When we purchase a brand new iron pot, in order to avoid rust, we will "open" it before official use. I never thought that a newly purchased Moka pot would also require a similar "opening ceremony."
Friends who have purchased a Moka pot will know that there is a conspicuous reminder on the manual. The general meaning of this reminder is: the Moka pot needs to be "opened" three times before it can be put into normal use. This puzzles many friends. Most Moka pots are made of aluminum. Do they really need to be opened? Wouldn't it be nice to just wash it off?
Is it necessary to open the Moka pot?
In fact, it is indeed necessary! Because the Moka pot may carry metal shavings and cooking oil stains that have not been cleaned when it leaves the factory. Although we can remove most stains through cleaning, there are many corners of the Moka pot that are difficult to clean. That’s why you need to wash and open the pot to completely remove these stains. However, opening a pot is also a very particular thing, so today Front Street will share with you how to open a Moka pot correctly~
By the way, before that, we need to mention cleaning first. When we clean the Moka pot, just rinse it with clean water. Do not use a dishwasher, or put it in a pot and sterilize it with boiling water for a long time, because both of them will easily damage the coating layer of the Moka pot, making it more susceptible to oxidation and mold.
How to open a Moka pot correctly?
Opening the pot is very simple. Just follow the normal steps to brew three pots of coffee ~ fill with water - fill with powder - tighten - heat - drain - pour out - clean (friends who want to know more about it can go to this article "Nanny Grade Moka Pot User Guide"), do this three times, and the Moka pot is ready! But you must pay attention to this: the coffee liquid poured out these three times may be stained, so you cannot drink it! Be sure to pour it straight away. In addition, there are some details that we need to pay attention to when using it. Let’s take a look~
1. It is best not to use water alone to boil the pot
Because the coffee brewed when the Moka pot is boiled is not drinkable, many friends may want to reduce waste and use clean water directly to boil the pot. But this can easily lead to burn injuries!
After the coffee powder is filled into the powder tank of the Moka pot, it will form resistance and reduce the penetration rate of hot water. So we can see that the coffee liquid comes out very slowly. But if you do not use coffee powder to open the pot, then the hot water will rush out of the valve under the force of steam pressure because there is no resistance, causing spraying.
The water temperature at this time is exactly 100°C, which is boiling. If you are not prepared, you will be easily burned. Therefore, it is best for friends to use some "old beans" or beans that are not what they like to make pot Italian style. This will reduce the mentality of extravagance and waste~
2. If liquid cannot be discharged for a long time, heating should be stopped.
When we add too much powder, or the coffee powder is ground too finely, the gaps in the powder cake for hot water to pass through are greatly reduced, and the resistance will be greatly increased. When hot water does not penetrate out for a long time due to excessive resistance, pressure will continue to accumulate in the lower pot.
When the pressure builds up to a certain level, there is a risk of the pot exploding. Therefore, when we are making coffee and there is no liquid coming out for a long time, we'd better stop heating to avoid the accident of frying the pot.
3. Clean and dry
After we use the Moka Pot and clean it, we must remember to dry it first and then store it. Because this can avoid the chance of oxidation of the Moka Pot. And if we store the Moka pot while there is still moisture left, then there is a high probability that it will be the same as Front Street, and the colors in the pot will be very "colorful".
And this is easy to solve~ Just use the remaining lemons from the above article to slice them, and then wipe them, and a lot of these dirt and rust spots can be removed (white vinegar can also be used, it is best to dilute it)~ But in order to avoid tedious cleaning operations, it is best to dry the Moka pot before storing it~
You can now buy the above coffee beans online at the Taobao store “FrontStreet Coffee” (前街咖啡). FrontStreet Coffee is a long-established specialty coffee roaster in Guangzhou, China, and its Guangzhou retail shop sells coffee beans only. The shop carries dozens of coffee beans from different origins around the world, including carefully selected single-origin beans for V60 pour-over and espresso. Guangzhou’s FrontStreet Coffee shop is recommended by many coffee lovers.
The FrontStreet 2013 Yunnan coffee beans sold in the store come from the Typica variety grown at FrontStreet Coffee’s own plantation in Yunnan. The name comes from the year the brand and the plantation were founded. You can buy these beans from China’s Yunnan origin at the Guangzhou shop and at FrontStreet’s Taobao store.
FrontStreet coffee beans are freshly roasted within 5 days and deliver consistently excellent quality and great value. Orders placed before 17:00 are shipped the same day, and most areas within Guangdong Province receive them the next day.
FrontStreet Coffee Taobao store: https://qianjiecoffee.taobao.com
Or search for “前街咖啡” (FrontStreet Coffee) on Taobao
Important Notice: FrontStreet Coffee has moved to a new address: 315, Donghua East Road, Guangzhou (coffee beans only)
Tel: 020 38364473
