Moka Pot coffee (I’ve gone full nerd!)

[Kjetil]

You can rebuild an espresso brewer with a vent and foam the milk with steam. Easier I guess.

 

[Paul G - 2022 Ocean]

I’ve got a stainless steel mokka pot that I heat on an induction hob and it’s lieterally done in 2 minutes using cold water from the tap. Think I need to have a play about with it

 

[chockswahay]

Just when I thought I couldn’t get more nerdy!

Whilst preparing a coffee this morning I had a ’light bulb’ moment….. why not sieve the grinds before placing in the pot? Now this is not quite as daft as it sounds, when I make bread I sieve the flour to break down clumps, so why not coffee?



It worked! The coffee in the small sieve is immediately after grinding, if you look (zoom) closely you will see the difference, the grinds in the cup are really well separated. The reason behind this was to improve the settling of the coffee in the funnel and eliminate any chance of channelling

Then as if that was not enough ‘nerding’ I stopped the brew at exactly 60 grams of liquid which is 3x the 20 grams of coffee grinds. To this I added 120 grams of microfoamed milk…….. No photo sorry as I drank it straight away

 

[GaryLynn]

I use a Moka pot both at home and out and about in our Campervan. Everything else being constant (ish) I’ve found the variations in water used make a big difference to taste - regional variations, hard vs soft etc. Have also found I get a more consistent (and better) flavour by using bottled water.

 

[kurienp]

Just when I thought I couldn’t get more nerdy!

Whilst preparing a coffee this morning I had a ’light bulb’ moment….. why not sieve the grinds before placing in the pot? Now this is not quite as daft as it sounds, when I make bread I sieve the flour to break down clumps, so why not coffee?

View attachment 102738

It worked! The coffee in the small sieve is immediately after grinding, if you look (zoom) closely you will see the difference, the grinds in the cup are really well separated. The reason behind this was to improve the settling of the coffee in the funnel and eliminate any chance of channelling

Then as if that was not enough ‘nerding’ I stopped the brew at exactly 60 grams of liquid which is 3x the 20 grams of coffee grinds. To this I added 120 grams of microfoamed milk…….. No photo sorry as I drank it straight away

All this talk about coffee, and now I sit here seriously considering a Bellman mentioned earlier and ready to throw the Nescafé instant out of the window. ... Hmmmm, may make a good Christmas present.

 

[chockswahay]

All this talk about coffee, and now I sit here seriously considering a Bellman mentioned earlier and ready to throw the Nescafé instant out of the window. ... Hmmmm, may make a good Christmas present.

Have you seen the price? Also for what its worth they (along with Moka Pots) are not really espresso machines, the pressure is just too low, I don’t really see the benefit

Of course being a fully paid up NERD I had to have another look……. Here are a couple of videos that offer up pros and cons

(If not for the price I could nearly be tempted )

 

[chockswahay]

Well….. I have just had the most delicious cup of coffee in these tests so far

This time I used my ‘3 cup’ and put 20 grams of sieved coffee in the funnel, 80 grams of water in the base, heat really really low and extracted 40 grams over 3 minutes. To this I added 80 grams of foamed milk………. result was the best yet!

 

[yossarian]

Well….. I have just had the most delicious cup of coffee in these tests so far

This time I used my ‘3 cup’ and put 20 grams of sieved coffee in the funnel, 80 grams of water in the base, heat really really low and extracted 40 grams over 3 minutes. To this I added 80 grams of foamed milk………. result was the best yet!

Underfilling the tank will give you a different pressure profile. The air in the tank will expand as an ideal (Gay-Lusac) gas instead of a saturated vapour. Without going full nerd I discovered I prefer the product of an underfilled tank some time ago. Worth adding to your experimentation regime?

 

[chockswahay]

Underfilling the tank will give you a different pressure profile. The air in the tank will expand as an ideal (Gay-Lusac) gas instead of a saturated vapour. Without going full nerd I discovered I prefer the product of an underfilled tank some time ago. Worth adding to your experimentation regime?

I agree with you. BTW I reckon full nerd is the way to go and (possibly) a prerequisite of adding to this thread

 

[Barbara]

Today's breakfast coffee. Both are electric, one very old and one new. It is nice now to be able to have hot milk with my coffee. It was raining but the awning was out so breakfast outside.

 

[Hawthorn37]

At home we have a Sage Barrista, plus French press and a Moka pot. When camping we use either a small French press, coffee bags or more recently a Moka pot. It always feels like it’s a special treat to have fresh coffee in the van.

View attachment IMG_3264.jpeg

 

[JuanVecino2023]

WARNING! You may not like this post, you may lose the will to live, or you might just learn something new…………. feel free to stop reading at any point!

I have been experimenting with different techniques for using a stove top Moka pot. After having spent far too long watching umpteen YouTube videos this is where I am at the moment. The pot used in these photos is the Bialetti ‘3 cup’ however my preferred choice is our ‘6 cup’. As anyone who has one of these knows the cup reference is only relevant to very small cups so don’t read too deeply into the numbers.

First I grind 20 grams of medium roast beans, finer than shop bought espresso grind but in reality not as fine as espresso setting on a good quality grinder. Then I drop the coffee into the coffee funnel and gently lift and drop onto the tube in the photo so that the grinds settle then once near the top I just level with a knife…. NO tamping. I put an ‘Aeropress filter’ on the underside of the top vessel (wet it to stay in place) then I pour boiling water in the the pressure chamber up to the relief valve. Screw the whole lot together (tea towel needed) and place on the stove on a VERY low heat. In my case I use an induction plate as the stove is induction and the Moka pot is aluminium.

View attachment 102635
View attachment 102642
It takes 9 or 10 minutes before the coffee starts to come through but when it does it is a nice, gentle, controlled flow. After about a minute I turn off the hob and the residual heat will last for another 2 minutes before the top vessel is full and the liquid turns clear and (possibly) starts to spurt. Note that it is very important to stop the brew the moment the spurting starts.

View attachment 102636

Once the brew is complete I remove it from the heat and rest it in cold water to stop the brewing process.

View attachment 102637

Then a quick stir to mix the coffee and oils evenly before pouring into 2 preheated cups. I add 50 grams of coffee to each cup then 125 grams of foamed milk (previously heated to 65 c) which has been frothed in a cafetière by pumping 4 or 5 times gently but ‘through’ the surface, then another 50 or so but briskly and without breaking the surface. This aerates and ‘stretches’ the milk.

View attachment 102639

The final result is a ‘poor man’s Cappuccino’ (or flat white) without the expense of an espresso machine and an expensive grinder

View attachment 102640

I agree it’s not perfect, but the taste and texture are lovely and not a million miles away from something you would buy in a coffee shop or café.
View attachment 102641


So, I did say this was full on nerdy but I thought it might just be of passing interest to those of you with a Moka Pot. The Lessons that I have learned during this excessive are:

1. Grind a bit finer than shop bought espresso grind.

2. Fill the funnel to the top, level with a knife but do NOT tamp down.

3. The use of a paper filter helps refine the taste (and if you don’t believe that I can tell you it makes the Moka pot much easier to clean afterwards!)

4. Filling the pressure vessel with boiling water does reduce the overall time and avoids ‘scorching’ the coffee.

5. A 3 minute extraction allows for the grinds to be fully wetted and draw out the full taste, helping to avoid sour (under extraction) or bitter (over extraction)

6. Depending on your personal taste the coffee to milk ratio should be around 1 to 2.5

7. Do not heat the milk beyond 65c or it will break down in structure and be less able to hold the air bubbles when frothing.

8. I clearly have TOO MUCH time on my hands and need to get out more . But at least I can have a nice cup of coffee in the meantime

9. Don’t judge me! I did warn you at the beginning…….

I just read this. Some observations

1 I aged notably while reading it
2 if you priced your man hours & input materials, you could buy a Costa franchise
3 I absolutely admire and salute the ingenuity and dedication to your craft
4 it’s very impressive to create that in a van

His did it compare to an Aeropress?

 

[myvanrodney]

i'm gonna read this thread later... love it! in the meantime, i am enjoying my aeropress coffee using beans my friend roasted, while looking out over the kyle of tongue. life is precious !

 

[Corradobrit]

At home we have a Sage Barrista, plus French press and a Moka pot. When camping we use either a small French press, coffee bags or more recently a Moka pot. It always feels like it’s a special treat to have fresh coffee in the van.

View attachment 140490

My feelings exactly. The sense of achievement and satisfaction making that perfect cup of coffee in the morning surpasses many of the other accomplishments. Drinking it with a perfect vista... priceless.

 

[FivetonesCali]

i'm gonna read this thread later... love it! in the meantime, i am enjoying my aeropress coffee using beans my friend roasted, while looking out over the kyle of tongue. life is precious !

T

I just read this. Some observations

1 I aged notably while reading it
2 if you priced your man hours & input materials, you could buy a Costa franchise
3 I absolutely admire and salute the ingenuity and dedication to your craft
4 it’s very impressive to create that in a van

His did it compare to an Aeropress?

To support @Corradobrit ‘s point I’d add that in answer to 2. time is NOT money

 

[JuanVecino2023]

T


To support @Corradobrit ‘s point I’d add that in answer to 2. time is NOT money

Fear not, it was heavily tongue in cheek.

As per points 3 & 4, I admire the dedication to craft. When I had my van I settled on my Aeropress as the optimum balance of cost/time/space/4 year old running amok variables.

At home, I am more ritualistic. I’ve had tons of espresso based setups over the years. After a Costa Rica trip where filter coffee machines in the room are the norm, I went down that rabbit hole of filter coffee.

Far from the hot plate muck at convention centres, it’s a clean, light wonderful thing.

After much geekery, I settled on the Sage Precision Brew (just edged Mokkamaster, which does look cooler), and a Fellow Ode 2 for grinding the beans.

Joy.

 

[hlobban]

Home Setup:
Sage Barista Express Impress - Semi Auto Bean to Cup... I wanted full manual with seperate grinder, herself wanted fully Auto (push button) so we compromised on this. To be fair to it, absolutely great coffee and steamed milk. Percect Flat Whites every time with just enough coffee "faff" to please me and relatively simple flow that keeps herself happy!

Cali:
In the van its all up to me for the perfect sip with the perfect view in the morning. At the moment, pregrinding at home the beans at the correct grind for a small Caffietier, which I double the quantity of ground coffee in to try and create a thicker, heavier, more cafinated version of the traditional French Press. This gets put into pre-heated cups and then frothed milk added from a standard, 240v Nespresso aeroccino (powered by the Ecoflow River 2 Pro when off grid).

However, looking at this thread, I may need to up my game.... a camping MokaPot of some sort might be worth looking at!

 

[chockswahay]

WARNING! You may not like this post, you may lose the will to live, or you might just learn something new…………. feel free to stop reading at any point!

I have been experimenting with different techniques for using a stove top Moka pot. After having spent far too long watching umpteen YouTube videos this is where I am at the moment. The pot used in these photos is the Bialetti ‘3 cup’ however my preferred choice is our ‘6 cup’. As anyone who has one of these knows the cup reference is only relevant to very small cups so don’t read too deeply into the numbers.

First I grind 20 grams of medium roast beans, finer than shop bought espresso grind but in reality not as fine as espresso setting on a good quality grinder. Then I drop the coffee into the coffee funnel and gently lift and drop onto the tube in the photo so that the grinds settle then once near the top I just level with a knife…. NO tamping. I put an ‘Aeropress filter’ on the underside of the top vessel (wet it to stay in place) then I pour boiling water in the the pressure chamber up to the relief valve. Screw the whole lot together (tea towel needed) and place on the stove on a VERY low heat. In my case I use an induction plate as the stove is induction and the Moka pot is aluminium.

View attachment 102635
View attachment 102642
It takes 9 or 10 minutes before the coffee starts to come through but when it does it is a nice, gentle, controlled flow. After about a minute I turn off the hob and the residual heat will last for another 2 minutes before the top vessel is full and the liquid turns clear and (possibly) starts to spurt. Note that it is very important to stop the brew the moment the spurting starts.

View attachment 102636

Once the brew is complete I remove it from the heat and rest it in cold water to stop the brewing process.

View attachment 102637

Then a quick stir to mix the coffee and oils evenly before pouring into 2 preheated cups. I add 50 grams of coffee to each cup then 125 grams of foamed milk (previously heated to 65 c) which has been frothed in a cafetière by pumping 4 or 5 times gently but ‘through’ the surface, then another 50 or so but briskly and without breaking the surface. This aerates and ‘stretches’ the milk.

View attachment 102639

The final result is a ‘poor man’s Cappuccino’ (or flat white) without the expense of an espresso machine and an expensive grinder

View attachment 102640

I agree it’s not perfect, but the taste and texture are lovely and not a million miles away from something you would buy in a coffee shop or café.
View attachment 102641


So, I did say this was full on nerdy but I thought it might just be of passing interest to those of you with a Moka Pot. The Lessons that I have learned during this excessive are:

1. Grind a bit finer than shop bought espresso grind.

2. Fill the funnel to the top, level with a knife but do NOT tamp down.

3. The use of a paper filter helps refine the taste (and if you don’t believe that I can tell you it makes the Moka pot much easier to clean afterwards!)

4. Filling the pressure vessel with boiling water does reduce the overall time and avoids ‘scorching’ the coffee.

5. A 3 minute extraction allows for the grinds to be fully wetted and draw out the full taste, helping to avoid sour (under extraction) or bitter (over extraction)

6. Depending on your personal taste the coffee to milk ratio should be around 1 to 2.5

7. Do not heat the milk beyond 65c or it will break down in structure and be less able to hold the air bubbles when frothing.

8. I clearly have TOO MUCH time on my hands and need to get out more . But at least I can have a nice cup of coffee in the meantime

9. Don’t judge me! I did warn you at the beginning…….

Christ! This was just brought to my attention………. I starting losing the will live after a couple of paragraphs!

Now I just put the coffee in, fill the base with cold water and heat on low till it makes a noise and turn off. The milk is warmed in a milk pan at the same time…….. job done

 

[wildslammer22]

Fear not, it was heavily tongue in cheek.

As per points 3 & 4, I admire the dedication to craft. When I had my van I settled on my Aeropress as the optimum balance of cost/time/space/4 year old running amok variables.

At home, I am more ritualistic. I’ve had tons of espresso based setups over the years. After a Costa Rica trip where filter coffee machines in the room are the norm, I went down that rabbit hole of filter coffee.

Far from the hot plate muck at convention centres, it’s a clean, light wonderful thing.

After much geekery, I settled on the Sage Precision Brew (just edged Mokkamaster, which does look cooler), and a Fellow Ode 2 for grinding the beans.

Joy.

I treated myself to the Ode 2 a while back and I’ve been enjoying the coffee it makes to the extent I’m using my espresso machine less and less. I was an early adopter of the Niche Zero which I still love for espresso but it wasn’t great for filter.

 

[wildslammer22]

Home Setup:
Sage Barista Express Impress - Semi Auto Bean to Cup... I wanted full manual with seperate grinder, herself wanted fully Auto (push button) so we compromised on this. To be fair to it, absolutely great coffee and steamed milk. Percect Flat Whites every time with just enough coffee "faff" to please me and relatively simple flow that keeps herself happy!

Cali:
In the van its all up to me for the perfect sip with the perfect view in the morning. At the moment, pregrinding at home the beans at the correct grind for a small Caffietier, which I double the quantity of ground coffee in to try and create a thicker, heavier, more cafinated version of the traditional French Press. This gets put into pre-heated cups and then frothed milk added from a standard, 240v Nespresso aeroccino (powered by the Ecoflow River 2 Pro when off grid).

However, looking at this thread, I may need to up my game.... a camping MokaPot of some sort might be worth looking at!

When your van has almost become just a vehicle for carrying around multiple coffee brewing options then you’ve probably gone too far, not that I’d know…

 

[Hawthorn37]

Just remembered, we have a Nespresso aeroccino that’s now hardly used (since getting the Sage), and it’s only about 500W, so okay on EHU. Having easy made frothy milk would be THE BUSINESS ! Wonder if I could squeeze it in to a cupboard

 

[Corradobrit]

Having easy made frothy milk would be THE BUSINESS ! Wonder if I could squeeze it in to a cupboard

A small Bodum cafetiere does the job admirably. I even use it with my Cafelat Robot at home. Decent workaround until I can reinstall my manual lever espresso machine.

 

[JuanVecino2023]

I treated myself to the Ode 2 a while back and I’ve been enjoying the coffee it makes to the extent I’m using my espresso machine less and less. I was an early adopter of the Niche Zero which I still love for espresso but it wasn’t great for filter.

This is what I found, filter (or your non-espresso based coffee of choice), is so good with the Ode, it makes the faff of espresso seem redundant! I am a huge convert.

The Ode 2 looks cool too. I haven't gone down the WSP burr mod. Yet.

 

[JuanVecino2023]

Christ! This was just brought to my attention………. I starting losing the will live after a couple of paragraphs!

Now I just put the coffee in, fill the base with cold water and heat on low till it makes a noise and turn off. The milk is warmed in a milk pan at the same time…….. job done

I sing mine a soft lullaby, whilst caressing the pot wearing gossamer gloves. Of course, it goes without saying that I carry a full reverse osmosis water purifer on a trailer at all times. God forbid that I have to use supermarket water for my precious brew.

 

[JuanVecino2023]

When your van has almost become just a vehicle for carrying around multiple coffee brewing options then you’ve probably gone too far, not that I’d know…

I saw your van. And I know the mukry secret as to why you sold me the tyre table.

It was to make room for your ceramic burr grinder habit, wasn't it?