how to prevent coffee powder from hardening

You know the feeling – you open up your favorite coffee only to find a hard coffee powder at the bottom of the container.

The dilemma of “why coffee powder becomes hard?” is more common than you might think.

In this article, I’ll chat about why coffee hardens in the first place and how to prevent coffee powder from hardening. I’ll also talk about the best way to store your coffee if you want to keep that heavenly aroma and caffeine kick!

3 reasons Why coffee powder becomes hard

When your coffee hardens, you may blame the brand you are using. Sometimes you may be right, as the quality of some cheap and local brands is not up to par.

However, more often than not, the main culprit is you are not storing your coffee powder properly.

Coffee grounds or instant coffee powder are susceptible to heat, air, and moisture. Therefore, proper storage is essential to preventing them from hardening and extending their shelf life.

Moisture

Moisture is a major factor that reduces the shelf life of coffee and contributes to its hardening.

Coffee stored in the refrigerator or in humid places is more likely to harden. Moisture also promotes the growth of bacteria and makes coffee taste stale.

When coffee grounds contact with moisture or drops of water, small clumps of coffee are formed, which get hard when the water dries off.

Temperature

Higher temperatures encourage the growth of bacteria and molds. If you live in a hot and humid environment, your coffee grounds will stale more quickly. 

So always keep the container of coffee ground in a cold environment away from the heat of the stove in your kitchen and make sure that it never comes in contact with the sunlight.

Air

When coffee is exposed to air, it oxidizes, which causes it to stale more quickly. Air also carries away the aromatic compounds from coffee grounds, which are responsible for the sweetness and aroma of coffee.

Therefore, it is important to store coffee grounds in an airtight container.

5 Ways to Prevent Coffee Powder from Hardening

By following these 4 simple tips, you can ensure that your coffee grounds or instant coffee powder stays fresh and flavorful for longer.

1. Airtight container

Whether you buy fresh coffee beans or instant coffee powder, keep them in some air-tight glass or ceramic container.

If you keep the coffee in an open container, it will slowly lose its flavor and get hardened because of the moisture in the air.

2. Using Silica Gel Packets

3. Buy less coffee

It is recommended to buy Coffee powder in small batches to keep it fresh and flavorful.

So buy just enough coffee that you can easily finish in a week or two.

4. Never put wet utensils in the coffee container

To prevent coffee powder from hardening, ensure that the airtight container is clean and dry before storing the coffee.

Avoid using wet utensils to scoop out the coffee powder, as this can introduce moisture.

5. Keep the coffee away from heat and light

Heat and light encourage the growth of bacteria which stales your coffee more quickly.

So always keep the container of coffee in some cabinet away from light, or keep it in some opaque container.

Never place the coffee container near the stove of your kitchen or near to window where it can be exposed to sunlight.

Do shots of Espresso expire with time? Or they stay fresh. Read our interesting article

Is hardened coffee bad?

It is sometimes possible for your coffee container to break without you being aware of it. Or in some cases, you accidentally keep it around the stove, or in moist places, and in others, you forget to close the lid properly.  

So can you drink hardened coffee?

There is no harm in drinking hardened coffee, but it will smell stale and have no fresh aroma. Hardened coffee tastes super bitter and gritty, almost like you’re drinking a coffee-flavored sand.

Some other ways to use Hardened Coffee Powder

So, if you are wondering whether to keep that coffee or throw it away, the answer is “No”, you should not throw it away.

There are many other uses for that coffee.

• As a Fertilizer: Coffee grounds contain many essential minerals necessary for the growth of plants, such as nitrogen, potassium, magnesium, and phosphorus. So next time, if you are thinking of discarding your hardened coffee grounds, then dump them into your garden; it will be beneficial for your plants.

• Neutralize the odor: Coffee can neutralize the foul-smelling gases from the environment. You can use coffee grounds in your shoes, socks, gym bags, or anything smelly.

• Natural cleaning scrub: Coffee grounds are abrasive and have anti-bacterial properties, so you can use them as a natural body cleaning scrub. Add these coffee grounds to coconut oil, and your scrub is ready; you can also use it for sanitizing your hands.

Also Read: 20 Creative uses of spent coffee grounds

HOW TO Soften HARD COFFEE POWDER?

If you want to drink hardened coffee here are some ways to fix hardened coffee powder for drinking.

Add a small amount of water and the hardened coffee powder to the shaker or a blender and shake it vigorously for 20 to 30 seconds.

You will get a very strong concentrate and to make it drinkable you can dilute it by adding more water or milk.

If you don’t like the taste of a drink prepared with hardened coffee powder you can use the coffee concentrate for other purposes; for example, to make coffee smoothies or make delicious coffee desserts.

FAQs

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