# Looking for a low cost roaster



## Dazzystar

Hi All,

As I only get through at home about 150g of beans over a weekend period I can't afford nor justify the expense of a 'proper' roaster and was wondering if there was a low cost version such as a pan over the gas hob I could use instead?

Cheers

Daz


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## Dazzystar

This is going to sound a bit weird but I have an electric popcorn make someone bought us a few years ago (never used it by the way). It looks very much like this http://www.costco.co.uk/view/p/cinema-popcorn-maker-4oz-444440

I shall assume this cannot / should not be used for coffee?


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## Phil104

Actually, the current Caffeine reviews three roasters and the Prima PCM001 popcorn maker, £10 from ebay, performed almost as well as the £600 Ikawa in a blind tasting of the results.

I assume you have spotted the other thread about a cheap stovetop roaster.


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## Phil104

It is this one:

http://coffeeforums.co.uk/showthread.php?29587-Nuvo-Korean-Ceramic-Handy-Roaster


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## Dazzystar

Seriously? A popcorn maker can roast beans? They don't move around in the heat though!!


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## Ramrod

Phil104 said:


> It is this one:
> 
> http://coffeeforums.co.uk/showthread.php?29587-Nuvo-Korean-Ceramic-Handy-Roaster


Yep. I recommend that one. Cheap and does the job


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## AMCD300

Dazzystar said:


> Seriously? A popcorn maker can roast beans? They don't move around in the heat though!!


Check out the many youtube videos on the subject. Needs to be a certain design of hot air channels and the right dose of beans to work. Also some good tips for modding them to control fan speed via potentiometers and adding heater switches to add a cooling function...

I like this video from Sweet Maria's:


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## Ramrod

A wok & a whisk works fine as well


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## "coffee 4/1"

Having been through many modded poppers with variac heat control, your best bet and by far a better roast and cheaper to build, to roast between 150gm to 500gm, is a Turbo-Oven Koffee Kosmo design.


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## vietnamcoffee

If we roast coffee beans like roasting corns, is it workable?


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## Andrewb

I can confirm a popcorn maker does a good job and certainly much better than buying pre-roasted. In the past I bought pre roasted from a 'premium' coffee eg they put a roasted date on the bag However buying the same green beans and roasting in a popcorn maker, always gave a better crema. I did start exploring weighing the beans to timing etc in a little book, however when you roast outside there are too many variables. Now I have 3 kids and much less time, I have decided a mark one eye ball and skill are the best method :-

1. Find a popcorn maker I got mine from lidl approx £10 (it needs to slits pics online)

2. Remove the plastic lid (the clear lid on top the directs the corn and will melt when roasting coffee

3. Start popcorn maker (outside)

4. Tip in some green beans, as you put more in the slower the beans will spin around. Make sure the they don't slow too much otherwise it will burn the motor!

5. Wait, you can stir the beans with a wooden fork/end of a wooden spoon to release the chaff. Some beans eg robusta release lots of chaff.

6. When beans start to jump around this is first crack

7. Keeping going, a bit later the beans will start jumping around a lot. This is second crack and where most beans will need to be roasted. Note colour for future reference. There are pics of roast colours online to help.

8. Tip beans on to metal baking tray to cool

9. Use beans they say to degas for a couple of days, but fresh roasted give a lot of crema and certainly impresses guests!

10 practice and adjust to suit your taste!


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## Missy

I'm intrigued by the wok and whisk.... Cheap nonstick wok do the job? Inside? We have a ceramic hob, is there enough control?


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## DavecUK

Phil104 said:


> Actually, the current Caffeine reviews three roasters and the Prima PCM001 popcorn maker, £10 from ebay, performed almost as well as the £600 Ikawa in a blind tasting of the results.


Yeah...that doesn't surprise me


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## hubrad

Speaking as a non-roaster (so very much open to correction/enlightenment), it strikes me that the pan/wok and fork/whisk method should work fine, as it has since the idea was first mooted many moons ago, but the various levels of fancy gear are for the sake of controllability and consistency. Obviously for a business it needs to be consistent. For a bit of home experimentation the 'old ways' seem like a really good starting point; get to understand just what's going on.

All you roasters out there.. when I buy freshly roasted beans, I'm generally told to let them rest a few days for espresso purposes at least. Do you folks roast and use in espresso, or straight into other methods?


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## DavecUK

hubrad said:


> Speaking as a non-roaster (so very much open to correction/enlightenment), it strikes me that the pan/wok and fork/whisk method should work fine, as it has since the idea was first mooted many moons ago, but the various levels of fancy gear are for the sake of controllability and consistency. Obviously for a business it needs to be consistent. For a bit of home experimentation the 'old ways' seem like a really good starting point; get to understand just what's going on.


Err..no, the various levels of fancy gear are for producing good tasting roasts....which is not possible with the Wok/whisk method.


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## hubrad

DavecUK said:


> Err..no, the various levels of fancy gear are for producing good tasting roasts....which is not possible with the Wok/whisk method.


Hehe, fair enough. Not possible, or just very difficult? I remember some of the campfire cookery back in scouting days - definitely not consistent, and some of the results were burnt to charcoal, but every now and again something mighty fine came out of it.


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## Coffeejon

hubrad said:


> Hehe, fair enough. Not possible, or just very difficult? I remember some of the campfire cookery back in scouting days - definitely not consistent, and some of the results were burnt to charcoal, but every now and again something mighty fine came out of it.


It's not impossible, I started by using a sieve and a toaster. The problem is, you take your eye off the ball for 1 second and you burn 1 side of the beans, this then changes the taste. Using a machine just lets you be consistent and as beans do cost a lot of money, chucking them away because you've slightly over done it is a good reason to get some kind of machine.


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## froggystyle

hubrad said:


> Hehe, fair enough. Not possible, or just very difficult? I remember some of the campfire cookery back in scouting days - definitely not consistent, and some of the results were burnt to charcoal, but every now and again something mighty fine came out of it.


From what i have seen and read online, you dont get very good results, maybe good to try once and have a crack but i dont think you want to be relying on your daily shots from this method.

If you want 100g of greens pm your addy and ill send some to play with, stick your results up and let us know how you get on.


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## hubrad

froggystyle said:


> From what i have seen and read online, you dont get very good results, maybe good to try once and have a crack but i dont think you want to be relying on your daily shots from this method.
> 
> If you want 100g of greens pm your addy and ill send some to play with, stick your results up and let us know how you get on.


Haha.. the gauntlet thrown down! I can't resist such a challenge. PM incoming, many thanks.


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## Ramrod

Missy said:


> I'm intrigued by the wok and whisk.... Cheap nonstick wok do the job? Inside? We have a ceramic hob, is there enough control?


I have a gas hob. Don't know if it'll work on a ceramic hob. I used a metal wok without a non stick coating along with a wire whisk. If I had continued with the wok (rather than going to my Nuvo hand roaster) I would have hammered little ridges into it from the other side to make agitating the beans easier. Apart from that issue, it worked fine.


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## soundklinik

Missy said:


> I'm intrigued by the wok and whisk.... Cheap nonstick wok do the job? Inside? We have a ceramic hob, is there enough control?


I don't want to sound paranoid, but roasting takes a lot of heat and all these coated Teflons and other shit can't be that great even at lower temps.

A plain steel wok is not toxic. But drum roasters are better

Look at this: http://coffeeforums.co.uk/showthread.php?11599-Are-you-a-Home-Roaster/page3

I have these 2 that I don't use, (use a bigger one), if you like I can sell you either or both. Make me a cheap offer+pay for shipping.

I am not pushing it, it's not for $$$, they collect dust and are waste of space and i don't even care to advertise them.


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## ZachChipp

Popcorn machines are fantastic for roasting about 60g a batch!

I used to use for home roasting years ago, still got the machine somewhere.

Can create a fair bit of smoke as the beans go into crack so make sure youre well ventilated, but if youre starting out and only doing small batches I would always recommend that over a gene cafe or anything!


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## Vieux Clou

I used a popper for a thickish year with good results. The main difficulty was controlling the temperature: in the end I found the easiest way was to restrict the air-flow, which I did by capping the popper with a mesh strainer covered with kitchen foil.

My method was:

- dry the beans in the oven: 5 min @ 160°C then 3 min @180°C. Beans are yellowing nicely by then.

- during the 180°C phase, pre-heat the popper with its hat on

- hat off popper, plonk in the beans, hat on again. Do it sharpish to diminish fountain of chaff.

First crack usually followed in 3-4 minutes.

While one batch was roasting I let the oven cool down to 160° again, then when I tipped the finished beans out of the popper the next batch went in the oven.

In the oven I put the beans on a sheet of kitchen foil with the edges turned up, on a baking sheet. To transfer the beans it was easy to pick up the foil by the edges, no oven gloves required.

I used 100g batches.

Photies: http://www.pbase.com/johnewing/coffee_roast (and be sure to look at the very last picture!)

If anyone asks how you roast your coffee you can tell them you use a fluid-bed roaster. Sounds better than popcorn machine.


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## jlarkin

Missy said:


> I'm intrigued by the wok and whisk.... Cheap nonstick wok do the job? Inside? We have a ceramic hob, is there enough control?


I imagine a ceramic hob would be relatively hard use due to the lag between making changes and them showing up in terms of temperature change but I've never tried for roasting.


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## Missy

Think that's my questions answered, and I'll be avoiding the addition of roasting. I also guess that (like making fudge) it's not something I can do with half concentration while the kids watch postman pat!


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## jlarkin

Missy said:


> Think that's my questions answered, and I'll be avoiding the addition of roasting. I also guess that (like making fudge) it's not something I can do with half concentration while the kids watch postman pat!


Even attempting to make fudge would rate very highly in my books! "look kids this is a chaff fire" it could be educational...


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## Missy

Fudge is easy. Dairy free fudge is easy and amazing!

Removing children from a burning building, less so.


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## Vieux Clou

You can always just bung them in the popper, slap a steel strainer over the top and wait. As long as you stay close enough to hear first crack you'll be OK. A light roast'll be done 1-2 minutes after the first cracking phase ends

If you do around 80g and turn them out onto a baking sheet they should cool OK, then you can wait ten minutes for the popper to cool & start over.

I suppose if you tried very hard, e.g. completely blocking the airflow and bunging too many beans in, you might set fire to a popper, but otherwise the danger is next to nil - on a par with a toaster.

Go on, have a go!


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## DavecUK

Vieux Clou said:


> I suppose if you tried very hard, e.g. completely blocking the airflow and bunging too many beans in, you might set fire to a popper, but otherwise the danger is next to nil - on a par with a toaster.
> 
> Go on, have a go!


I completely disagree with the toaster comment......


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## Jimmybean

Does this roasting method fill the home with an amazing aroma of coffee.......or is it the opposite and smells of burnt toast with the smoke alarm going off?


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## MrShades

Roasting coffee does not smell of roasted coffee... doesn't matter how you do it, you don't get that amazing aroma of coffee when roasting - far from it!

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## yoyo920

I want to start roasting my own beans but I feel it would take too much trial and error. Is roast time consistent with the popcorn poppers


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## Rob1

Roasting coffee doesn't produce bad odours but you'll want to do it in a well ventilated area, ideally with an exhaust attachment to direct the smoke outside.


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## Vieux Clou

yoyo920 said:


> I want to start roasting my own beans but I feel it would take too much trial and error. Is roast time consistent with the popcorn poppers


If you roast every time from cold, probably. If you do back-to-back roasts then no, it won't be - starting conditions will be different for the second and subsequent roasts. You can mitigate this by pre-heating the popper before first starting. I'd recommend getting an el cheapo food thermometer - the kind with a thermocouple in a pointy rigid probe is OK for a popper. You can poke it through the mesh of the wire strainer you use for a lid and suspend it thus in the middle of the drum where it will cause the least disturbance. In case of spousal objection to such wanton utensil abuse, it's easy to squeeze the mesh together again.

It takes a bit of experimentation to get everything perfect, but hearing your very first first crack is rather magical - gee, it really works! Even the smoke when you tip it out seems welcome. Both my wife & I love the smell, and we let it spread through the house. And even my first roast was delightful in the cup.

Go ahead and have fun.


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## jefferson17

The Fresh Roast SR500 is a very good unit. Depending on the bean and your technique, it'll handle 90-140 gram batches. I usually stick with 100 - 110 gram batches as I get excellent consistency and can easily do 3 batches per hour.

I'll let it warm up on high heat / high fan for 2 min then drop my beans in, and for the first 1-2 min give it some tilt (left, right, back), until the beans are readily moving well all on their own. Then I just let it sit and watch it. Depending on the bean I'll put it into Cool sometime between end of 1C and somewhat into 2C (no more than start of a "rolling 2C").

I've been roasting for 9 years and find this machine to provide just outstanding results for personal use (and gifts to friends/family). I had used a Behmor 1600 and prefer the results from the SR500. Soon, I'll be buying several commercial gas units and going large-scale.

Good luck!

J.


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