How to Roast Coffee: Tips on Roasting Your Own Coffee Beans

There are different methods on how to roast coffee, ranging from a stovetop popcorn popper to automatic roasters. The method you choose depends how hands-on you want to be, what your budget is, and how much roasting you want to do.

But first you will need to find a reliable supply (and supplier) of unroasted green coffee beans. In the consumer market, these can be tricky to find as they won't be on the shelves of many stores. Good coffee stores will be able to help you buy good coffee beans, though. Look around, check out the online stores, and see what's available.

How To Roast Coffee: Light to Dark

Each of the roasts provides both a different color of the coffee bean, a different flavor, and a different kind of coffee in your cup. Just as important, though, is that you need to know which kind of roasted coffee bean you prefer to drink! You'll enjoy the whole process that much more, once you experiment and discover for yourself how to roast coffee!

So let's take a look at some of the roasting methods: Stove Top, Oven Roasting, and Dedicated Coffee Roasting Machines.

Stove Top Roasting Method

Heat your receptacle of choice to about 475°F. Add about 8 ounces of unroasted beans and keep the beans in motion at all times. You’ll hear them begin to crackle in a few minutes and start to see smoke. When you see the beans begin to crack they will start to change color – the 'first crack' that baristas talk about!

Once you get the light, medium or dark roast you want, pour the beans into a metal colander and continue to agitate them so they will cool quickly. When roasting coffee beans you should have a stove hood to vent the smoke created or use a fan in front of an open window. Whatever you do, do not disable your smoke alarm!

The Oven Method

You can make your own or buy one at a kitchen supply store. Preheat the oven to 500°F, load the pan with your beans and place it on the middle rack. After about fifteen minutes they will be lightly roasted; leave them in longer for darker roasting.

When they are done the way you like them put them in a metal colander and shake it vigorously to separate the chaff and speed the cooling process.

Roasting Machines

You may also want to check out a few other brands of coffee bean roasters before you purchase one. You can find these fluid air bed coffee roasting machines starting at just under $100 to around $350.

In general, this type of roaster retains the bright notes in the coffee flavor but loses much of the fuller body you might get with stovetop roasting.

So that's how to roast coffee

Even if you could roast-on-demand, the roast coffee beans that have been roasted need a few hours at least before they reach maximum flavor.  Once the beans are cooled, store them in a cool, dry place and allow them to rest for a day to develop their full flavor and aroma.

To get more information, advice, and even a complete guide, take a look at these coffee roasting books. If you learn how to roast coffee, you will always have freshly roasted beans available to grind and brew!

And Finally...

Wherever you are, remember "Only Coffee Beans Make Great Coffee"! And enjoy that cup of coffee!

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