Did you know you can roast your own coffee? The reason for doing this is that the coffee is fresher and has flavor complexities you don't get any other way. Even whole beans that you grind yourself lose noticeable flavor in less than three days. Green beans, though, are stable for over a year (if stored in a cool, dry place)and you can roast a few days worth at a time. The difference is obvious, especially once you've tasted it!
Step 1
Find a place. Roasting generates smoke. Under the range hood, in the garage, or near an exhaust fan.
Step 2
Follow your roaster's instructions. For the FreshRoast 8, using too much coffee causes the heater to turn off, and you get an under-roast.
Step 3
If you're using the HGDB method, assemble the stainless steel bowl, colander, heatgun, & wooden spoon, and set up in a dry, well-ventilated space. Put the colander on top of the steel bowl, which raises it, and catches some of the heat and reflects it back. A damp cloth under the bowl helps stop it spinning.
Step 4
Weigh out a maximum of around 400g of green beans into the colander, and starting on a low heat, and using circular motion, begin warming the beans, while stirring with a wooden spoon. Continue this until the external skin dries and blows off as chaff (this is at around 120 degrees C). As the temperature increases, and the beans start to brown, you may need to turn the heatgun up to a higher setting, but do this gradually. Continue to stir - this is essential.
Step 5
Roast to desired degree. To begin, roast to a dark brown. You may like darker roasts (like most of Starbucks' roasts) but it's easy to lose flavor and make charcoal water so don't go quite so dark to start. The sound is also an indication: there are two "cracks" when you roast evenly. You may stop roasting any time after the first crack (a sound like popcorn popping); and if you continue much after the second crack you will have more charcoal than coffee. If you roast just using a pan on the stove, make sure to stir constantly to avoid scorched beans.
Step 6
Roast the night before. You want around 12 hours for the beans to expel their carbon dioxide. Store them in a loosely lidded jar.
Step 7
Make your coffee using a drip, French press, or other good method (there are several wikiHow articles on making coffee.)
