Roasting Coffee at Home: How to Roast Your Own Coffee

Do you love the smell of freshly roasted coffee? Have you ever thought about roasting your own coffee at home?

It's not just brewing coffee that's a special craft - roasting coffee is too. Coffee lovers know that the roast is especially decisive for the flavor of this beloved hot drink. If you're a coffee drinker who can't stand the sight of conventional store-bought coffee beans anymore, it's time to try roasting your own. We'll walk you through it step by step, and show you how your coffee can develop its true aroma. Discover {nrEvents} barista classes in Germany and Austria.

What makes a good coffee roast?

If you're looking for good, high-quality coffee, when buying you should make sure it was roasted in a drum roaster, and steer clear of industrially processed coffee.

In a drum roaster, the coffee is gently roasted over a longer period of time. The maximum temperature during bean roasting is also significantly lower than in industrial coffee production. Thanks to this gentler roasting process, acids break down and far fewer bitter compounds form.

In industrial production, on the other hand, the beans are often heated for just a few minutes at maximum temperatures of up to 700 degrees Celsius. This means the beans are already very dark on the outside after roasting, but still partly raw on the inside, which raises the beans' acidity. The high heat over such a short time ultimately produces a bitter coffee flavor. For truly high-quality coffee, look for beans that were roasted as evenly as possible.

How does roasting coffee work?

Want to roast your own coffee? Roasting coffee at home is a real craft and an art in itself. With a bit of practice, you can roast coffee beans yourself too. We'll explain your options and walk you through it step by step.

How do you roast coffee yourself?

There are several ways to roast coffee at home:

• Roasting coffee in a pan
• Roasting coffee in the oven
• Roasting coffee in a popcorn machine, if you have one
• Roasting coffee in a home roaster

What do you need to roast coffee?

Depending on which method you choose, you'll need different tools and ingredients to roast your own coffee. These include:

• Green coffee: raw, unroasted coffee beans
• A pan, an oven, a popcorn machine, or a home roaster
• An infrared thermometer to measure the temperature
• Something to stir the coffee beans in the pan
• A sieve for cooling the coffee beans
• An airtight container for storage

Roasting coffee yourself in a pan

What you need to roast coffee in a pan: Green coffee, a pan, an infrared thermometer, a wooden spoon for stirring, an airtight container for the coffee.

Instructions - How to roast coffee in a pan:

1. Add the green coffee to the pan.
2. It's important to stir the coffee constantly.
3. The heat in the pan should be around 200-220 degrees.
4. Make sure the beans roast evenly. This is difficult with this method, though. While some beans turn dark, others may stay raw.
5. Careful: the coffee beans will pop under heat, known as "cracking." As they heat up, pressure builds inside the beans, causing the hot beans to crack open after about 5 to 10 minutes and jump into the air like popcorn. So please be careful if you try this method - it's best to even wear safety goggles.
6. After about 15-20 minutes, the beans should be roasted, and you can remove them from the heat depending on your desired roast level.
7. Take the coffee beans out of the hot pan and let them cool on a surface.
8. Once the coffee beans have cooled, transfer them to an airtight container.
9. Enjoy your home-roasted coffee :)

Good to know: Roasting coffee really is something you learn with practice. In our coffee roasting workshop, you'll learn from a real professional what matters most.

Roasting coffee yourself in the oven

What you need to roast coffee in the oven: Washed green coffee, an oven, a wooden spoon for stirring, a sieve

Instructions - How to roast coffee in the oven, step by step:

1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius.
2. Spread the green coffee evenly on a baking sheet. It's best to use washed green coffee beans, since they have fewer bean skins that can fly around the oven during roasting.
3. Put the baking sheet in the oven.
4. Turn the coffee regularly so the roasting result comes out even.
5. After a while in the oven, you'll notice the beans start to "crack."
6. Depending on your desired roast, take the coffee beans out of the oven after 10-20 minutes.
7. Remove the coffee beans from the hot sheet and let them cool completely - for example, in a sieve.
8. Transfer the coffee beans to an airtight container and enjoy your home-roasted coffee! :)

Roasting coffee yourself in a popcorn machine

You can also roast coffee at home using a popcorn machine. Just like with the oven, it's best to use washed coffee.

Instructions - How to roast coffee in a popcorn machine:

1. Add the coffee to the popcorn machine in small batches - a maximum of 100 grams.
2. Turn on the popcorn machine.
3. After 15-20 minutes, you should notice the coffee beans "crack." You can then remove your coffee beans.
4. Let the home-roasted coffee beans cool on a cold surface and transfer them to an airtight container once cooled.
5. Enjoy your home-roasted coffee!

Roasting coffee yourself with a home roaster

There's now also a range of home roasters you can buy if you want to roast coffee at home regularly. These coffee roasters are usually equipped with an electric program for roasting coffee, so even beginners can safely use a home roaster to roast their own coffee.

Instructions - How coffee roasting works with a home roaster:

1. Preheat the home roaster to your desired temperature. A temperature of 200°C works well for roasting coffee.
2. Add the coffee beans to the designated container.
3. Set your desired program and roasting time.
4. The roasting machine will fully dry the coffee beans first, then move on to roasting them.
5. Not all home roasters produce the typical cracking sound of the coffee beans. However, you should be able to smell when the coffee is done roasting.
6. Wait until your desired roast level is reached.
7. Then remove the coffee beans from the container - careful, hot!
8. Transfer the beans to a sieve to cool and store the coffee in an airtight box.
9. Enjoy your home-roasted coffee! :)

What happens when coffee is roasted?

Roasting coffee beans sets off several reactions:

• Drying of the coffee beans: the beans dry out from the heat and lose weight as a result.
• Rising pressure: as the temperature rises, the coffee bean gains volume. Pressure increases.
• The Maillard reaction: the Maillard reaction kicks in as the coffee beans slowly turn brown. Along with water, the beans also lose CO2 and other compounds. Once the pressure inside the beans reaches a certain point, they crack open - you might know a similar process from popcorn. In coffee beans, this first crack is called the "First Crack."
• Development of the roast: from this point on, the coffee beans no longer absorb heat, but release it. Oils also form on the surface of the beans, and they darken in color.

Tip: Do you love good coffee? In our barista workshops, you'll learn how to prepare the perfect coffee - from the perfect roast to latte art. Discover barista classes near you.

How long should coffee be roasted?

While industrial coffee roasting using the hot air method takes very little time, other methods roast the coffee more gently.

The optimal duration varies depending on your desired roast level, since every coffee drinker has their own taste.

Who invented coffee roasting?

For many of us, freshly brewed coffee in the morning is simply unthinkable to do without. But how did coffee actually find its way to us, and who came up with the idea of roasting the beans?

Many myths surround the history of the coffee bean. According to legend, the coffee plant originally comes from Ethiopia. Coffee was first mentioned in writing as early as 900 AD. Back then, though, the beans weren't roasted yet. People dried the red fruit and the leaves of the coffee plant and poured hot water over them - much the way we still make tea today.

It wasn't until coffee traveled through the Arab world to Istanbul that the coffee beans were removed from the fruit and dried. The beans were then roasted, ground, and boiled with water.

As early as the 16th century, the first coffee houses opened in Istanbul. At times, though, coffee drinkers in the Ottoman Empire were even persecuted, since the ruler had simply banned the caffeinated drink.

In the 1580s, a physician from Augsburg traveled through the Arab region and ultimately brought coffee back to Europe as a souvenir. In the 17th century, the first coffee houses opened in major European cities like Venice, London, Vienna, and Paris. In 1673, the first coffee house opened in Bremen.

Why should you roast your own coffee?

With home-roasted coffee, you can shape the aroma of your coffee to your own taste and preferences. Roasting coffee is a fascinating process. The roast master's job is to guide the processes that give the coffee its great flavor. Through the craft of coffee roasting, you take matters into your own hands and shape your coffee exactly the way you love it.

Roasting your own coffee beans also gives you the certainty that you're really drinking fresh coffee. You know exactly what's in your coffee.

Good to know: Roasting your own coffee beans is fascinating, but not necessarily easy. You can learn it, though. In our coffee roasting workshop, you'll learn step by step how it's done, and can get all your questions answered.