The Moka Pot is mistakenly referred to as a Stove Top Espresso Maker.
It is a pressure brewed device that makes a small concentrated bit of coffee, but is not an espresso. Espresso requires a steady temperature of water in the range of 195-205 degrees Fahrenheit with 8.5 to 9.5 bars of pressure.
In the Moka Pot, the pressure is created by the boiling water used to brew, which is too low of pressure to qualify as an espresso.
Brewing Guide and How to Use a Moka Pot
- Grind some fresh coffee.
- Use a scale and measure the appropriate amount of coffee. The amount will vary on the size of your moka pot. Basically, you need to put enough ground coffee in the removable metal basket, to approximately a depth of a 1/2".
- The coffee needs to offer some resistance to the boiling water that will percolate through the puck. Grind it finer than your drip coffee.
- Pack, do not tamp the coffee, just level it with the top screen. Boil some water separately in a kettle, this will speed things up and keep the moka pot parts cooler rather than boiling everything on top of the stove.
- When the water comes to a boil, pour into the empty bottom ( with the funnel basket and top filter removed) of the Moka Pot to the appropriate level. You may want to measure this amount carefully with a measuring cup or scale, but most of these Moka Pots have lines on the inside telling you where to fill, so just use those. Quickly insert the funnel basket with coffee and it's filter top into the base, and immediately screw on the top firmly. Now place the whole unit (remembering to use the insulated handle because the base is hot from the water!), on your heating element and turn it on. Your hot water should return to a boil very quickly, causing the water to rise up and percolate through your coffee puck into the upper pouring chamber. Keep the lid of the pouring chamber open so you can see all this happening and when it starts to sputter that means all your water is gone, so turn off your heat source, and enjoy! .
This is not a recipe set in stone because you will have different coffee beans roasted to varying degrees, different sized moka pots, different hardness of water, different grinders that are sharper or duller, you get the idea...
We are freeing you to experiment, just remember to write down what you did so you can REPLICATE it.
Season the Moka Pot?
Remember to let everything cool down before you unscrew the Moka Pot to dump out the spent grounds and wash all the parts.
Make sure you clean it after every use.
The idea of leaving it dirty to season is just a myth, unless you love the taste of burnt, rancid coffee oils. The only time seasoning metal brewing devices is legitimate is when it is done to remove traces of manufacturing oils and compounds. Other than that, clean it because it's gross!
