Everyone loves a steaming cup of coffee upon waking, but many are perplexed by the fact that homemade coffee rarely tastes as delicious as that sold in cafes. The following paragraphs contain the secrets to making great-tasting coffee every time.
Coffee is not necessarily an unhealthy drink. Coffee itself is not bad for you. Rather, add-ons, including sweeteners and creams, make it unhealthy. Use almond milk instead of cream and stevia or honey in place of sugar to make your drinks healthier.
Does your coffee get stale because you cannot drink it fast enough? You should store it in an airtight container. Put your weekly dose of coffee into a smaller container and keep it in your freezer so it stays fresh. Store the rest of your coffee in a larger airtight container and open it only when you need to refill your smaller container.
When you are done with your coffee grinds, do not throw them away. What many people do not know is that used coffee grinds have many uses. They can be used for gardening, getting hardened food off your dishes and removing foul smells. Simply put them in a ziploc bag and put it in a cabinet.
You can re-use your coffee grounds for many items. Coffee grounds are great for getting rid of smells like garlic and onion on your hands. You can also use them on dishes that refuse to get clean with regular washing. Coffee grounds can even be used in the garden to take care of pests that threaten your plants.
It’s pricey but nice to have coffee at the local coffee house. For a sumptuous topping, why not use flavored whipped creams, chocolate shavings or ground nutmeg. You might also spring for a delicious espresso.
If you really want good coffee, throw away your cheap machine. It isn’t going to make you a great beverage and there are other alternatives that are very inexpensive. Just go to the store and locate a pour-over brewer. You will also need some paper filters. Go online and find a tutorial on how to use these products. They will cost you under ten dollars and the coffee will taste much better!
Iced coffee doesn’t taste so great when the ice cubes begin to melt, watering down the flavor. An excellent tip is to make ice cubes out of coffee or milk, and keeping them in the freezer in zippered bags. They will be handy anytime you want a cold drink on a hot day!
There is a lot of different choices in coffee makers. Most people have the standard drip brew machine that makes about 12 cups at a time. Some of the latest models of coffee makers use individual pods, and make only one cup. These machines work very fast, and are great for people in a hurry.
If you are buying coffee from a drive-in window, always error on the side of caution to stay as protected as possible. Typically, when you are buying coffee in this form, it will be piping hot, as you will not want to burn your hands or other areas of your body.
Avoid purchasing beans that come in cans or in vacuum-sealed bags. Coffee beans need to be protected by valve-sealed bags to remain fresh. Besides, valve-sealed bags allow the carbon dioxide that emanates from the beans to escape, which means the beans will retain all their flavor and stay fresh longer.
Do not use hot water to make your coffee. Many people think this is the best way to make their coffee hot; the truth is that the only thing this does is diminish its flavor. You should be using water that is not only cold, but charcoal filtered if possible.
Avoid storing your coffee near the oven or any other heat source. Heat saps the flavor out of your coffee very quickly. So keep your coffee in places like a pantry. Do not put it in a cupboard above your oven.
If you are planning on bringing coffee into work or to a friends house, always bring alternative flavors to inject a sense of variety in your presentation. This will give others the ability to make a choice as to which drink they prefer, which will make the most amount of people happy.
Understand the ratio of water to beans you need before you begin making your own coffee. A cup of coffee is not really a cup as it is only around six ounces. The best ratio of water to ground coffee is a pair of tablespoons of grounds with six ounces of liquid. If you consider a cooking cup size, your brew will taste diluted.
Avoid using pre-flavored and packaged coffee beans. These beans are sprayed with extra oils that are very difficult to clean out of grinders and coffee machines. That oil stays in the machines and mixes with later batches causing strange-tasting coffee. They also tend to make the coffee smell better than it tastes.
To get the ideal flavor from your coffee beans, the water needs to be just the right temperature. Boiling water is too hot and as a result will sap the more bitter oils from your beans. Alternately, water that is not hot enough will not brew all the flavor from your beans leaving you with a very bland coffee.
As you know, getting that perfect coffee drink can be hard unless you are armed with the right knowledge. But with the right tools and these helpful hints, you can be an accomplished coffee barista in your own home.
