What Are the Different Ways to Grind Your Coffee?

Grinding coffee beans at home is a process that is done by many coffee enthusiasts. However, it would seem to be quite illogical for some people as it would be easier for a person to just buy packed ground coffee that is available on the market than to grind his coffee beans at home. But even though it is a really confusing concept to some, there really is a good reason why people choose to grind their own coffee beans, and that is because it can give you the freshest cup of coffee!

Newly ground coffee can bring out the best-tasting coffee as the essential oils are still present. There are instances when ground coffee is left exposed to the air (or oxygen) for a long time that the oils are actually lessened, thus, making the coffee bland and not entirely ideal for consumption. So by using freshly ground coffee, you are assured that these essential oils and nutrients are still present and will yield the best results. So for novice coffee grinders, what are the different ways to grind your coffee at home?

One way that you can do is by using a burr-grinder. Burr-grinding is commonly used by most coffee enthusiasts. A burr-grinder, or a burr-mill, is composed of two abrasive surfaces that revolve in order to grind the coffee beans. Burr-grinding is ideal because it uses minimal frictional heating that retains the aroma of the coffee. It also causes the beans to release some oils and nutrients that will easily be extracted by the hot water used in the brewing process, resulting to a great cup of coffee!

You can also use choppers as an alternative to the burr-grinders. You can use the regular home blender or chopper that is commonly present on everyone's kitchen. This is more practical as you won't need to purchase a grinder for your coffee needs when you already have a blender available in your home. There is a disadvantage to this, though, because these blenders do not really perform accurately as much as coffee grinders. These blenders are not really designed for coffee and that sometimes cause the beans to be ground unevenly. Unevenly ground beans, in turn, will make brewing difficult as you will have a hard time anticipating the final taste of the coffee.

You can also choose to use the classic mortar and pestle by pounding the beans! This is a super electricity-efficient procedure and you can basically control the fineness of the ground coffee! But of course there is a major setback as it would require you to use more manual energy.

These are some of the ways to grind your coffee at home. Try them and see what wonders coffee grinding could provide you!

Ivan is a coffee enthusiast who loves to write about coffee as much as drinking it. Check out his website at http://www.coffeeadmirer.com/ where he writes more about grinding coffee and coffee grinders.

Best Coffee Grinders - Different Types Of Grinders And Their Characteristics

Only true coffee lovers appreciate the quality of a cup of hot coffee brewed from freshly ground beans. And of course, to make the best coffee you must choose the top quality beans and the best coffee grinders. Choosing a coffee grinder or mill can be really confusing, since there are so many different options to choose from. There are several types of grinders available in the market, and each of them has its own advantages and disadvantages.

The blade grinder is the cheapest and the most common type of automatic coffee grinder. It may not be the best, but it still produces coffee grounds that taste better than instant coffee. Blade grinders tend to be noisy and produce uneven, chunky bits of coffee beans. And since the blades rotate very fast, they can create friction heat, which causes the coffee to lose its aroma and results in a bitter, burnt taste. The resulting grind is good enough for drip machines, but it won't work well in a French press or an espresso machine.

If you are looking for a more versatile automatic grinder, then you should get a burr grinder. The crushing mechanism consists of a spinning wheel ring and a stationary wheel ring. Since the gap between these wheels is consistent, the grinder is able to produce even-sized grounds. Burr grinders also produce less friction heat, thus preserving the flavor of the coffee.

The conical burr grinder is arguably the best option. It can be a bit pricey but its unique conical design allows for extra fine grinding. It is much quieter, and produces very little heat. This is the best grinder for French press coffee makers and espresso machines.

Alternatively, you may want to have a look at manual grinders. A manual or hand coffee mill is capable of producing the same even and consistent grind as the burr grinder, but it will preserve the flavor of the coffee even better because it generate much less heat. In addition to that, the classic design of the hand coffee grinder will add a touch of elegance to any kitchen.

It can be concluded that the differences between each type of coffee grinder lie in the grind consistency and the amount of friction heat produced. When it comes to pricing, you will find that blade grinders are the cheapest. Burr, conical burr, and hand grinders are available in a wide range of price, according to the brand and the features offered.

For the perfect cup of coffee, you have to use highest quality beans and the best coffee grinders. It is important to know the differences between the best coffee grinders when choosing a coffee grinder.

How to Clean Different Commercial Coffee Urns

There are many different kinds of commercial urns that need to be cleaned daily and weekly or bi-weekly. Daily cleaning for most of them remains about the same. The number one rule about cleaning urns: Never use chlorine bleach in any coffee urn. This will chlorine will eat at the stainless steel and the silicone gaskets. Also, whether you are doing a daily cleaning or a bi-weekly cleaning never use soap, scouring powders, or abrasives of any kind to clean coffee brewing urns.

Automatic coffee urns must be cleaned daily after the last batch using the following steps:

1 - Drain the urn; then, run a brew cycle with just very hot water. After spraying hot water into the liner, thoroughly brush the entire urn with a long-handled brush.

2 - Drain the water and repeat step one.

3 - Wash the wire brew baskets with urn cleaner and rinse thoroughly. The same process is required for the double or triple urns after they have been used.

Automatic urns must have a special scouring once a week. Scour the urn by first filling the urn and heat to maximum brewing temperature. Fill the liner with several gallons of water and add at least 1? to 3 ounces of coffee urn cleaning compound. Set the thermostat to high; then, run a brew cycle of hot water. Allow the solution to remain in the liner for at least 30 minutes. Scrub the inside of both the liner and the cover with a long-handled brush. Drain the cleaning solution from the liner. Rinse by running several brew cycles with the sprayhead centered over the liner. Be sure to drain the rinse water after each brew cycle.

To clean the gauge glass tube, turn off the power and turn off the water line to the urn. Use a long, thin gauge glass brush to clean the coffee gauge glass. Use the same brush to clean the fitting at the bottom of the liner and into the pipe that is connected to the coffee faucet.

It is an absolute necessity that Chinese hot tea urns, pour-over urns, midline and barista series urns need to be cleaned thoroughly at the end of each day. After spaying hot water in the stainless steel liner, thoroughly wash it with a soft brush using the hot water. Add one tablespoon of bicarbonate of soda to each gallon of water or you may use commercial urn cleaners. Commercial cleaners are not recommended for this type of urn. These urns should be turned off before each gauge glass should be cleaned with a hard bristle brush. Faucets should be taken apart and cleaned properly until fully clean. Daily cleaning for Midland urns and Barista series urns need to run through the brew cycle with hot water, brush the liner, drain the urn water again and repeat the process again. Wipe the liner covers and fill the liners with about one gallon of hot water to prevent coffee-oil burn-in.

Weekly or bi-weekly urn cleaning depends on the amount of use. For regular use, the Chinese hot tea urns, midline heat exchange and pump urns and Barista Series require somewhat the same method. Where it varies for one urn, it will be noted at that step.

Step 1: Fill the liners with about a gallon of hot water. For midline urns and space saver urns leave the thermostat on "Brew."

Step 2: Pour into the liner the recommended concentration amount of urn cleaner that is recommended for that particular urn. An excessive amount of cleaner will attack the stainless steel causing deterioration of the coffee urn. Use cleaners which have been used successfully: DIP-IT by Economics Laboratories, OXYLITE by Avril, Inc., Syndet Division and TEMP-KLEEN by Caddy Corp. of America.

Step 3: Scrub the liner interior with a large plastic brush, rinse and drain the liner. For midline and space saver urns follow Step 3a: Clean the gauge glasses with a long narrow brush.

Step 4: Rinse with the liners empty and the electricity off, remove the coffee faucets by unscrewing the large plastic wing-nuts which fasten the faucets. Scrub from the opening into the center of the urn with a long brush.

Step 5: Unscrew the top of the faucet from it body and scrub it thoroughly. Clean the silicone seat cup with a soft cloth and soapy water.

Step 6: Reassemble the faucets. Fill the liners with hot water and drain until the liner and make sure all parts are completely rinsed.

High speed brewing urns require a separate cleaning process because of the outer jacket.

Step 1: When cleaning a high speed brewer, be sure the outer jacket is full of water.

Step 2: Turn on the heat and fill the urn liner three-fourths full of water and use only urn cleaning compounds like those mentioned above.

Step 3: Mix thoroughly and let stand for about 30 minutes.

Step 4: Clean the gauge glass, faucet pipe, plugs etc. using a long-handled brush. Be sure to clean the "lug nut" in the base of the liner.

Step 5: Rinse the inside of the urn three to four times with hot water and scrub the urn each time you rinse.

Step 6: Rinse all the parts well.

Step 7: Leave a gallon or more of water in the urn. The amount of water depends on the size of the urn; the larger urns will need more water. Leave the cover partly open until the next use. If you used cold water, allow the urn to cool to prevent cracking the liner.

Step 8: Clean urn baskets by dipping them in a solution of cleaning solution and then scrubbing them with a stiff brush.

Step 9: Rinse thoroughly and let dry. Each Sprayhead should be checked to see that all holes are open, if not, scrub with a stiff brush until all holes are open.

These cleaning steps for commercial urns came from different manufacturers. Check your manufacturer for more specific details.

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