If you adore the rich taste of espresso, you might have dreamt of having your espresso maker. You could relax at home while making your drink with the taste that perfectly suits your palate. The thing is, is it possible? Can you make espresso with regular coffee maker?
The Dark and Strong Espresso
A Turinese gentleman, Angelo Moriondo, invented the espresso machine way back 1800s, knowing coffee lovers yearned to cherish the combined taste of a dark, creamier and delicious brewed coffee.
The three most vital features to master if you want to fully understand how to make espresso are the roast, grind, and pressure concepts used to brew the coffee beans. Once you’ve mastered the needed techniques of all three, you’re on your way to preparing a great espresso of your own.
Espresso Roast
Roasting espresso beans have been traditionally dark and known to have a very much stronger flavor than regular roasted coffee, which is probably one of the things you love about it, right? All those coffee granules are said to be easier extracted from dark roasted beans compared to their less toasty counterparts.
Espresso Grind
Once the roasting part has been finished, espresso coffee is ground to a very fine powder. The fine coffee grind particles increase the pressure needed to push the water through the filter and thus produce a good shot of espresso. If the grind of espresso beans is too fine, it can cause blockage to the coffee filter and eventually ruin your coffee. We wouldn’t want that now, do we?
Technically, it is still possible to hand-grind your beans to the superfine consistency required for espresso, however, it may take you entirely some time and would most likely need a lot of effort, though the results may not be the same, it could still make your biceps bigger.
Espresso Pressure
Espresso is made possible by forcing extremely hot water into finely ground coffee beans at extreme pressure. This component is very vital as it defines how fine our espresso beans are going to become, thus affecting taste and consistency when mixed.
Making Espresso With No Espresso Machine
Now it’s the part to discuss several ways to make actual espresso without its machine. There are the Aeropress, the Moka pot, and the French press. Let’s take a quick look.
Making Espresso with an AeroPress
Some of us may be huge fans of the AeroPress. Well, who wouldn’t be? It’s the perfect get-go for making a double shot of creamy espresso.
Once you’ve got all the equipment needed and never forget your beans? It’s time to make espresso!
- What’s excellent with Aeropress is that you can experiment with temperatures anywhere between 185 F and 210 F until you’ve come to the ideal temperature you want. So to start this process, boil 250 mL water.
- Grind your coffee beans to an outstanding consistency until you achieved two tablespoons or about 24 grams.
- Place a filter in the AeroPress drain and finally rinse it with hot water.
- Place it directly onto your coffee mug or any container you prefer. Make sure to pour it on a sturdy cup because you’ll be putting pressure on it. After this, transfer your ground coffee to the Aeropress and allow it to do the work for you.
- Measure a half cup of the recently heated water. Pour the water into the mouth of the AeroPress and give it a quick stir.
- Wait for at least thirty seconds after stirring, then push with just the weight of your hand. There’s a huge tendency to feel strong resistance, but you must keep pushing steadily. After, transfer your homemade espresso into your favorite cup and enjoy it!
Making espresso possible with a Moka Pot
A Moka pot might not be an actual espresso maker, but it is a huge discovery of brilliant Italian engineering. Water pressure is added via steam, helping simulate that distinctive and unique espresso feel.
- Grind 20-22 grams of coffee beans. Similar to the method mentioned above, you’ll want to grind your coffee to an excellent texture.
- Add water to the bottom of your Moka pot until it reaches the fill line.
- Add the ground coffee to the filter basket found inside the Moka pot, put the water in the lower chamber as it boils to pressure the steam of coffee through its filters, wait patiently for the hissing sound. As the brown foam appears, your coffee is now complete and done!
How to Make Espresso with a French Press
What coffee lover doesn’t have a French press in their homes? To successfully make espresso out from this machine, you must:
- Grind your coffee using very dark roasted beans or might as well use espresso beans. You’ll be needing two tablespoons or 24 grams of beans every 1 cup of water.
- Fill your kettle with water and heat it to a boil, then set aside for 30 seconds.
- Fill your french press with coffee grounds. You’ll be using double the amount of coffee you would usually use for a typical French press coffee. This will give your brew a stronger refined flavor and darker brew.
- Add a few splashes to your french press, allowing your coffee to release its oils and aromatics.
- Add the remaining amount of your water to the French press. Please don’t attempt to stir it. It might cause the grounds to fall out and potentially ruin the extraction of tasty coffee richness.
- Wait for it to boil and release a hash brown kind of coloration.
- Finally, pour your coffee into a serving pot or might as well a cup. This will pause extraction and helps preserve the coffee aroma and flavor you’ve worked so hard to create.
- Serve your “French press-o” and enjoy it!
Wrap it up!
Now that you know the answer to the question, “Can you make espresso with regular coffee, you can pull a perfect shot of espresso by using your regular coffee machine at home. Enjoy your coffee and spread the good news if you can make your very own espresso with a regular coffee maker. Find out more about espressos.