Here are the best ways on how to brew coffee. There are many ways to brew coffee and today I am going to show you how!
I love to brew coffee myself with my french press but I have also gathered research on other methods of brewing coffee.
Before trying out these methods of brewing coffee, I suggest investing in some high quality beans and make sure you have a kettle!
Brewing coffee is a fairly simple task. Keep reading to find out on how to brew coffee with your coffee maker:
What is Brewed Coffee?
Brewed coffee is made by fusing hot water onto finely ground coffee beans. The coffee is then left to brew hence the term ‘brewed coffee’. If you have stomach troubles when you drink espresso coffees, then brewed coffee may be better for you. There are several methods on how to brew coffee including aeropress, french press, pour over, auto-dripping, and a moka pot.
Here are the following guides on how to brew your perfect coffee!
Brewing Methods
Aeropress
- Boil 7 ounces of water.
- Grind the beans to a fine texture
- Use some of the hot water to wet the filter and rubber cap.
- Place the rubber cap into the aeropress cylinder. Then, turn and place the aeropress upside down on a gram scale. (Make sure to zero the scale)
- Add 17 grams tablespoons of ground coffee and about 34 mils (grams) of hot water. (Side note: Use double the quantity of water for the amount of ground coffee you add)
- Let the coffee sit for 30 seconds until it has fused with the water correctly. You can tamp lightly if needed.
- Use the rest of the hot water to fill the aeropress.
- After 1 minute, use a spoon to stir the mixture about 10 times.
- Tighten the cap onto the aeropress. Begin to apply downward pressure, squeezing out the brewed coffee into a cup. If the pressure is too light and it is easy to push then your ground coffee is too coarse. Make sure that your ground coffee is very fine.
- And you’re done! Make sure to clean the compressed coffee grounds out of the aeropress for future use.
French Press
- Boil approximately 15 ounces of water.
- While the water boils, grind your coffee beans to coarse or even grind. (French press works best with a coarse coffee grind)
- Add 3 tablespoons (30 grams) of ground coffee and about 6 tablespoons (60 grams) of hot water into the french press. (Side note: Use double the quantity of water for the amount of ground coffee you add)
- Gently stir the fused coffee with any spoon and then allow the coffee to bloom for about 30 seconds.
- Gently fill the rest of the french press with the hot water. Let the coffee settle for 4 minutes before plunging.
- Press the filter down. If the pressure is too light then the coffee is too coarse and if it’s too hard then the coffee is too fine. The pressure should feel like you’re pressing 15-20 pounds.
- Pour the coffee into a cup immediately after. Don’t let the coffee settle as it will continue to brew and over-extract.
Pour Over Drip
- Boil at least 20 ounces of water.
- Grind coffee beans to a medium coarseness. It should look like dry dirt or sea salt.
- Add 3 tablespoons (30 grams) of ground coffee and about 6 tablespoons (60 grams) of hot water into the french press. (Side note: Use double the quantity of water for the amount of ground coffee you add)
- Place a filter paper into the drip. Use a little bit of the hot water to wet the filter paper before brewing.
- Place the drip on a cup or carafe.
- Add the ground coffee onto the filter paper. Tap the filter paper to level the coffee grounds evenly.
- Place the cup and drip onto a scale. (Make sure to zero the scale)
- You will be pouring hot water onto the filter paper 4 times.
- Pour water onto the ground coffee until the scale reaches 60 grams.
- Wait for 30 seconds for the coffee to fuse with the water, then onto the second pour.
- Pour around the edges of the ground coffee so that the grounds are not trapped.
- Pour until the scale goes to 150 grams.
- Wait for 45-60 seconds for the coffee grounds to elapse.
- For the third pour, add another 100 grams of water. The scale should be at 250 grams and this should take about 20 seconds.
- Move onto the fourth pour after all the water and coffee has reached the bottom of the filter.
- Add another 100 grams of water until the scale reaches exactly 350 grams. This pour should take about 20 seconds.
- And you’re done!
Moka Pot
- Heat up the water on a kettle and remove the heat just before it boils. If you are using a stovetop, heat the water up with medium heat. This will prevent the water from being too hot which will cause the coffee to taste metallic and burnt.
- Grind around 2.5 tablespoons of coffee to a medium-fine texture, it should look like sea salt.
- Fill up the bottom chamber of the moka pot with the pre-heated water. Make sure to fill the chamber until it reaches the safety valve.
- Place the ground coffee into the filter basket. Level the surface of the ground coffee with your finger. Wipe off any loose grounds on the edge of the filter basket.
- Place the filter basket into the bottom chamber of the moka pot
- Gently screw the upper and bottom chambers together.
- Place the moka pot onto a stovetop. Use medium heat to create a gradual extraction of the coffee grounds. Make sure to leave the lid open.
- Wait until you see the first trickle of coffee coming out the pot. You will start to hear a blowing sound and see trickles of yellow-brown streams of coffee pouring out. As soon as you see this, close the lid and remove the moka pot from the stovetop.
- Place a cloth or cold water underneath the moka pot immediately to prevent the coffee from tasting metallic.
- Once the coffee stops trickling out, pour your coffee into a carafe or a mug.
- You can now enjoy your brewed coffee!
Necessary Equipment
- Any coffee maker that can brew coffee
- Water
- A heat appliance such as a kettle or stovetop
- Coffee beans
- Burr grinder
8 Common Mistakes
- Using old and stale coffee beans.
- Your coffee to water ratio is wrong. (The ideal water to coffee ratio should be 2:1)
- Drinking from the wrong type of cup. (Coffee cups are specifically shaped to aerate the aroma so using a tea cup may not be ideal)
- Using poor quality water.
- Pouring into a cold coffee cup.
- Not cleaning your filter basket.
- Storing coffee beans in the wrong place.
- Forgetting to clean the coffee machine.
The Bottom Line
You can brew coffee with most coffee makers, it just takes practice to get it right! I suggest investing into your preferred coffee maker and good quality coffee beans. Once you become an expert at brewing coffee then it will be much easier to make any other type of coffee.
If you want to challenge yourself, check out our guide on how to make an espresso without an espresso machine.