One of the best sensations in the world is the smell of coffee. Every coffee lover will immediately agree on this, but even the people who aren’t too fond of coffee can’t deny its inebriated smell.
Not only is the coffee great for its smell, but it also has arguably the best taste in the world.There is no more hedonistic way to start your mornings than by having a cup of hot and delicious coffee.
For tips on how to make coffee like a professional at home, keep reading!
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Ways to make coffee at home
There are three popular ways of making everyone’s favourite beverage. These are simple enough for everyone to make at home and the results are marvellous.
The methods in question are classic drip coffee machines, pour-over coffee, and the French press. The first one has been everyone’s favourite for the longest, but the latter two are equally amazing.
Pour-over
Pour over is one of the simplest ways to make a coffee. It’s simple, easy, and very quick. You start the process of making coffee by bringing cold water to boil in a kettle.
The next thing you should pay attention to is the beans you’re using. If you’re using whole beans, don’t forget to grind them carefully.
The beans should be ground to the consistency similar to granulated salt. The next thing you should do is put a filter in the brewer.
Rinse with hot water to remove any papery residue from the filter. This will also warm the brewer, helping you keep your coffee hot for longer.
After that, get rid of the water you used for rinsing. The next step is adding the grounds to the filter. Try to make the surface level. When the water heats up, you pour it over the grounds.
Pour the water slowly and make sure that the grounds are completely saturated. You should start from the middle, and move outward.
You should stop pouring before the coffee begins to drip. This break will allow the coffee to de-gas, and then you’ll be able to continue the process.
Finally, pour the remaining coffee and remove the filter carefully after 3 to 4 minutes.
French press
Another interesting way to make coffee at home is with the help of a French press. As the pour-over method, this one also starts with bringing water to boil in a kettle.
Again, if you’re using whole beans, you’ll need to make sure that they are ground. The difference is in the consistency of the ground beans.
Namely, these beans should be coarser than the ones used for pour-over. When you grind the beans for a French press, make sure that they are similar to breadcrumbs inconsistency.
When it comes to the grounds, the final thing you should pay attention to is to make them uniform in size and then you can add them to the French press.
You should wait for the water to heats up to 205°F, which happens about a minute after you’ve removed it from the heat. Once to water is heated, add it to the French press.
Stir the water into the grounds. After about 4 minutes, you’ll be done with brewing. After that, carefully plunge the press and separate the grounds from the coffee. After all of this is done, you’ll be ready to serve and enjoy the coffee.
Drip
Finally, drip coffee is one of the most popular methods for making coffee. Not only is the coffee taste, but the process is anything but time-consuming.
These are the two most important reasons why people prefer drip coffee. It’s ideal for any coffee lover that has a busy schedule and can never find the time to prepare coffee for longer than a couple of minutes.
As with the two previous methods, you’ll need to grind the beans if you’re using the whole ones. The consistency of these grounds is supposed to resemble the regular table salt.
For making coffee this way, you’ll need to transform the grounds into a filter basket and then place it into the drip machine. You shouldn’t pour the water onto the grounds.
Instead, you are simply supposed to pour the water into the back of the machine. When you’ve poured the water, you should just press the button and wait.
When the coffee stops bubbling, you’ll know that the brewing part is over. That will also be the signal for you to turn off the machine. This way, you’ll avoid the burnt taste of your coffee.
The coffee will be ready for serving and the only thing you shouldn’t forget is to clean the machine at least once a month to remove the built-up residue.
Tips for making the best coffee at home
Now that you know the primary ways of making coffee, you can learn the tips and how to make your coffee like the one you would buy at a coffee shop.
There is a tone of useful pieces of advice that will help you step up your coffee game and improve your skills. Here, you’ll find some of the most useful tips to achieve great results for each coffee you make.
Buy fresh beans
One of the key things when it comes to making coffee is your choice of beans you’ll be using. It’s no secret that the coffee tastes best when it’s made of fresh beans.
That means that your coffee should always be made of the beans that were roasted days before. If you’re buying coffee beans from a trustworthy roaster or if you’re roasting them on your own, you shouldn’t worry about the freshness of the beans.
However, buying from supermarkets isn’t such a secure way to get the freshest beans. Long exposure to oxygen and bright light will be bad for the beans and the taste of the coffee.
That is why you should buy from the safe sources only. The reason why practical coffee pods have become so popular is that they are preserving the freshness of the beans.
They are also very easy to use and the coffee is made within seconds. Most importantly, the quality of the coffee is preserved.
Keep Coffee Beans Fresh
If you are using coffee beans, there are ways to keep them fresh even if you don’t use them as soon as they are roasted. Once the coffee beans are open, it’s important to store them properly.
You could store them in any kind of container that will help them remain fresh. For instance, glass canning jars are the perfect storage units for your coffee beans.
Another interesting idea is the ceramic storage crock with rubber seals. Any similar storage unit will be good for keeping those beans fresh.
However, it’s important to point out that you should never refrigerate the beans. In such a case, the beans will take up moisture and food odours which will ruin their taste completely.
Instead, keeping the beans at room temperature will be much more beneficial.
Choose Good Coffee
Another important tip is to buy good coffee. Of course, the choice of coffee should be done in accordance with your budget.
The kind of coffee you will get is going to influence the taste of the coffee the most and that is why this is such an important step. Depending on your finances and taste, you should get the kind of coffee you want to drink.
There are four major types of coffee in the market. Arabica is by far the most popular type of coffee. It is grown and consumed all over the world.
The bean is very flavourful and the coffee made of it has less caffeine than other types. Robusta is the next coffee type when they are listed on the bases of popularity.
This one is higher in caffeine than the previous one and it is the one found in supermarket shelves the most.
Liberica beans give off an aroma, similar to floral and fruity ones while having a slightly smokey flavour. Finally, excels coffee beans are reminiscent of a light roast.
Grind your own
To make sure that you’re making coffee of the highest quality, it’s best to do every step on your own. Grinding the coffee is a very important step in preparation and that is why you should grind your own coffee whenever possible.
You can determine the consistency of the grounds and follow through perfectly when you’re doing it on your own. Depending on the method you will use for making coffee, you’ll know how to grind.
Use good water
Tap water with chlorine is one of the safest ways to ruin a cup of coffee and you should try to avoid this always. You can use bottled spring water and make sure that everything is going as planned.
Another idea is to use activated charcoal filters on your tap and maintain full control over the situation. With the right beans, the right water, and the right method, you’ll be drinking the best possible coffee.
Get the right measures
This tip is very important. The measures are essential for any coffee. The standard measure is 2 level tablespoons. Another instance is 2 ¾ tablespoons per 8-ounce cup.
These are the ideal measurements for brewing coffee of proper strength. Of course, if you like your coffee stronger, you can add more or if you like it lighter, you can use less.
However, tricks like using less coffee with hotter water aren’t to use because in such a case, you end up with bitter brews.
Keep the equipment clean
Finally, you should take care of your equipment. You should clean everything every few weeks or once a month.
Residue tends to build up and it’s important to sort that out before you get to making the coffee. Not only the machine you’re using, but you should also clean the containers regularly as well.
You can clean the coffee maker with a vinegar and water cleaner and you should thoroughly rinse it before using it again.
Conclusion
The good news for any coffee lover is that you can drink the perfect coffee even at home. With these simple methods and tips, you’ll be making the delicious coffee with your eyes closed before you know it.
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