1. Home
  2. Coffee Forum
  3. Two questions (cooking and ground storage)

Two questions (cooking and ground storage)

Two simple coffee questions...

1) I was watching this movie a long, long time ago where a guy was simply cooking coffee in a pan. I've been reading up on so-called French Presses and unless I'm missing something, I could simply heat water to 195-200F, throw in the coffee, cover the pot, let it sit for a minute, stir, let sit for two more minutes, then pour out the results through a metal strainer and voila, cofee. No need for any silly gear.

Is this correct? I would imagine that it's a purist sort of approach. I like it, but not for that reason (just plain simple and doesn't require "crap" to achieve).

2) I'm going to have the beans ground at my local store. How long can I expect them to stay fresh? I intend to keep them in opaque, airtight containers.

Thanks much in advance for the answers.

Regards, Nascent

Reply to
Nascent
Loading thread data ...

Yup.

18 minutes. Yes, blind taste tests have shown that tasters can reliably tell the difference between "just" ground and "18 minute ago" ground. Once you grind coffee you've created about a million times the surface area for oxygen to start acting upon, and oxygen is coffee's worst enemy.

That said, I've actually ground coffee into ziplock baggies before overnight trips, and even after 24 hrs. the coffee wasn't "bad"... it just wasn't fresh.

Too late. Once the coffee has gone through the grinder, you've already exposed it to more than enough oxygen to keep the staling process going.

Reply to
Steve Ackman

Hi,

(1) I guess---. If the coffee tastes good, then you've made it correctly.

(2) Green coffee keeps for months, even years in a breathable burlap bag on a flat pallet. Roasted is usable for around two weeks before it starts to lose flavor and the essential oils that distinguish it. Ground coffee lasts for a couple of days before the flavors diminish,IMHO, based on two years experience of roasting my own.

RH

Nascent wrote:

Reply to
Richard Hurwitz

DrinksForum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.