It's a current trend for people to store their coffee beans in the fridge. However, the four enemies of the noble coffee bean are heat, air, light and moisture so whilst it might seem like the fridge is the best way to keep them away from heat it is in fact putting them at risk of moisture due to the humidity, even more so if they are alway taking them in and out of the fridge often.
Given the choice, it is preferable to keep them dry than cool.
We can freeze extra coffee beans in an emergency but once thawed we must use them up as quickly as possible because they will go bad fast.
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 put them in an air-tight plastic container and store them in a 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). By storing your beans air-tight you are not giving this gas any way of escaping.
Another reason is that you are actually trapping air inside the container when you close it and this means that the beans are still exposed to air and might lose freshness.
It is more expensive, but if you are able to spend a few more dollars then you can find storage containers specially designed for storing coffee beans and keeping them fresher for longer.
Some containers have valves, just like the ones you see on the coffee bags, which let the beans' gas out whilst not allowing any air in. This is an upgrade from the standard sealable containers you might currently be using and would be worth the investment.
There is a solution that goes beyond these simple valves however. Not only do they have a valve for letting out the gas created by the beans, but they also let you create a vacuum inside by way of a pump that can expel the unwanted air. This is excellent and gives your beans the best chance of long term survival!
Once you have the right container you just need to make certain you keep them as cool as possible (but not in the fridge) and away from light. A kitchen cupboard or pantry is perfect for this!
Storing after grinding
At the risk of sounding over the top, but my favorite place to store ground beans is in the bin, right after emptying them out of my coffee maker! Beans start to lose freshness infinitely quicker as soon as they are ground, so the best advice is to only grind your beans just before you need to use them. Avoid grinding coffee beans too far in advance of using them if you can at all do so. This way you will never have to store ground beans.
Given the choice, it is preferable to keep them dry than cool.
We can freeze extra coffee beans in an emergency but once thawed we must use them up as quickly as possible because they will go bad fast.
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 put them in an air-tight plastic container and store them in a 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). By storing your beans air-tight you are not giving this gas any way of escaping.
Another reason is that you are actually trapping air inside the container when you close it and this means that the beans are still exposed to air and might lose freshness.
It is more expensive, but if you are able to spend a few more dollars then you can find storage containers specially designed for storing coffee beans and keeping them fresher for longer.
Some containers have valves, just like the ones you see on the coffee bags, which let the beans' gas out whilst not allowing any air in. This is an upgrade from the standard sealable containers you might currently be using and would be worth the investment.
There is a solution that goes beyond these simple valves however. Not only do they have a valve for letting out the gas created by the beans, but they also let you create a vacuum inside by way of a pump that can expel the unwanted air. This is excellent and gives your beans the best chance of long term survival!
Once you have the right container you just need to make certain you keep them as cool as possible (but not in the fridge) and away from light. A kitchen cupboard or pantry is perfect for this!
Storing after grinding
At the risk of sounding over the top, but my favorite place to store ground beans is in the bin, right after emptying them out of my coffee maker! Beans start to lose freshness infinitely quicker as soon as they are ground, so the best advice is to only grind your beans just before you need to use them. Avoid grinding coffee beans too far in advance of using them if you can at all do so. This way you will never have to store ground beans.
About the Author:
Gary Sterling is a regular author for http://www.coffeelovers101.com. Please visit his site for more helpful articles like this one as well as many other coffee machine reviews
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