Coffee is one of the most popular drinks around the world, and ground coffee beans are often used to create coffee. However, most people use other parts of the coffee plant to create other products, such as coffee flour.
If this is the first you have heard of coffee flour, you are probably wondering what coffee flour is. I looked up the facts, and here is what I discovered!
What Is Coffee Flour?
Coffee flour is a type of powder created from coffee cherries, which are the leftover fruit that covers coffee beans. Surprisingly, coffee flour does not taste like coffee and contains very little caffeine. Generally, coffee flour is used to add slightly fruit, tart, and bitter flavors to dishes and drinks.
Do you want to learn how to use coffee flour, how coffee flour is made, and if coffee flour can replace flour? Keep reading!
What Is Coffee Flour Made Of?
Coffee flour is made of leftover fruit that is called “coffee cherries,” which is what covers the coffee beans that are used to make coffee for drinks.
What Does Coffee Flour Taste Like?
Surprisingly, coffee flour has a slightly fruity flavor because coffee flour is made from fruit, but coffee flour is not sweet.
Instead, coffee flour is slightly bitter and tart, making coffee flour taste similar to fruity cocoa powder. Additionally, some people note that coffee flour can have some citrus notes.
However, coffee flour does not taste like coffee since coffee flour is not made from coffee beans, which is what is used to make the coffee that we drink.
Does Coffee Flour Have Caffeine?
Coffee flour does contain caffeine, but the amount of caffeine in coffee flour is significantly less compared to the amount in brewed coffee.
Generally, coffee flour is made from the coffee plant’s cherry, and the coffee cherry only contains ⅓ of the caffeine from the coffee plant since the other ⅔ of the caffeine is in the coffee bean.
Moreover, most recipes that call for coffee flour will not require you to add excessive amounts of coffee flour.
Therefore, it is highly unlikely that you will feel buzzed or energetic from eating foods that have coffee flour.
What Is Coffee Flour Used For?
Normally, coffee flour is used as a flavoring agent to drinks or dishes to add slightly tart, bitter, and fruity flavors.
For instance, coffee flour can be added to a cup of coffee if you want slightly fruity notes in your drink.
Another way to use coffee flour is in chia seed pudding or smoothies to boost the tart and bitter tastes.
Additionally, many people like to add coffee flour into baked goods in tandem with other types of flour to create more nuanced flavors.
Why Was Coffee Flour Invented?
Coffee flour was created as a way to create less waste when creating coffee from coffee beans and help farmers create more products from the same plant.
Generally, the coffee cherries are usually thrown out after they are removed to create coffee, but making coffee flour allows farmers and manufacturers to use the coffee cherries.
How Is Coffee Flour Made?
Typically, coffee flour is made by taking any coffee cherries leftover from making coffee from coffee beans.
Next, the coffee cherries get dried and then milled to create a fine powder that looks similar to flour.
Is Coffee Flour Better Than Regular Coffee?
Technically, coffee flour is not better than regular coffee because coffee flour and regular coffee are two different things.
Regular coffee is made from coffee beans, which contain most of the caffeine from the coffee plant, to create caffeinated coffee drinks.
On the other hand, coffee flour is made from coffee cherries, which contain significantly less caffeine than regular coffee and does not taste like coffee.
Can I Use Coffee Flour To Make Coffee?
Coffee flour cannot be used to make coffee because coffee flour is created from coffee cherries, not coffee beans.
Additionally, coffee flour does not have the same flavor as coffee, so trying to make a drink out of coffee flour would lead to a very bland drink.
Moreover, you would not get the same “kick” as you would from a real cup of coffee because coffee flour contains very little caffeine compared to coffee beans.
Can Coffee Flour Replace Flour?
Coffee flour cannot replace flour in recipes because coffee flour’s main purpose is to add flavor to drinks and dishes.
Plus, coffee flour does not have the same attributes as wheat flour, nut flour, etc., making coffee flour an unideal alternative to flour.
However, many people can add coffee flour to recipes that have flour for added boosts of flavor, and coffee flour can partially replace flour.
For instance, you can replace 15-25% of the flour in your recipe with coffee flour without much change in texture to your recipe.
Is Coffee Flour the Same as Cascara?
Coffee flour is not the same as cascara because cascara is a tea made from the dried skins of coffee cherries whereas coffee flour is a powder used to add flavor to dishes and drinks.
Typically, cascara looks much more “whole” since the skins are usually not crushed so people can easily use the cascara to `make tea.
On the other hand, coffee flour is crushed very finely to resemble dark brown cumin, and coffee flour is ground well to be mixed easily with drinks and dishes.
Is Coffee Flour Gluten-Free?
Generally, coffee flour is gluten-free because the coffee plant does not have gluten.
However, it is important to check recipes that coffee flour has been added to since other ingredients that have gluten may be added to the recipe.
Read our other articles to discover what corn flour powder is, what zero zero flour is, and what lupin flour is.
Conclusion
Coffee flour is a unique way to make use of leftover coffee cherries used to make coffee from coffee beans, and coffee flour features slightly tart, fruity, and bitter tastes.
While coffee flour may not be used to completely replace flour, coffee flour can be added to baked goods, drinks, and more.