The Best Way To Keep A Bag Of Coffee Beans Once It's Open
It's a current trend for people to store their coffee beans in the fridge. The thing is that to keep our beans fresh we need to keep them away from moisture, heat, light and air so the people who keep them in the fridge to keep them cool are actually doing so at the expense of adding humidity and moisture, especially if they are going in and out of the fridge every day.
If we have to pick one, we should always choose dry over cool.
If absolutely necessary we can freeze our coffee beans but only if we thaw them thoroughly and use them up as soon as possible.
Coffee Storage Containers
You need to keep any newly opened bag of coffee beans free from it 4 main adversaries. The most basic way to do this, and the way in which most people go, is to keep them in an air tight container in a cool, dry cupboard.
This is a pretty good way to keep your beans fresh, but not the best. Roasted coffee beans are continually letting off a gas (which is the real reason for the one-way valves you see on new bags in the store). If you store beans in a standard air tight container, there is nowhere for the gas to escape to.
The second reason is that even though no more air is coming into the container once sealed, there is still air inside it when you close the lid, which can still affect the beans and cause them to lose freshness.
If you are willing to spend a few dollars on a specially designed coffee storage container then you will be able to maintain the freshness of your coffee beans for as long as possible.
Valves are seen on some models, similar to the valves used on bags of beans, which can help the beans breathe without letting any new air in. These are a step up from the regular sealed tupperware-style plastic container that you are probably using right now.
There are storage containers that go one step further too. Some do still use these one way valves, but to take it to the next level they let you pump out all the air to create a vacuum inside. This innovation will keep your beans fresher for much longer and is a great option
Next you just need to make sure they are kept cool and away from light. For example, at the back of a kitchen cupboard or in the pantry
How to store ground coffee
Some might not like this statement, but the best way to store ground coffee is in the bin, as soon as they have been used up! As soon as you have ground your beans they start to lose freshness right away, so the best advice is to only grind your beans just before you need to use them. You should really make an effort to avoid grinding beans ahead of time and therefore avoid the need to store them after being ground.
If we have to pick one, we should always choose dry over cool.
If absolutely necessary we can freeze our coffee beans but only if we thaw them thoroughly and use them up as soon as possible.
Coffee Storage Containers
You need to keep any newly opened bag of coffee beans free from it 4 main adversaries. The most basic way to do this, and the way in which most people go, is to keep them in an air tight container in a cool, dry cupboard.
This is a pretty good way to keep your beans fresh, but not the best. Roasted coffee beans are continually letting off a gas (which is the real reason for the one-way valves you see on new bags in the store). If you store beans in a standard air tight container, there is nowhere for the gas to escape to.
The second reason is that even though no more air is coming into the container once sealed, there is still air inside it when you close the lid, which can still affect the beans and cause them to lose freshness.
If you are willing to spend a few dollars on a specially designed coffee storage container then you will be able to maintain the freshness of your coffee beans for as long as possible.
Valves are seen on some models, similar to the valves used on bags of beans, which can help the beans breathe without letting any new air in. These are a step up from the regular sealed tupperware-style plastic container that you are probably using right now.
There are storage containers that go one step further too. Some do still use these one way valves, but to take it to the next level they let you pump out all the air to create a vacuum inside. This innovation will keep your beans fresher for much longer and is a great option
Next you just need to make sure they are kept cool and away from light. For example, at the back of a kitchen cupboard or in the pantry
How to store ground coffee
Some might not like this statement, but the best way to store ground coffee is in the bin, as soon as they have been used up! As soon as you have ground your beans they start to lose freshness right away, so the best advice is to only grind your beans just before you need to use them. You should really make an effort to avoid grinding beans ahead of time and therefore avoid the need to store them after being ground.
About the Author:
Gary Sterling is a regular contributor to Coffee Lovers 101. Please visit his site for more helpful articles like this one as well as many other grind and brew reviews
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