How To Make Coffee In A Cafetiere?

Coffee in a cafetiere is the most ideal cup of coffee that you can have – it is still strong and tasty, but quite as mind blowingly strong as the types of coffee that come from a shop or a machine.

If you’ve never used one, you may be wondering how to make coffee in a cafetiere. Don’t panic, we are here to talk you through the process, step by step!

What Coffee Do You Put In A Cafetiere?

Generally, this is all down to personal taste. There is no laws as to what coffee you can make in your cafetiere, so just pick your favourite!

Generally though, because of the way the coffee is made, coarse ground coffee is the best choice for your cafetiere.

The coffee is immersed in the water for a long time to extract the flavour, rather than having water forced through it quickly, as in an espresso  machine.

Using a coarser ground coffee results in a better flavour, and will prevent too much ingress of particles in your cup.

Medium dark or dark roasted coffee is the best choice for your cafetiere, as the flavour that will be released is strong enough to make a great cuppa.

Using a lighter roast may not offer you the same depth of flavour, so go for a darker bean if you like that strong coffee taste.

Lastly, freshly ground coffee is the best type that you can use, as this will give a real, true taste of the coffee.

You can also get decaf coffee, if you are trying to reduce your caffeine intake. This will taste just as good as the real stuff, but without the caffeine.

Wherever you can, try to find coffee that states it is fairtrade. This is a blanket organisation that aims to treat coffee farmers well, and help keep them safe and solvent.

Fairtrade coffee means that you can still enjoy your favourite cuppa, with an extra sense of satisfaction because you are helping to make other people’s lives better.

You can, of course, buy packets of ground coffee, which is the easiest and most convenient way of using your cafetiere.

However, buying the coffee as beans and grinding them up yourself will give you such a sense of satisfaction – plus, you can choose the coarseness of the grind.

If you can’t get hold of freshly ground beans then any normal packet coffee is fine – but the freshly ground stuff is the black gold you are really looking for!

This is a useful video to watch if you have never made coffee in a cafetiere:

How Many Spoons Of Coffee In A Cafetiere?

This is generally a matter of taste, and will depend on how strong you like your coffee, how big your cafetiere is, and how many people you are serving with coffee.

As a general rule, it is recommended that you use one scoop of coffee per person. Of course, if you like it stronger then you can add more!

1 scoop is the equivalent of 1 tablespoon, or around 7 grams of coffee, per person who is sharing your cafetiere.

If you don’t have a scoop or a spoon you can, of course, guess the amount by eye, but this is not a very accurate way of doing it.

As well as the amount of coffee you use, the amount and type of water you use is also important for a good cup of coffee:

The water needs to be slightly cooler than boiling when you pour it over your coffee grounds.

Boiling water straight from the kettle can affect the taste of your coffee, so leave it for a minute or two before you add the water – if you can!

Try to use the same amount of water as there are cups. This means that the finished product won’t be too diluted.

It is recommended that you use 2.5tbsp of coffee to 6oz of water. This will give a good strong cuppa.

Can You Use Normal Coffee In A Cafetiere?

A cafeitiere is used for ground coffee, not the standard freeze dried coffee you will find in your standard coffee jars.

While you can put “normal” coffee in your cafetiere, it is not necessarily recommended.

It won’t do any harm, but it won’t make a very exciting cup of coffee! The methods of making each different type of coffee are completely different:

The freeze dried coffee dissolves in the hot water, to which you add milk and sugar to your tastes.

Fresh ground coffee sits in the cafetiere with the hot water, slowly releasing its flavour until you press the plunger, squeezing out all the goodness.

If you are making coffee with a cafetiere, the best thing you can do is to use the correct type of coffee, for the best results.

What Is The Difference Between Filter Coffee And Cafetiere?

Making your own coffee in a cafeitiere versus making it in a standard filter coffee machine? We’re all over this!

Caferiere coffee works by pressing the coffee grounds in slightly cooler than boiling water.

Filter coffee works by passing the coffee solids through a filter paper, also using hot water.

The main difference is in the taste of the coffee. Cafetiere coffee releases much more of the coffee oils and coffee solids, which contributes to a stronger “coffee” taste.

The mouthfeel of cafetiere coffee is much denser and heavier, because of these aforementioned oils and solids.

Filter coffee has dripped through a filter, resulting in a lighter mouthfeel, and a slightly less intense coffee taste.

When your pour your coffee through a filter paper, you will not find any grounds in your cup, as you might when using a cafetiere.

This is a wordy article,but it is an interesting study showing the health differences between cafetiere and filtered coffee.

Cafetiere coffee is a delicious way to enjoy your favourite caffeine, and it is considerably less expensive that the types that you buy in a cafe!

Now you know how to make coffee in a cafetiere, you can enjoy your favourite coffee shop beverage at home, for a fraction of the cost.