ABSTRACT.The quality of roasted grain powders is greatly affected bythe roasting process variables; viz., initial moisture content (IMC), grain‐to‐sand ratio (GSR), sand temperature (ST) and roasting time (RT). The sensory optimization for these variables was done in two phases. The IMC (12 ± 0.2%) and GSR (1:4) were standardized in the first phase, whereas ST (215C) and RT (1.5–2.0 min), in the second. The overall quality of the roasted grain powders was found to be greatly affected by ST followed