You might question yourself how to use the coffee maker as soon as you make a purchase. Luckily, it is easy to use, with just some basic techniques, including filtered water and proper coffee grind.
What is more, it even allows you to adjust the amount of coffee serving you wish to have. All you need to do is to divide the coffee weight and water amount by a number.
If you are still confused, keep reading this article for the most basic steps and some secret tips to get the best out of your machine.
Contents
A Step-By-Step Instructions On How To Use The Coffee Maker
Step 1: Add Water
Most coffee machines have a built-in reservoir, which can hold ample hot water for 2 to 12 cups per cycle.
While some machines might only make a fixed coffee amount based on the reservoir’s water level, others can adjust the amount of coffee brewed according to the different serving sizes.
You can use any water, either tap water or bottled water, as long as it is clean and fresh. However, filtered clean water is still the best option as it prevents any mineral from building inside.
In particular, never add any flavoring agents or any different kinds of liquid apart from plain water.
Step 2: Add Filter
Choose the right filter which is compatible with the shape and size of your coffee maker. A reusable filter and a disposable filter are perfect for brewing coffee, but the former is more environmentally friendly.
Paper or cloth and cloth-like coffee filters can hold both the coffee grounds and its volatile oils. These oils can bring your coffee flavor to another level, but some coffee enthusiasts might not prefer this flavor and thus use some other types of filter to block the oils.
Step 3: Add Ground Coffee
If there is somewhere you can significantly change your coffee’s flavor, it is this step.
Getting pre-ground coffee is easy, cheap, and convenient; however, its taste is nowhere compared to fresh coffee grounds. I recommend you grind fresh coffee beans by yourself.
But if you are too busy for that, try to find a nearby coffee store having a grinder for big bean purchases. It is worth it!
Step 4: Brew Coffee
Though there are no industry standards forcing brands to follow any specific coffee-to-water ratio, most of them manufacture their products to abide by the basic rule: a tablespoon of ground coffee for a 4-ounce serving.
It might be easy to over or under-exact coffee, neither of which tastes good. Therefore, I do not advise you to try different ratios with a coffee machine. That might work for art coffee or pour-overs, but not for a coffee maker.
Step 5: Serve And Enjoy
Now, after going through these above simple steps, you have some freshly brewed coffee ready. If your machine is built with a warming plate and a glass carafe, remember to take that carafe out, as the heat might leave your coffee bitter over time.
However, if there is leftover coffee, re-install it on the warming plate, which can keep your coffee warm and fresh for up to 30 minutes once the brew cycle has finished.
The convenience of an automatic coffee maker is a hands-free experience over the whole process. It is especially necessary whenever you need an extra-large serving or more than just a serving.
The serving sizes are different, depending on your machine model. Nevertheless, most manufacturers understand that coffeeholics will not stop with the only cup of coffee. And that is why a convenient warming plate was born.
As long as you strictly follow the detailed steps above, getting a good cup of coffee is never easier than that. You can also refer to this video if you want.
Tips For Achieving The Best Results
1. Check The Coffee Pot
It seems ridiculous to remind you to put the coffee pot at the exact place during the brewing time. It is the simplest thing and never bothers being mentioned until you suddenly forget to do it. What a terrible thing, right?
2. Preheat The Coffee Pot
I guess nearly everyone knows the right way to use the coffee pot, but you know what makes the difference?
It is to preheat the coffee pot with a sufficient amount of warm water. But remember to dump it out before starting the brewing process.
3. Preheat The Coffee Cup
There is a huge debate over whether preheating the coffee cup does have any effect on your coffee or not. But it ends up doing you more good than you expect.
Your coffee cup will be warm for a longer time; thus, creating a more pleasant experience. It would help if you wanted to enjoy a warm cup of coffee to set your day rather than the colder one.
4. Use A Thermal Carafe
Time is the ultimate enemy once you finish your brewing process. And let me show you another way to keep your coffee warm. It is the thermal coffee that will work.
Your coffee is consistently warm as long as it still sits there, without the help of any hot plate.
5. Clean The Coffee Maker Regularly
Frequently dealing with hot water, a coffee machine needs to be cleaned regularly to erase mineral sediments. These minerals would give your coffee a vile and nasty taste.
Therefore, it is best to clean your machine periodically for a perfect taste, especially when it has visible build-up or a noticeable odor.
6. Use Fresh Ground Beans
As I mentioned earlier, fresh ground beans always taste better than pre-ground coffee. When being ground, the bean’s interior comes exposed and reacts with the air, making coffee lose some properties over time.
Make sure to keep your beans in a completely sealed container. Otherwise, you might find other unwanted tastes in the coffee.
7. Use Correct Temperatures
Water should stay around 91-96 degrees Celcius or below the boiling point while your coffee brews. Hotter water may scald and affect the coffee taste, while colder water cannot exact ample flavor from the beans.
If you boil water for making coffee, let it reach a boil, then cool it down for 1-2 minutes before you pour it over the ground beans.
8. Choose The Right Coffee Maker
This thing sounds ridiculous, but believe me, the right coffee machine will make a huge difference.
It doesn’t have to be a high-end kit but the one that fits your needs. For example, if you love milk-based coffee, consider a machine with milk frother like the Jura ENA 8.
The Bottom Line
Whether you use your coffee machine, either for your morning coffee or for dinner dessert for guests, it is important to learn how to use the coffee maker.
Not only does it guarantee the high quality of every cup of coffee you make, but it also expands the longevity of your machine.
Hopefully, from my personal experience, this article has offered you helpful information on how a coffee machine works and what is behind a single step of the coffee-making process.
With all of that, you will master this specific skill of using a classic coffee machine sooner or later.
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