Even though it might not be the best way to roast beans, it is fun to explore and try out as you first enter the world of coffee roasting. This is what you need to roast coffee with a cast iron.

• A cast iron pan
• Green beans
• Colander
• Whisk
• Oven mitt

The Roasting Process

1. Turn up the heat to your maximum setting. I have found that there is not a setting hot enough to roast on a stovetop because a lot of the heat is lost since the beans aren’t heated from all sides, just the bottom side.
2. Let the cast iron heat up and put in the beans. Don’t put in too many beans, the beans should cover around 80% of the pans surface.
3. Now here is the tedious part,
   • Stir for 5ish seconds
   • Let it sit for 5ish seconds
4. Then repeat step 3 until it is done (which can take around 30-45min)
5. Once you have gotten to a roast level you like, pour it into a colander and shake out the chaff.

Pros of the cast iron roasting method

Low barrier of entry – the price of the equipment is very cheap. You might already have all the items in your household minus the green beans.

Constant monitoring – Since you are constantly stirring the beans, you are also monitoring the beans and finishing the roast at the exact roast level that you want.

Cons of the cast iron roasting method

Constant monitoring – Yes, it is also a con! With the need for constant stirring, it becomes a tedious task to do and just a minute of inactivity can lead to a burnt roast.

Uneven roast – The stovetop technique leads to a pretty uneven roast because only one side of the coffee bean is being heated by the cast iron.

Time consuming – Let me mention again that it takes 30-45min. Not a short duration at all. If you compare this to other methods like a popcorn popper, they can achieve an even roast in around 8min with minimal work.

Low volume – Since you cannot fill up the pan with beans, the amount of beans that you get at the end is pretty low. Around 100g or so.

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If you are more of a visual learner,
check out the video below!