A good cup of coffee in the morning can set the mood for your whole day. The morning coffee at a cafe or at work makes all the difference. But brewing coffee at home does not need to be difficult, and with the right techniques, your homebrew can be just as delicious as the coffees served at your favourite cafe.
Abdul Sahid Khan, Head Trainer at Lavazza India gives us simple tips that will help you make your own perfect cup of coffee every morning, right from the comfort of your home. Scroll down to check them out!
1. Use Whole Bean Coffee & Grind It Fresh
The benefit of using whole beans is having the freshest cup every possible time. Not only do you get to have your coffee at the times of your choosing but you can also grind it to the texture of your liking. Another benefit is that you avoid consuming coffee that has been exposed to oxygen, moisture, and tampered with by other people. The aroma and flavour of the fresh brew are highly noticeably enticing; therefore the best part about using whole beans is that you get cafe-like coffee right at home.
Using only fresh coffee and grinding right before you brew will help ensure you get the most flavourful cup out of your beans!
2. Keep Coffee Beans Fresh
Always store opened coffee beans in an airtight container. Glass canning jars or ceramic storage crocks with rubber-gasket seals are a good choice. It is not ideal to refrigerate coffee beans (roasted beans are porous and readily take up moisture and food odours). Optimally, buy a five to seven day supply of fresh beans at a time and keep them at room temperature.
3. Use A Scale
If you want your coffee to be as tasty as it can possibly be, use a scale to measure your ingredients. Using a scale is one of the reasons why coffee shops always seem to serve better coffee than the one we make at home. Hence, it is vital to use the scale at home to brew cafe-style coffee.
In order to brew your coffee to perfection, it is important to maintain the ratio between the amount of coffee used to the amount of water and for that, scale plays a key role. The precision that a scale offers for your daily brew does not just boost flavour and balance one time; it boosts them every time.
4. Water Quality & The Right Temperature
Did you know that 98.5% of brewed coffee is just water? This means that the quality and taste of water play a huge role in how your brewed coffee tastes. If the water you are using tastes bad or has any strange odour, your coffee will have it too. Using purified water is one of the best things you can do for your morning cuppa.
In order to extract the best flavours out of your coffee, the water you use to brew has to be at the optimal temperature: between 195-205 degrees F. Much of the pleasant acidity and distinct flavours we love in our coffees would not show up in coffee brewed with water 195 degrees F. Conversely, water above 205 degrees F will cause a lot more bitter flavours to extract from the coffee. Brewing between 195-205 degrees F will bring out the sweetness and complexities of our coffees without extracting the unnecessary bitter flavours.
5. Keep Your Equipment Clean
Regularly cleaning your coffee machine has many benefits, including general hygiene and improving the taste of your coffee.
Diffusers often accumulate old and burnt-out coffee, which affects the flavour giving it a sour, bitter, or metallic taste. Instead of letting your coffee machine build up grime and dirt, cleaning it each night after a day’s work will help regulate the build-up.
Clean your storage containers and grinders every few weeks to remove any oily buildup. At least once a month, run a strong solution of vinegar or coffee equipment cleaner through your coffee maker to dissolve away any mineral deposits. Rinse thoroughly before reuse to make the best cuppa every time.
Remember to follow these tips next time for a cafe-style coffee at home!
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