How do you make the perfect cup of coffee (not instant) ?

Question

When using freshly ground (not instant coffee)...

What's the best method of preparation: percolator, cafetiere, filter cup or other? should the water be boiling or off the boil?

How much coffee do you use, approximately? How long do you leave it to stand?

Any tips for the final presentation? eg. if it is a mocha coffee, how would you serve it?

nb. We have tried filter cups but found they are not suitable for very finely ground coffee.

Answer 1

I first put water in a small pot & put it on the stove, then wait until the water starts to boil.. While you're waiting put about 5 small spoons of coffee in your mug. Then pour the boiled water in your mug. Simple as that.

Links:

http://www.coffeedetective.com/how-to-make-coffee.html
http://www.wikihow.com/Make-a-Good-Instant-Coffee
http://www.flickr.com/photos/yellowpark/sets/72157601549074895/
http://www.douwe-egberts.co.uk/uk/Retail/RecipesAndTips/PerfectCoffee/

Answer 2

Always buy Italian coffee and use an Italian coffee maker - the sort where you put the water in the bottom and the coffee filter on top and screw the coffee reservoir on top of the whole mechanism- best buy is Bialetti. If you insist on drinking American type coffee, buy the biggest Bialetti cafetiere you can find and use a good quality filter coffee (try M&S) to make a large cup of coffee. This is the best coffee maker as you don't have to worry about measures of coffee or how much water to use - you simply fill the water reservoir up to the limit marked and fill the coffee container to the top. Be careful not to tamp down the coffee in the coffee container as this can block the mechanism. Do not wash any part of the cafetiere in soapy water - just use hot water to rinse. This improves the coffee making over time.

Answer 3

Nothing beats an old fashioned peculator w. a paper filter boiled up on the stove, by the time the water drops down on the coffee it is the perfect temp, just below boiling and you get all the flavour(s), give it time to peculate. Use one US tablespoon per large cup/mug. Standard US taste tends toward medium roast Colombian but if you try fresh ground med. Kenyan coffee you will get a real surprise, if that's too much flavour mix in some milder S. American light/med roasted. One large brown sugar w. full cream milk, don't need all the fancy stuff after all.
If you don't have access to a market where you can buy coffee from different countries Folgers is a reasonably good compromise.

Answer 4

The best method is a cafetiere using water just off the boil and standing for no more than a minute. Percolators overheat and burn the coffee and if left too long will end up tasting like instant. If you prefer the espresso buzz, try a stove top espresso maker or for as little as £125 you could buy a domestic Gaggia so you could have cappuccino as well.

Answer 5

OK first use filtered water instead of from tap. A little bit of salt will help get rid of bitterness add it to the grounds just a small pinch to the grounds, a finer ground of course makes the coffee a bit stronger. Use beans and a grinder not out of a bag. The quality of the coffee makes a big difference I really like green mountain coffee. if you roast at home it's fresher and tastes better. evening out the grounds instead of having them in a kind of a hill in the. The water should be just below boiling. and a percolator works great for a stronger brew

Answer 6

If you are brewing at home the best you are going to get is a cafetiere unless you own an espresso machine. Cafetieres make great coffee though - i'd recommend that you read a guide (there's several on the internet) basically the key is grinding your beans right at the last minute, using the right amount of coffee and making sure your coffee beans are fresh. 4 minutes and you'll have amazing coffee!

Answer 7

The water should be very hot but NOT boiling.
One teaspoon per cup.
Cafetiere by far.
Tips for the final presentation? The best presentation is the aroma of freshly brewed coffee. NOthing else needed/
My favourite drink. Nothing beats it.
Grind the coffee beans BY hand. (use manual grinder)
Beans should not be too finely ground.

Answer 8

I use a percolator, never wash it with regular dish washing liquid, this will cause your coffee to taste bitter, you should use a solution of vinegar and water to clean it..... rinse the unit completely and fill to the water line with cold water, place the stem and basket inside the pot and I personally like my coffee strong, I use about 2/3 cup of coffee, place the top on, plug in and it comes out perfect every time..... now for the coffee, I like to mix two brands of coffee to suit my taste. I purchase Folgers Classic and Arabician(not sure if I spelled this right) the Walmart brand, mix the two coffee's together for an awesome blend! I am drinking it now! Yum!!

Answer 9

attempt filtered boiled water onto a teaspoonful of coffee in a mug. Stir as you pour the water directly to dissolve the granules. Then upload your decision of sweetener ( a million teaspoon of brown sugar is wonderful ), and stir returned. finally upload your milk, or for a manage, cream. you could upload the boiling water to the coffee and sugar, however the milk could desire to be final or you will get floaty bits. on the different hand, I do desire coffee from a good coffee keep.

Answer 10

morning coffee ... meaning "waking up real coffee" is black, no sugar, no milk, filter ... i put A LOT of coffee into the machine and let it do the rest ...
desert coffee is a different thing .... it's espresso, with a lot of chocolate and whipped cream ... or even better .. instead of chocolate Bailey's ... mmm ...

yesterday, I made super strong filter coffee, cooled it down, put amaretto, ice cream, and cream on the top ...

you can hardly go wrong with coffee, but still .. in the morning .. I want it black and plane ...

Answer 11

There is no perfect cup of coffee just because people have different preferences to what they find as perfect.

Steam heat the milk. Amount of coffee added is dependant on how strong you like your coffee, aount of cream depends on how creamy you like your coffee. etc. Experiment to find your perfect cup and work with it ;).