Saturday, August 27, 2011

The Green Coffee Beans - Secret to the Freshest Coffee

When the canning industry was just in its infancy during the middle 19th century, eating canned food was viewed classy by many middle-class families who see the preserved delights as some sort of a novelty. Well, that was eons ago. Times have changed and people these days, regardless of socio-economic status, would rather prefer to eat fresh food.
This hype concerning freshness is certainly not unfounded. As the scientific community have become more aware of the serious health repercussions that can be incurred from devouring preservative-laced foods, it is not surprising why people nowadays want all of their food served fresh as much as possible. So deep is this I-want-it-fresh thing in Americans' psyche that we just do not stop at fresh veggies, fruits, and sea foods. We want all things fresh, including our coffee.
But enjoying a fresh cup of coffee is not an instant one-step process. You can't just go to a supermarket and pick farm fresh coffee. Well, you may argue that you there's a "fresh" label printed on the packed coffee beans languishing on the supermarket shelf. That is a sure way to a fresh cup of Joe, right? Well, it is really not. That "fresh" tag is certainly misleading. There is only one way to get a 100 percent fresh cup of coffee-and that comes with roasting your own green coffee beans.
The Green coffee is the term used to designate untasted coffee beans. How is it different from roasted ones? Well, roasting changes coffee a lot. Unroasted beans are bitter and very acidic. Roasting takes out such unwanted properties and renders coffee drinkable. It also catalyzes chemical reactions that forces enzymes inside the beans to produce characteristic coffee flavors and aroma. The negative side is that these distinctive properties of coffee do not last long once the beans were roasted. For you to enjoy coffee with fresh flavors and aroma, you would need to buy green coffee beans and roast them by yourself.
The Roasting at your home is not really a complex process. It is an art that you can learn. You do not need to buy an expensive high-end roaster. It would not make any difference at all. When it comes to proper roasting of coffee, you just need to follow basic rules: heat the beans between 370 to 540 degrees Fahrenheit; do not let the beans stay in one spot to prevent uneven roasting; and once maximum temperature is achieved, cool the beans quickly to avoid over-roasting. It may be tricky at first, but once you get the hang of home roasting, you will certainly reap the benefits of your labors every time you take a sip of coffee full of fresh flavors and aroma.

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