Is Freshly Ground Coffee Better Than Pre-ground Coffee
Grinding the coffee beans in a pot brings out the goodies from coffee. It helps to extract the soluble materials efficiently which add taste and aroma in coffee. However, the longer the coffee beans expose to the environment, the more precious flavor components go stale. Therefore, is freshly ground coffee better than pre-ground coffee? The answer is obvious. Well freshly ground coffee is approximately three times fresher than pre-ground coffee. Four scientific factors explain such consequence.
Oxidation
One of the basic goals of grinding coffee is to extract the delicious flavor components and oils from the beans. While most of them release instantly and react with oxygen in the air once ground. Subtle differences between pre-ground coffee and freshly ground coffee can be missed out by coffee makers that are not particular about taste. Actually even in a sealed package, the aging process has started. Around 60% of its aroma loses after 15 minutes ground coffee. Therefore, to add deliciousness in the coffee, fresh grinding coffee is superior to the pre-ground coffee.
Moisture
The oils in coffee beans are water-soluble. It maintains the taste and smell of the beans as good as it’s supposed to be. When you grind your beans, more surface area created for moisture to dissolve the oils. Thus you can decrease the amount of boiling water to the dissolution. The oils in pre-ground coffee have been diluted so much that pose many problems to the final flavor.
Contamination
Coffee oils are so delicate that they are easily to be infected by the contamination. Whatever other odors floating around ground coffee can slowly taint it. It’s also not advisable to store the ground beans in the fridge, because there are still some odors around the refrigerator that will ruin the taste. Take caution not to sit the freshly ground coffee around the onions which you have just finished cutting.
CO2 depletion
Increased surface area liberates carbon dioxide gas when grinding your coffee, which is created during the roasting process and is lost in the cooling process. CO2 helps get the coffee oils into the coffee. Unfortunately, 80% of the gas releases within one minute, so much so that you may as well brew the beans immediately. Freshly ground coffee is a better option.
Pre-ground coffee beans are the beans that have been ground for a long time. It’s convenient and time-saving because you yourself don’t need to grind again. Despite of the advantages of the pre-ground coffee, freshly ground coffee is better that has proved by some experts. It can save your money and set the time and flavors free to the great extent. You can buy whole bean coffee of high quality to create your desired freshly roaster. Grind the beans at home whenever you need. Please keep in mind that always grinds your coffee freshly just before brewing.