How to Grind Coffee Beans | Grinding process of coffee beans

Picking the right coffee beans is only half the battle. The quality of your brewing method can have an even bigger impact on how delicious your morning cup tastes.

A good place to start is by properly grinding the beans yourself with a right kind of grinder instead of using pre-ground coffee from a bag or canister. But to do that, you have to learn how to grind coffee beans so that you can control flavor and texture of your morning coffee.

As you will need some know-how in order to get that perfect ground of coffee, this write-up will help surely help you. So, keep reading…

Types of grinder

First of all, let’s know about grinders. There are two types of grinders out there. These are:

1. Blade Grinder
2. Burr Grinder

Each of these grinders has its own merits, and each one is appropriate for a different type of ground. Now, let’s see how to use them.

How to grind coffee beans with Blade and Burr Grinder

Grinding coffee beans with a blade grinder

As the name suggests, the blade grinder uses a blade, which acts as a propeller, to grind coffee. The coffee beans are put in the reservoir, which typically has a plastic lid. Then with the push of a button, the blade begins grinding the beans.

I’m sure by now you have already understood how a blade grinder works. It essentially uses a blade to repeatedly smash beans making ground. So the whole thing works fine by itself. But knowing a little more secrets can help you get even better grounds.

Firstly, when you put the coffee beans in the container and press the button to start grinding it, make sure that you also shake the whole thing. This will ensure the evenness of the ground.

You need to hold down a button to start grinding. Press down the button for a few seconds, then let it go and shake the container. That’s the idea. Repeat this procedure until you are satisfied with the ground.

You may have a mixture of coarse and fine grounds. To remove the bigger ones, just use a sieve to sift them out. After that, you can grind the big pieces again. This way, you can attain the regularity of the grounds. And you are ready to brew!

Grinding Coffee beans with a burr grinder

Burr grinders are considered better than blade grinders and thus are more costly. But they are not expensive for nothing. By spending a few more bucks, you are getting a machine that is more adaptable and precise.

In a burr grinder, the coffee beans are placed inside the reservoir and they get in between two disks, which spin and perfectly grind the coffee to your choice. It might take some time to get a grip on the settings, but once you have got the hang of it, it’s a no-brainer.

You don’t have to worry much; the machine will do the rest. And here you go, your beans are turned into regular grounds of your wish, and you have learned the proper way of grinding coffee beans with a burr grinder. Congratulations!!

Which Grinder Is Better?

If your budget is low, then you can go for a blade grinder. But you need to remember that it has two cons. First, it makes a lot of noise as it works similar to a blender, and second, coffee beans turn out to be uneven in size.

If you can afford a bit more, then go for a burr grinder. It’ll save you a lot of hassle, provide you with even grounds and make a minimal sound. Simply put, the burr grinder is designed for the job.

How to Grind Coffee Beans Without A Grinder

Don’t want to use a grinder? No worries! I have solutions for you. Let’s see..

Apply a Blender to Grind Beans

A blender works similar to a blade grinder. You already know the proper process of grinding beans using a blade grinder. Therefore, you’ll not find it hard to do it with a blender either.

You’ll find a grind setting in some blenders, but if your blender doesn’t have it, not to worry, you can use it the way it is.

Firstly, you’ll need to select the appropriate amount of beans. It depends on how much coffee you want. Then you’ll need to put them inside the blender and press the button to start the grinding process.

Don’t hold the button for very long; press it for a few seconds only. Keep on doing this until the beans are smashed. You can also shake the blender in intervals or tilt it a bit to acquire more evenness in the ground.

Use a Food Processor to grind coffee

Grinding coffee with the help of a food processor is similar to doing the job with a blender. The only difference is, generally, the inside area of a food processor is larger than that of a blender’s.

Just be careful while using a blender or a food processor because if they generate too much heat, then the beans might turn out to be somewhat cooked. You don’t want that before you actually make your perfect cup of coffee.

Use A Hammer for grinding coffee

It might sound funny, but you can actually grind coffee beans with a hammer!

The method is pretty simple. You might have already guessed it. All you need to do is to hit the beans, and voila! You have your ground.

But be careful. Do not hit the beans too hard. Before hitting the beans, keep them inside a bag. It’s better if you can remove all the air from the bag. That will prevent the bag from popping.

Gently hit and rub the beans with the hammer or any other similar object and carry on until you get what you want.

Using A Rolling Pin to grind coffee seed

You can smash the beans with a rolling pin as well. Similar to the process of grinding with a hammer, put the beans inside a plastic bag and remove all the air.

You can also add a hammer to the whole process. You can hit the beans with a hammer to get you started and then use the rolling pin for further smashing. This way, you can get good grounds. But you do need to exert force for which you’ll need patience.

Applying Mortar and Pestle for coffee grinding

Keep the beans in the mortar, hold the pestle with your dominant hand, and keep striking. After a while, you’ll get big pieces of ground. To grind them even more finely, move the pestle in a circling motion. Finish when you are satisfied.

Categorization of Coffee Bean Grinds

It’s time to talk about the types of grinds so that you know what you are doing.

01. Coarse Grind

This has the biggest pieces of ground. You can get a coarse grind from almost all of the aforementioned methods. However, these grounds are typically used for the percolator, cold brew method, and French press.

02. Medium Grind

This type can be used for a variety of brewing methods except for Turkish and espresso. Rolling pin and hammer, that’s enough for achieving this grind.

03. Fine Grind

This is appropriate for espresso. As the name suggests, the grounds of this type are quite fine but not enough to be similar to flours and powders. Using a pestle and mortar can give you fine grinds if you don’t have a grinder that is designed to offer fine grounds.

04. Super Fine or Pulverized Grind

This is a very fine grind, feels like flours and powders. It’s perfect for a cup of Turkish coffee. Use a grinder to get it, or if you want, you can use a mortar and a pestle too.

Conclusion

I believe that by now you have got a theoretical understanding of how to grind coffee beans perfectly.

What are you waiting for then? Stand up, get some coffee beans, grind and brew it, and enjoy a pleasant cup.