/ck/ - Food & Cooking

whelp, look like the good coffee advice 404'd

until you've locked in a source, save your money and effort for getting awesome fresh beans and ignore the flood of bad advice that will come soon. /ck/ will tell you that you can make shit coffee taste amazing if you buy a $400 adjustable burr grinder and a $300 technivorm machine with electronic temperature control.

forget all that, focus your effort on sourcing which may take more work than you realize. trying to make good coffee with beans from the grocery store or chain coffee shop is like trying to make a gourmet meal from the frozen food section. you can use a melitta filter to get started. simple doesn't mean bad.

>>4576505

melitta filer?

suggestions:
>$80 burr grinder
>$20 aeropress
>$20 electric kettle with adjustable temperature
>good whole beans

to brew
>boil water to 195F
>grind some beans
>follow the aeropress instructions using your freshly ground beans
>top off with enough hot water to bring coffee to your desired consistently

technically, this is an americano, but I think it tastes better (fuller) than drip-brewed. You can use a french press in lieu of an aeropress if you prefer. It may cost a bit to start up and you may need to try a few times before you get it down, but this is what I do and I can make a damn good cup of coffee.

>>4576505
>buy a $400 adjustable burr grinder and a $300 technivorm machine with electronic temperature control.
This is only relevant if you want espresso, which is pretty expensive geekery to get right at home.

If you like espresso but do not have the budget or nerdiness to do it right try a moka pot and pic related.

>>4576514

Technivorm is not espresso. Furthermore, Lavazza is horrible garbage.

Europeans confirmed for not knowing about coffee. I mean no disrespect, that's just how it is.

>>4576513
>technically, this is an americano

No it's not. But unfortunately I have to leave for work so another co/ck/ will have to deal with people being wrong on our little corner of the internet.

>>4576516
I was not talking proper espresso, I was describing a passable home substitute.

If you want proper espresso walk around the corner to the cafe and get one. If you don't have a proper cafe around the corner where the fuck do you live?

Depends on what kind of coffee you like, but here's some tips for good coffee on the cheap.

- Get your coffee from a good source, fresher the better, local is good.
- Grind the coffee just before you use it in a burr grinder, I have a handcrank one, cost me $20
- Grind the coffee to the right size for the application. coarse for french press, fine for paper filter, finer for moka pot.

Good, cheap options for preparation are moka pot, pour-over, or french press, each of which can be bought for under $30, a cheap pour-over can be bought for under $15.

>>4576527

It doesn't matter whether you think drip brew made from a $300 electric drip pot is a "passable home substitute". It's simply not espresso. There's no debate about this. It's like calling a dog a cat.

Besides, any respectable coffee shop can grind their house espresso blend properly, there is no need for that lavazza crap.

>>4576527

Ohio. We dont have that kind of shit. And why cant you make a proper espresso at home? Is it that complicated? If it is, fuck espresso, Ive only ever had coffee anyway.

>>4576534
it's complicated because there's a gap in the market for a medium-range (real) espresso maker. Anything below $1k is complete garbage. Much more worth your time to just get a pour-over, french press, moka pot or aero-press.

>>4576537

That, and the fact that the precision grind requires an expensive grinder. A good barista will be checking his grind constantly and making fine adjustments even throughout the day. You can't get that kind of control without forking out at least a few hundred bucks.

>>4576534
>And why cant you make a proper espresso at home?
You can. Cost of entry is about five bills for a burr grinder and pump machine, plus coffee and a week or two learning curve.

>>4576537

Well I have no idea what the fuck espresso is then. Fuck espresso. I just want good coffee. What do I look like some twinkle toes yuropeein? 1k for a thing. Get the fuck outta here.

>>4576542
>What do I look like some twinkle toes yuropeein?

No, if you were that, you'd have an abused espresso machine that never gets cleaned, and you'd heap lavazza into it and press "go" and serve the bitter crap that comes out without batting an eye.

Never look to Europeans for coffee advice.

>>4576537
>Anything below $1k is complete garbage.
I've pulled worthy shots from a refurb Gaggia Classic. It can be done.

the problem is that people want to make espresso at home. They also want to do so without dropping $1-2k. To them, I say tough shit, not going to happen. If you don't have a cafe nearby, looks like you're not going to have espresso without dropping some serious cash.

>>4576549

Moka pot?

>>4576570
pic related. it's like a mini percolator

>>4576595
>it's like a mini percolator
Not quite, though it has the same flaw as a percolator - it boils the coffee. It is capable of delivering something drinkable if you use a blend that's mostly robusta. But it's an espresso substitute, not, as others have pointed out, espresso.

>>4576501
For a great, basic cup of coffee (no "lattes, mochas" shit"), just buy a decent French press, fresh beans that you can grind yourself. That's all. Sure technique is important, but you will learn quickly if you fucked up because your palette will never forgive you.

>>4576664
I didn't say it was espresso substitute. and you can make decent coffee with it, much like you can with a percolator, it doesn't actually boil the coffee, but pushes nearly boiling water through it quickly.

>>4576501
Only make coffee in one of those (pic related). You need to try several levels of water until you reach a satisfactory consistency. Try several brands of coffee until you find the one you like the most. Coffee from Colombia, Venezuela, and Dominican Republic are the bests.

Good luck.

>>4576718
6/10

nearly got me.

>>4576704
this

What about Turkish coffee?

The single most important thing is to use good coffee. If you're buying robusta shit, your coffee will taste like crap.

What about tips on how to pick out good coffee for newbies? I really don't know what criteria I should be using.

>>4576819
It's pretty good, but not amazing.

ethiopian coffee is the best. they use a fucking wooding stick and some gumption. And ethiopian coffee beans.

I've also tried that simluated meerkat shit-ed coffee produced from the program at University of Florida or wherever. That shit is actually pretty good shit coffee.

Starbucks is pretty good coffee. People like to say its not, but I've observed enough blind taste tests to know people love the taste of starbucks.

Now someone is going to say "ya cuz plebs don't know". Ok, whatever dumbfuck. Keep telling yourself that sugar ain't sweet.

>>4578180
Better than the shit you hipsters make.

the most important thing to do is get decent quality beans. i get mine from an independent roaster but i also will go for second cups royal blend in a pinch (not sure about regional availability). so find some good whole beans 100% Arabica, nothing oily looking, or darker then chocolate brown.

equipment:
>use a french press or aeropress
>if you are going to have only one i would go french press (can make enough to share)
>get a grinder, cheap blades will do if you aren't looking for perfection or you can get a solid hand crank burr grinder pretty cheap (what i use).
to be honest i don't think the high-end burr grinders are worth it. inb4 i am crucified

how to make:
>grind coffee (i use about 3tbsp(45ml) per liter of water in a french press)
>boil water, people will give you precise numbers for perfection but im not crazy enough about it to mesaure
>grounds and water in your french press
>let sit for about 4 minutes
>enjoy

aeropress protip:
i talked to one of the top baristas in canada and he recommended putting the plunger in to create a seal then turning the aeropress upside down then brew the coffee like you would in a french press before pressing it. tried it and i've never gone back

What affects coffee tastes other the beans themselves:

Grind size. You want uniform grind size. If not they start to brew at different level. Cheap blade grinder creates tons of dusting that over brew and creates a bitter brew.

Water temp. You want 190-200F. Lower will create sour brew, higher will make bitter brew.

Brew time. Lower brew time will make weaker but bit sour brew, longer stronger but bitter brew. I like 1min45secs with aeropress.

Coffee to water ratio. And type of machine used. Not as big as the top 3 but will determine how to adjust the 3 to make the best coffee.

The combination of grind size, water temp and brew time is what sets apart from a good brew or bad. Play with them once you selected your prefered coffee beans and method. I like peet's dickenson's blend as a test since its cheap but decent. Once you figured it out shell out for that single source organic fair trade whatever beans.

How about buying your beans at a coffee roaster and then ground them up some minutes before making your coffee ?
It's not rocket science, it's quality and freshness.
Thank god I'm into tea, it's just quality and not so much freshness.

>>4578253

>2013
>hand grinding your coffee every morning like a poorfag

>>4578400
listen to this man OP

also make sure your beans were roasted between 3 days-2 weeks ago approx

Fresh roasted beans are the single biggest key to good coffee. Find a local specialty roaster in your city and buy your beans from them. If you are purchasing beans that do not have a date when they were roasted, then you aren't buying good beans.

Clean, fresh water that tastes good is important. Water temperature should be between 195 to 200 degrees.

You always grind just enough before you use. Weigh your beans. Use grams because it is more exact. The precise ratio of beans to water varies with person to person. I use about 12 to 14g for an 8 ounce cup. Adjust to your tastes, but don't go below 10g beans for an 8 ounce cup. Nor would I go above 16g for an 8 ounce cup.

The grinder. Get a hand burr grinder. It shouldn't run you more than 40 dollars. It will give you a nice and even grind for something cheap. Hario makes good hand grinders. If you have to, then a blade grinder will work. There isn't a need to buy a 100+ dollar grinder until you know coffee is something you want to dedicate yourself to.

Next the brewing method. For a beginner, you cannot go wrong with a melitta cone or a french press. Both are super cheap and straight forward. There are more complicated ways to brew coffee, but start with those. They are cheap and easy to get into. You can get both since they produce very different cups of coffee.

Most importantly, keep practicing. There is actual, honest to go technique in brewing coffee. You won't make the first cup perfect, but keep adjusting. Change this, change that, become a little more scientific. Don't give up. It takes practice.