A barista’s best friend is an espresso machine. They give you complete control over how you make your coffee, what you use to prepare it, and how you serve it. With the right machine, you can become a caffeine junkie!
Most machines are set to make one standard size of coffee: large-sized espresso. This is good for beginners, as they can learn how to make a decent coffee with this machine. Once they learn their limits, they can move on to something more complex!
Bullet point expanded: Variations of Espresso Coffee Making Process
Sometimes in the coffee industry, there are distinctions made between different types of roast and different methods for roasting beans. These variations do not matter for making espresso, but do for creating variations in other drinks.
These variations include adding milk or sugar, using a filter or not, and using a crema or not. The crema adds some flavor to your coffee and creates a slight rosy color when brewed.
Contents:
Put them in the container
When you buy your new espresso machine, make sure that it comes with a ground coffee container. This is the part where the machine puts the coffee grounds into.
You will need to put it on and connect it to your home wiring, or via USB if you have a second device connected to it. This is what causes your coffee to be brewed in a traditional style cup and dish!
This part is very easy- just plug it in and wait for it to start brewing! Once it does, put in your desired amount of shots and let them sit! This takes about a minute of waiting for it to complete.
Once this happens, come back down and give your coffee some time to settle.
Tap the button for coffee
Once your machine has been programmed with your preferences, you’re ready to drink your coffee. Just tap the button for coffee to start brewing.
Tap again to stop brewing and turn off the machine. You can also program the machine to send you an alert every few minutes to let you know it is working.
How long your coffee lasts depends on how quickly you program the machine and if you are keeping an eye on how much water and espresso is in the machine.
Hot water runs through the grounds
When the water starts running through the capsule in the machine, that’s when the coffee maker process starts. The grounds are extracted and heated as water passes through them.
This process takes a few seconds to start, so do not be worried if it does not start at first. It takes a few seconds to sync with your smartphone or computer, and then it will start sending updates about how much coffee and espresso you are making.
The machine will tell you how much water was in the capsule when it was made, and how much water was used to make it.
Coffee comes out of the spout
When coffee is ready, a bell rings and a stream of coffee comes out of the spout. This is because the Espresso machine needs a certain length of time to brew your coffee.
The machine measures how much coffee you make and then adjusts the amount of water, beans, and clock to create an adequate amount of espresso. This takes time so be prepared!
You can also set the machine to make black or roastless espresso, hot or iced coffee, or even flavored espresso. All of these things are possible!
Black or roastless espresso is what you want if you do not want any caffeine in your coffee. Hot or iced coffee is what you want if you do not want it bitter or hot.
You can make different flavors of coffee
This is one of the biggest hooks of the espresso machine model that you don’t want to be left out of. Namely, that you can make different flavors of coffee!
This is something that most coffee makers miss out on by only making black and white coffee. You can certainly change up your flavor profiles and give yourself a treat by making some flavored coffee.
There are even companies that specialize in introducing new flavors into coffee, like Starbucks did with their introduction of their specialty drinks.
Bullet pointended: There are also specialized machines that do latte art or cappuccino art, both of which are very popular drinks these days.
These machines are more expensive, which is why only some people get themselves espresso machines these days.
It takes skill to make great espresso
For the most beautiful and wonderful espresso drinks, you must know how to make an excellent espresso. An adequate machine will give you the right amount of pressure and temperature needed to make a great shot.
The first step in making an excellent espresso is to measure your water level. This varies based on who you are as brewer, but in my experience, one should use between eight to ten ounces of water for a single shot.
To achieve proper temperature on the machine, use eight to ten ounces of water and set the temperature at machine level or between steaming and boiling. Make sure that the coffee is soaked into the pot before turning off the machine so that it starts heating immediately.
Next is to set your grind size or coarseness. Too fine of a grind will result in a weak cup of coffee while too coarse may result in too much milk or cream in the drink.
There are many types of espresso coffee machines
Espresso coffee machines come in many styles, sizes, and formats. Some are stand-alone units, some are part of a coffee machine cocktail party set, and some are integrated into standard coffee machine settings.
The most common form now is the single-serive-and-espresso machine. This type of machine is found in many restaurants and food establishments today. A lot of them have copied this model to make things easier for their customers.
The other types of espresso machines include the countertop models or ones you place in your kitchen cabinet, the tabletop models, and the undercounter models. These last two might be paired with a display or printout to show people how it works.
Know your beans
Have a certain coffee brand or roast you love? Then look into introducing yourself to the machine by using one of the two guides. You can also try joining a club to learn more about the machine and how it works.
The average person does not know what roasts are all about so the machine will pick itself! Once it finds your beans, it will start working and you will see the first rise of coffee being made. This is when people typically taste the coffee and if they like it, they’ll order more.
The machine takes its time to make its first rise so if you want a quick cup of joe, then this is not for you.