Last night, Kyle and I went to Barnes and Noble. We had some Christmas money and gift cards we wanted to use. I left Kyle alone in the historical fiction section and told him, “I’m going to go camp out in the coffee section for a bit.” I imagined shelves of books dedicated to the art of brewing a great cup of coffee, the history of espresso, and possibly even recipe books. What I found out is that I totally over-estimated the general publics interest in the coffee world. There’s not even one book at the entire Barnes and Noble on coffee. It’s true. I asked. I was SHOCKED.
That disappointment has led me here. To share with you a few more tips on making your coffee experience a better one!
I realize that A LOT of you probably received keurigs or something similar for Christmas!
If you were to ask me my honest opinion of single cup brewers, I would tell you that it’s two fold:
1. It’s incredibly difficult to manage the quality of your coffee. Most coffee brewed in a keurig is just plain bad.
2. I COMPLETELY understand the novelty of them. It’s super nice to have an easy set-up and clean-up.
Eric and Tyler have a keurig and I resisted using it at first. But, I’ve played with different factors to make a great cup of coffee out of it. It may not be comparable to a pour-over {which we’ll talk about sometime} but, it’s definitely a dang good cup of joe.
I’m going to run you through what I do step-by-step.
Yes, this is a A LOT more labor intensive then the original idea of a keurig. But, it’s so much better that I’d like to think it’s worth it!
Step One: Forget about those coffee pods!!!
Yes, that’s the whole reason you wanted a keurig in the first place. But, the coffee in them is well beyond stale. They don’t have the correct proportions, and the coffee itself is just bad. Not to mention it’s going to cost you a fortune to have a mediocre product! Why not spend your money on GOOD coffee and even save a bit! Buy one of these re-usable pods that allow you to refill it with whatever coffee you choose! You won’t regret it!
Step Two: Buy good coffee! {read more about that here}
Step Three: Store your coffee properly! {read more about that here}
Step Four: Grind your coffee right before brewing!
When I say right before, I mean within seconds! After everything else is set up and ready to go, then, you can grind! I use a medium grind when I do it. But, a simple rule for you to know is that if the coffee is bitter try a coarser grind, if it is weak, try a finer one.
Step Five: Proportion!
A basic rule of thumb in regards to proportions is 2 tbspn of coffee for 6 oz of water. So, use 2 tbspn of coffee in your k-cup and then DO NOT use the largest cup button on your machine. Use the middle. This typically produces about 6 oz!
Step Six: Your Water!
There are two things that I do to make my cup even better. I only use filtered water and I pre-heat it. Here’s why:
The flavor of your coffee can be completely over shadowed by bad water. The cleaner tasting your water is, the more of the coffee you can taste.
I pre-heat because regular coffee makers can rarely get up the desired temperature for a good cup of coffee. I simply boil my water before putting it into the keurig to be heated.
Step Seven: Enjoy!
These simple steps will not only help you to enjoy a better cup of coffee. But, you can know that you’re treating the Earth better and supporting coffee companies and farmers that deserve your business! Not too shabby!
xoxo,
Sarajane.
Killing it, girl. Thanks for being so passionate and educated!
If you must use one of the pre-made cups, go with Barista Prima. I think they put more coffee in them. It is about the only one I will use if I am not using the refillable cup. I think a fine grind gives me the best results when using the refillable cup. I use filtered water, but have never tried preheating it.