At 10:38 AM 3/20/2005, you wrote: <Snip> Now this is a method I haven't seen explained. I'm assuming it's a cross between the cast iron skillet on the stove method and (?) the heated air that some of the fancy roasters use? I know that heat is essential to getting a good roast so if you choose a heat gun is there an preference in model or wattage, etc. to consider? I think I could do the heat gun thing! That could get me started even faster as it appears that (at least in FL) hot air poppers (with a due respect to W-M and Target) are seasonal. While I'm not adverse to ordering online I am adverse to buying things that double in price with shipping and handling (sometimes more than double). Sooo, knowing that I have several very nice big hardware stores as well as the ever present ACE (that seems to provide more and more of the things that I want and need), a heat gun isn't probably going to be a problem. Good idea! Cj. Aberte Melbourne, FL USA |
Heat Gun / Dog Bowl is simplicity itself. All you need is a hardware store paint-strippin' kinda heat gun - outputs usually 700-1000 Deg F, a bowl (like a dog bowl or a stainless steel salad bowl or a wire mesh strainer) and a wooden spoon. Dump about 160 Grams (1 cup measure) of beans into the "bowl" and play the heat gun on them from about 1-1/2 inches away form the beans. In about 10 Minutes they will be done. Safe Journeys and Sweet Music Justin Marquez (Snyder, TX)http://www.justinandlinda.com Deja Moo: The feeling that you've heard this bull before. On Sun, 20 Mar 2005 13:13:44 -0500, Cj. Aberte wrote: <Snip> -- |
Hi, One thing I have learned is that it can be too easy to scorch the beans thinking that (shortness of) time is important because much is said about long roasting times. Heatgun temps need to be monitored and close to air popper temps. With 230/240 volts available it is easy to have way too much heat. There is a 'spot' (more like a medium sized 'canvas' to play with) somewhere between the too little and too much of the heat / time continuum. I am thinking it may be a good thing to get a bead type digital thermometer taped to the wooden spoon handle. With the bead on the up-side air temp would be registered. With the bead down-side it would likely be able to read the bean temp (more). Placing the bead close to but away from the very end would allow air temp readings by lifting the probe a bit and turning it over would not catch on the beans yet read their temp. Would the probe lead need to be in a tube of some sort rather than risking tape glue contamination? Any thought on this please. Peter |
For those unaware of it check out Ed's site.http://www.homeroaster.com/Lots of fun coffee links and stuff including heatgun dogbowl roasting primer:http://www.homeroaster.com/heatgun.htmlKona Konnaisseur miKe mcKoffee URL to Rosto mods, FrankenFormer etc.http://mdmint.home.comcast.net/coffee/Rosto_mod.htm |
You could check out the thrift shops in your area. You'll get perfectly good poppers for anywheres from $2-5. You may have to pay tax, though... A. <Snip> |
<Snip> Shouldn't there be a page somewhere with all the roasting methods represented (at least in some basic form) with an explanatory picture, too? I would think that would be a great help to first-time roasters. And for those of us who understand a good picture better than the well known 'thousand words' it would save a lot of discussion...or at least focus it better. Does such a page exist? Gene Smith riding the wild learning curve, in Houston |
When I accidentally left my old Hearthware out in the rain and fried its electronics, I switched to the dog bowl method. For the first time I could clearly hear the cracks and see the roast develop - I get great results and love this method. The only negative is that it isn't a "set it and forget it" method - I have to sit there stirring for the 12 or so minutes it takes to complete a roast. I'm about to upgrade to a Hottop, but I'll probably continue using the dog bowl too for smaller batches or just for the fun of seeing the beans change. The things I use are a Wagner heat gun, a stainless dog bowl, a stainless mesh colander with a long handle that fits snugly in the dog bowl, and a wooden spoon. I bought all this and a plastic storage box to keep everything in for less than $35 including sales tax. For cooling, I use a cast iron griddle that I already had. To roast, I put about a cup of beans in the colander and then put the colander in the dog bowl. I hold the heat gun about 2-3 inches from the beans and stir with the spoon. I vary the heat by moving the heat gun closer to or away from the beans. Since I roast outside, the chaff mostly blows away and smoke isn't a problem. When the roast is the way I like it, I take the colander out of the bowl (its handle doesn't get hot, so I don't need a pot holder). I then dump the beans out onto the cast iron griddle that absorbs most of the heat in a couple of minutes and cools the beans down quickly. 1 cup of green beans produces almost 2 cups of roasted beans which fits in a 1 pint mason jar that I vac seal. |
On Mar 20, 2005, at 3:48pm, Gene Smith wrote: <Snip> I don't know of any site that has detailed descriptions of various roast methods but, sometime last summer, Jeff Bertoia mentioned the idea of setting up a wiki -- like WikiPedia.com -- for similar reasons. It could also be used for all sorts of other information like roast profiles, brewing methods, espresso techniques, grinder issues, etc., etc. For those not familiar with wikis, the way it works is that basically anyone can edit "articles" and upload images to include in them (it can be restricted to registered users) and over time, the collaborative editing allows you to build up a relatively large knowledgebase. Tom O. expressed some interest at the time but the idea didn't seem to go anywhere. Unless SM's has changed ISPs recently, their server has everything that would be needed to host a wiki using the free (GNU GPL license) MediaWiki software that WikiPedia runs on -- I don't know about space issues. Another option, if Tom doesn't want to host it on the SM's server but is interested in sponsoring it, would be to get a separate hosting account that SM's could sponsor but not be directly responsible for. I'm currently involved in working with another e-group to set up a MediaWiki based wiki focused on that group's area of interest. If Tom is still interested in hosting or sponsoring a home roasting wiki, I'd be happy to volunteer to help get it set up and recruit some other volunteers from the list to act as "moderators". John Blumel |
This may or may not be enough of a starting point...http://www.sweetmarias.com/instructions.htmlOn Sun, 20 Mar 2005 14:48:40 -0600, Gene Smith wrote: <Snip> Regards, Brett Mason |
I have been moving over to the HG from my Pumper lately because I just couldn't get the control I wanted through the Chicago winter. The Pumper had the power if I used a box to recirculate the air but I just couldn't get it right - either stalled roasts or the char/sour melange. I got a /very/ used looking Master 501 off of ebay for about 35USD total and I am very happy with it so far. This is the kind that looks like an over sized hair dryer with the doughnut shaped fan duct on the back. It moves twice the airflow as the more compact models. Be careful when shopping for that heat gun because many of the texts I've seen mention that 500F is about the max temperature that beans should be subjected to. In a drum the input temp can be a little higher as that is not what the beans inside the drum are getting but a heat gun can pour that 1000F air right into the bean mass. For that reason the 501 and it's imitators are a good choice because it can deliver 500F air at full velocity and also kick up to 750F with the vanes closed to get things going. This might be HG heresy, but with the 501 you can get by with stirring with the heat gun itself during 1st crack. Still fighting the winter but with the better tools and coming spring I'm starting to win. It doesn't hurt that the wife seems okay with indoor roasting if not more than once a week. The drone of the heat gun puts our 4 month old daughter to sleep on the other side of the house - which is a definite selling point :) On Sun, 20 Mar 2005 13:12:34 -0800, Zara Haimo wrote: <Snip> |
On Sun, 20 Mar 2005 13:13:44 -0500, you wrote: <Snip> dogbowl <Snip> I think this site will explain it for you. Bart <Snip> <Snip> in <Snip> ordering <Snip> and <Snip> <Snip> seems <Snip> <Snip> unsvbscribes) go to =http://sweetmarias.com/maillistinfo.html#personalsettings |