Just thinking out loud with regard to even roasting and development.
As I understand it, the goal of roasting is to develop the core of the bean to the point in which undesirable flavors are eliminated and desirable flavors are formed. This means that the outer layer of the bean must always go through some degree of baking (if not scorching), correct? Since there is a time delay between full development of the outer layer and the inner core, there would be baking that occurs in the outer layer until the inner core gets sufficient time to develop fully. I wonder to what degree this could be true.
Also, I’m curious about what the difference might be in % moisture loss between the outer layer and the core in a fully developed coffee bean. Is there a way we can equalize moisture loss in the bean evenly from the outside in?
A scenario I’ve been hypothesizing is figuring out how to take BT to the development point sans moisture loss, then control moisture loss and caramelization in an isolated fashion. If a roasting machine could create sufficient pressure until it’s time for caramelization, could this be possible? Would it be useful?
I’m a roasting newb so please forgive me if this sounds like jibberish. But I thought it could possibly serve as a useful thought experiment. 