color, but not oily. After this, the beans begin to caramelize more. The roast becomes darker, more oils appear and the bean expands.
The second crack would be louder than the first crack. It is at this stage that pieces of chaff blow from the bean. After the second crack, stop the roasting process, unless you want to go for a dark roast.
During the second crack, the sugars will burn and the beans would emit a pungent smoke. The dark beans will take on a very oily appearance.
If you roast after the second crack, the beans would be very dark in color. Sugar would be completely burned and smoke would be prevalent. It would look more like an espresso.
If you roast even after this, you would get a French or Italian roasted bean. No traces of sugar and oil would be there, as they would be completely burned off. The coffee made out of such roasted beans is generally thinner.

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