For many of you, coffee is an important part of the morning routine. Nothing is worse than not being able to relish a coffee cup before starting a new day. Whether you enjoy the coffee shot in a café shop or at home, it is almost the time to make your coffee. Buy fresh coffee beans and begin with the grinding process. First, find the way to grind coffee beans when you do not have a proper coffee grinder.
Why should you grind the coffee beans?
An outstanding cup of coffee begins with freshly ground beans. Not only will grinding coffee at home let you control the grind size of your brewing method, but it also assists you in extracting the greatest flavors and aroma in the kitchen.
Once you open a coffee bag, the beans would react with oxygen and start to degrade. When oxidation happens, flavors escape into the air, and coffee beans become stale immediately.
Moreover, the longer coffee grounds are exposed to the air, the more affected they are by consuming other scents, changing the way brewed drinks taste. Brewing freshly ground beans collects more robust, flavor shots that carry the subtle nuances of coffee beans and roasts.
Grind your coffee beans with alternative options
There are many tools and appliances in your kitchen that could grind coffee beans. The point here is how you need them to brew your drink. In case you lack a coffee grinder, here are a few options to solve the problem. Grab a pen and paper to take note.
A blender (coarse and medium)
A blender is a mini version of a food processor. It possibly grinds coffee beans on the similar principle and it could get the same results. This is a basic method for coffee grinding, but you should not expect a miracle. Like with any other appliance, it cannot provide you an expected grind size. A blender is not a bad choice when you do not have a good coffee grinder.
Like other devices with blades, a blender can create heat when working. As you know, heat makes flavors and aromas at once from the coffee beans. It is not something you want to happen before the coffee making process. Thus, please bear in mind that you should keep the grinding process short. It would be better to grind in short bursts than to remain the machine working without any break.
A food processor (coarse and medium)
A food processor has a similar principle of working as a blade grinder. It ought to slice coffee beans and inherit you a coarse grind. Therefore, you possibly make a French Press. Please bear in mind that the processing chamber is quite big, you will need to put several beans.
- Pour the coffee beans into the chamber. You should add a half cup of beans (at least). However, do not put more than a full cup.
- Close the lid
- Grind the coffee beans with the pulse settings (between 3 and 5 seconds)
- Repeat the previous step till you get the true consistency (it should not take more than 30 seconds in total)
A spice grinder (coarse and medium)
Do you have a spice grinder in the kitchen? A spice grinder is a glass jar (or a wooden one) with the top-mounted grinder. This is an incredible way to grind coffee beans without a coffee grinder needed.
Do not worry about how large your coffee beans are. This is because coffee beans are no trouble for these small gentlemen. They are made to grind hard or coarse spices as well as seeds. Make sure that spice grinders are clean without odors before usage. Any extra flavors in your coffee beans will occur from a spice grinder.
A mortar and a pestle (coarse, medium, fine, and super fine)
A mortar and a pestle are traditional culinary appliances. They help you to control the grind size and allow you to crush coffee beans at your proposal. Your coffee beans could be finely ground or extremely fine grounds.
You put coffee beans in the mortar (up to one-fourth) and keep in place with a hand when crushing beans with the pestle and the other (if relevant). When the right texture and ground size have been gained, you should roll the pestle around the mortar. Please note that the ratio of one-fourth in the mortar could be filled at a time for high handle.
A hand mincer (coarse and medium)
If you have a hand mincer, try it for your coffee grinding process. It could not be in every kitchen, but it is a great option when you do not have a proper coffee grinder. This is one of the few techniques for attaining coarse-ground coffee that brings an optimal outcome.
Place your coffee beans into the upper aperture. Then, you turn the unit on till all of the beans are released. Nevertheless, feed the ground beans through the machine again if you need to get medium (in order to own a finer grind).
A rolling pin (coarse, medium, and fine)
Do you have a rolling pin? Do not forget that tool as you can use it for grinding coffee beans. Nonetheless, it usually produces a coarser grind that mostly fits French Press coffee.
Add some coffee beans in a Ziploc bag and ensure there is not any air inside to prevent the bag opening or popping when pressure is started. Shake the bag periodically to alleviate the coffee when you use a rolling pin to crumble the beans.
You need to roll the bag over with the rolling pin firm but slightly and steadily pressing the beans. Continue the process till the required texture is gotten. Place all the beans in a plastic bag to prevent the crushed grounds from flying off in any direction when rolling.
Pre-ground and whole coffee beans
They are both options for making coffee, but they have some differences in terms of flavor, freshness, aroma, and convenience.
Pre-ground coffee beans are simply already ground and you can brew the coffee rapidly. As a convenient selection, people tend to buy pre-ground coffee beans to skip the grinding time. Of course, pre-ground beans lose some of the flavors and aromas over time.
Whole coffee beans, on the flip side, are not ready ground and need to be freshly ground. You have to grind all the coffee beans before brewing. Furthermore, you should decide which types of coffee you would like to enjoy as it affects the consistency and final results.
FAQs
How fine or coarse should your coffee be?
It depends on your preferences and brewing method chosen.
Could you make coffee shots without grinding the beans first?
Yes, you can. It is possible to make coffee without grinding beans first by using instant coffee or pre-ground coffee. However, you could easily end up with a coffee cup with bitter coffee-flavored water.
Is there a distinction in grinding when it comes to roast levels?
Yes, there is. The grind size can jolt the extraction of flavors and aromas from the coffee. Different roast levels require different grind sizes to obtain the expected best results.
How long should you grind your coffee beans?
The length of time to grind coffee beans will rely on the grinder you are using and the desired consequence of the coffee shot. For a commercial electric burr grinder, for instance, it probably takes between 15 and 20 seconds to complete and you will get a medium coarseness. For a finer grind, it ought to take a little longer.
Bottom line
If you prefer enjoying the taste and flavor of freshly ground coffee, you will invest in a true coffee grinder. Nevertheless, what if you lack one or you are in a situation where you could not use it? Do not be concerned about the problem as there are some solutions to grind the coffee beans without a grinder by using some popular household items.
