There are many ways suggested for keeping coffee fresh. One of the suggested methods is to put your ground coffee or coffee beans in the freezer. Is this really a good idea? Let's run through the advantages and disadvantages.
Freezing has been used for centuries as a way to extend the life of many foods. You can freeze many kinds of food. Bread, meat, fruits, vegetables and even butter can be successfully stored in your freezer. Freezing can maintain the nutrients of many types of foods, too. But storing coffee in the freezer isn't ideal.
Coffee has four main enemies against freshness: air, heat, light and moisture. It would seem that freezing won't harm coffee's freshness. However, appearances can be deceiving.
Coffee beans are roasted to enhance their flavour. The beans also have pores. A freezer may contain other foods which have odours. The other frozen foods' odours can be absorbed by the coffee beans. Flavoured coffees can be pleasant, but no one wants to drink seafood or garlic flavoured coffee.
Moisture can also be absorbed by the coffee beans. And moisture can make your coffee beans lose freshness and flavour. The more often you take coffee out of the freezer and put it back in, the more moisture absorption takes place into the bean. If you absolutely need to freeze some coffee because you have a large excess you'd like to keep, only freeze it once. The more you take it in and out of the freezer, the more damage you do.
The oil in coffee beans break down when you freeze them. The oils contribute to the flavour of the coffee. Breaking down the oils means taking away flavour, and let's face it, a large part of a good cup of coffee is the flavour.
Coffee is not best stored in freezers. You should store coffee in an airtight container in a cool, dry place away from light. You can store coffee, but freeze it only once. You wouldn't want your coffee to lose flavour and quality. So it's best if you buy coffee in small quantities. You'll enjoy coffee best when it's fresh!
Freezing has been used for centuries as a way to extend the life of many foods. You can freeze many kinds of food. Bread, meat, fruits, vegetables and even butter can be successfully stored in your freezer. Freezing can maintain the nutrients of many types of foods, too. But storing coffee in the freezer isn't ideal.
Coffee has four main enemies against freshness: air, heat, light and moisture. It would seem that freezing won't harm coffee's freshness. However, appearances can be deceiving.
Coffee beans are roasted to enhance their flavour. The beans also have pores. A freezer may contain other foods which have odours. The other frozen foods' odours can be absorbed by the coffee beans. Flavoured coffees can be pleasant, but no one wants to drink seafood or garlic flavoured coffee.
Moisture can also be absorbed by the coffee beans. And moisture can make your coffee beans lose freshness and flavour. The more often you take coffee out of the freezer and put it back in, the more moisture absorption takes place into the bean. If you absolutely need to freeze some coffee because you have a large excess you'd like to keep, only freeze it once. The more you take it in and out of the freezer, the more damage you do.
The oil in coffee beans break down when you freeze them. The oils contribute to the flavour of the coffee. Breaking down the oils means taking away flavour, and let's face it, a large part of a good cup of coffee is the flavour.
Coffee is not best stored in freezers. You should store coffee in an airtight container in a cool, dry place away from light. You can store coffee, but freeze it only once. You wouldn't want your coffee to lose flavour and quality. So it's best if you buy coffee in small quantities. You'll enjoy coffee best when it's fresh!
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