coffee TORREFACTO good or bad ?

[Gardner]

Most of the coffee here is torrefacto and many people don't even know what it means. Price is cheap and taste is stronger. I saw many people try normal roasted coffee and then switch back to torrefacto because they were not convinced.
According to wiki :
*The addition of sugar during the torrefacto roasting process increases the production of compounds with antioxidant properties. Both ground and brewed torrefacto coffee has higher antioxidant capacity than standard roasts, decreased pro-oxidant activities were also observed in a study.[3] In addition, the espresso method of extraction yielded higher antioxidant activity than other brewing methods.[4]

According to Sagi Cohen, the torrefacto process allows coffee to be kept fresh for longer; lowers its price, as it is mixed with much cheaper sugar; and imparts it with flavors which he variously describes as "burnt sugar", "diluted asphalt" and "liquefied coal".[5]*

Torrefacto is common in countries such as Spain, France, Argentina, Portugal, Costa Rica, Bolivia, and some parts of Mexico.

[LucH]

@Gardner said in coffee TORREFACTO good or bad ?:

coffee torrefacto

Since when Maillard reaction is a good thing !?

[Gardner]

@LucH said in coffee TORREFACTO good or bad ?:

@Gardner said in coffee TORREFACTO good or bad ?:

coffee torrefacto

Since when Maillard reaction is a good thing !?

Mailard reaction happens during roasting coffee regardless with or without sugar.
Some claim that the sugar that coats the beans doesn’t so much burn as caramelise, resulting in fewer carcinogens. Sugar prevents coffee from going rancid.

[LucH]

@Gardner said in coffee TORREFACTO good or bad ?:

Sugar prevents coffee from going rancid.

Yes, it could ...

Maillard reaction
Sugar keeps fruits safe. How?
When sugar is added to fresh foods, like fruits and vegetables, it creates an osmotic effect: sugar absorbs water in the food. Bacteria, yeast and molds – the primary causes of most food spoilage – need water to grow and multiply.
The role of sugar in jam and other preserved fruit stuff is to ensure any microorganisms will face strong osmotic pressure outwards, drying them out and killing them.
Conclusion: amalgam between the Maillard reaction and a way to preserve like in jams.
Maillard reaction is not going to give useful antioxidants but HCAs
However if we take this study into account, there are some beneficial molecules:
When foods are being processed or cooked at high temperature, chemical reaction between amino acids and reducing sugars leads to the formation of Maillard reaction products (MRPs). Depending on the way the food is being processed, both beneficial and toxic MRPs can be produced. Therefore, there is a need to understand the different types of MRPs and their positive or negative health effects.
MRP = Maillard reaction products
HCA = heterocyclic aromatic amine
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4745522/
See &. Coffee Bean Processing and MRPs

Toxic compounds
The Maillard reaction is likely to produce toxic compounds: acrylamides, furans, and potentially carcinogenic heterocyclic aromatic amines.
NB: To lower MRP in a roasted bakery, I put lemon juice or bio apple vinegar (cider).

[Gardner]

@LucH
caramelization is a type of non-enzymatic browning. Unlike the Maillard reaction, caramelization is pyrolytic, as opposed to being a reaction with amino acids.
When caramelization involves the disaccharide sucrose, it is broken down into the monosaccharides fructose and glucose.

[LucH]

@Gardner said in coffee TORREFACTO good or bad ?:

caramelization is a type of non-enzymatic browning. Unlike the Maillard reaction, caramelization is pyrolytic, as opposed to being a reaction with amino acids.

Thanks for the precision (...)
From what I've read, caramelization of coffee could be interesting / give interesting molecules but the process is difficult to maintain without giving toxic molecules. Need to be tidily an timely followed by a professional.

Caramelization is a nonenzymatic browning reaction of sugars providing a caramel-like flavor during high temperature treatments of foods. A wide range of consecutive and parallel reactions may occur during heating of sugars, and the quantitative distribution of the intermediates and products depend largely on pH, water activity, redox potential, and food structure. Caramel flavor and color are the characteristic outcomes of the thermal processing from the viewpoint of food quality, and it can be controlled to achieve desirable properties. However, due to the formation of possible toxic compounds, the process should be controlled in a way to minimize harm from the point of view of food safety. This is still a challenge for food scientists because of the complexity of foods as reactive dynamic systems where complicated reactions take place, especially at high temperatures.
DOI:10.1016/B978-0-08-100596-5.21630-2

[Gardner]

After trying normal coffee for a couple of weeks I'm switching back to torrefacto.
I use same amount of normal coffee (vs torrefacto) to get a desirable taste/consistency/ stomach comfort.
I noticed it started giving me a headache even from one cup...probably high pressure due to too much caffeine. If I use less amount of coffee it will be too watery.
I can sip at torrefacto coffee all day long , I have never had a headache from it.

Most people here drink torrefacto and price is 3 times cheaper. Also there are chances that torrefacto coffee is more resistant to mold (aflatoxin...) due to sugar coating .