It’s time.
For many of us, it was time at the beginning of August, but for all of us to be on the same page, let’s just say it’s time now. September is coming, and it’s time to shop for Back to School. As someone who will be returning to school this fall myself, the idea of being able to wake up for 8am classes feels intimately relevant. Maybe for you the scenario is that you’re taking small children to school, another very important time to be awake! Maybe this is your or your child's first year away from home and figuring out how to make coffee in the dorm, or shared housing, or some other experience.
I’d love to list all the beautiful espresso machines that are perfect for this scenario, but if you’re feeling the student pinch, or even just the inflation pinch, those are feeling pretty far out of reach. Don’t worry! I promise we can still help you out!
Let’s assume you do not have a coffee grinder, but maybe there’s a pretty good coffee shop on campus or near your home. Generally, they sell the coffee they brew, and generally, especially if you ask super nicely, they’ll grind it for you. I know we will! In that instance, the best thing to do is buy a bag of coffee, get it ground, and keep it in an airtight container in the freezer. Even a good ziplock freezer bag will do. This will reduce off gassing and oxygenation of the beans, which as they are pre-ground, will happen faster rather than slower.
Moka Pot ($52-$93)
If you ask for your coffee ground just a bit coarser than Espresso, we’re in Moka Pot territory.
The Moka Pot is a percolation method and will give you a very strong, very concentrated coffee due to the pressure used to force the water through the grounds. This is excellent if iced coffee is your thing, or as a base for a latte, or if you just want a very strong drink. The main downside to a Moka Pot is that you need to have a hot plate or stove top to work on. The main upside is they’re very strong and tend to last for decades.
To brew- Add hot water to the bottommost compartment of the Moka Pot, just up to but not over the steam release valve. Put in the spouted basket, and fill to just level with loose, finely ground coffee. Screw the top on and place over medium heat until coffee bubbles up into the top chamber. Enjoy!
ChefSteps brews a Moka Pot
See Our Moka Pots
Getting your coffee ground for pour over, we have the opportunity to use two different brew methods;
Hario V60 ($13.50-$40)
V60’s can seem complicated and overwhelming, but I promise that if my husband can learn to make a good V60 every morning, you can too! The base idea is to have your grounds in your filter over your catch vessel (this can be a fancy carafe or really just a cup) and to pour just boiled water over slowly, over a course of a couple minutes, agitating the grounds to get all the coffee solubles to dissolve. I think V60 is an excellent first step away from instant or machine drip coffee, the only fancy tools you need are the dripper itself and a scale.
James Hoffman's Master V60 Technique
See Our Pour Overs
Aeropress ($54.95)
The Aeropress is fantastic for so so many reasons. It’s both an immersion and a percolation brewer, meaning that it both steeps the coffee and forces the water through a filter. This means it’s a very forgiving brewer if you’re a bit off on grind size. It can be as complicated or simple of a brewer as you like - with ground coffee, a kettle, and the components of the box it comes in, you’re ready to brew. No excessive measurements required, and it brewers in about 2 minutes! The one downside I’ve heard many a time from users is that they wish it brewed More at a time, which is a bit humorous, as it was designed and invented to specifically be a good single cup brewer. My last favorite thing about the Aeropress is how easy it is to clean and maintain and how tough and light of a little brewer it is. I love Aeropresses for camping!
To brew - Add a paper (or metal!) filter to the bottom of the brewer, add your coffee and water, and place in the plunger just a bit. Let sit about 2 minutes, swirl, and plunge. That’s all!
Watch Alan Adler, the inventor of Aeropress, talk briefly about its inception and go over the basic recipe.
Get The Aeropress
Image courtesy of etsy.com
