I believe that for Moka pot players, the terms double valve and single valve will be familiar. However, for beginners, usemoka potTo make delicious coffee, you still need to learn how to do it.
moka potWhich is better, single valve or double valve?
Nowadays, there are countless choices for buying a Moka pot on shopping platforms, but if you pay careful attention, they can be divided according to structural differences: single-valve Moka pot and double-valve Moka pot.
From a structural point of view,Single valve moka potThe outlet hole of the upper pot is hollow, and the pressure during heating and extraction is 1 Bar. The coffee liquid released is generally thick and black, and the oil layer is thin. The double-valve Moka pot has been upgraded and installed a valve with a pressurizing function at the original outlet hole. The pressure can reach 2-3 Bar during extraction. The increase in pressure makes the coffee texture thicker and the oil liquid richer and more delicate. If it is closer to the rich taste of espresso, Front Street recommends choosing a double-valve Moka pot.
moka potAdvantages and Disadvantages of Making Coffee
The biggest advantage of the Moka pot is that it is easy to carry and easy to operate. There are no tedious steps like espresso coffee. Of course, the price is also very affordable. However, the Moka pot also has obvious shortcomings. Compared with the espresso machine, the extraction water temperature is generally 90-94 degrees. The Moka pot will make the hot water reach the boiling point of 100 degrees. Excessive temperature will extract bitter macromolecules, making the coffee taste easily burnt, bitter and thick, making it difficult to swallow.
What needs to be noted here is that although the coffee liquid brewed by the Moka pot has a stronger taste, it is still somewhat different from our common Italian coffee. What we now refer to as espresso is extracted through more than 9 atmospheric pressures. The resulting coffee liquid is rich and silky, high-quality, delicate and rich. The maximum pressure of a Moka pot is only 2 atmospheres, which is far less than the pressure value used by commercial espresso machines. The resulting coffee liquid is relatively thin, and the flavor and taste are not as rich and mellow as espresso. But if we want to drink a strong cup of coffee faster at home, Front Street believes that the Moka pot is also a very good choice.
Fine coffee powder can be usedmoka pot?
As mentioned above, the Moka pot is a pressurized extraction method, so the grinding size is generally much finer than hand brewing and a little coarser than espresso powder. If the coffee powder is ground too coarsely, the contact between the water and the coffee powder will be uneven, resulting in insufficient extraction and bad taste. It may also be that the resistance is too small and the liquid will gush out, easily causing the risk of splashing and burns. If the grinding is too fine, the resistance to the upward flow of liquid will be increased, and the coffee liquid will not be released. If the pressure in the lower pot is too high and the pressure cannot be released in time, there will be a risk of explosion.
The thickness recommended by Front Street is EK-43s#3-3.5 scale. If it is difficult for us to judge whether the grinding degree is consistent, we can observe the size of the gap in the grinding groove of the Moka pot to ensure that the coffee particles will not pass through the gap. You can also refer to the thickness used here on Front Street.
What kind of coffee beans are suitable for Moka pot?
Because of the high water-to-powder ratio and relatively short brewing time of the Moka pot, it is more suitable for brewing medium-dark roasted coffee than light-roasted beans. Since the Moka pot is a pressurized extraction method, if light-roasted coffee is used, the texture of light-roasted beans is harder, and a finer grinding degree is usually required to improve the extraction rate. However, fine grinding under high temperature and pressure can easily make the coffee sour and irritating, and it is also more difficult to extract the aroma of oil.
There are two conditions for making a Moka pot have grease. One is fresh medium to dark roasted coffee beans, and the other is that the extraction method requires pressure. Coffee beans will store a large amount of carbon dioxide when they are heated, which will be released when they encounter water during extraction. Therefore, the darker the roast, the more gas. At this time, light roast beans should be avoided first, because they cannot release too much oil. Home novices who want better value for money should give priority to the Front Street Italian Bean series, including Front Street Black Cocoa Blend, Front Street Classic Blend, Front Street Commercial Blend, and Front Street Premium Blend. They all use medium-dark roasting, with their own caramelized aroma, and the espresso they make is rich in oil.
Therefore, Front Street recommends the deeper roasted Front Street Italian blend coffee beans as raw materials. Not only is it easier to drink fragrant coffee with rich aroma and oil, but it also allows us to extract a more stable coffee flavor. There are four types of Front Street Italian blended coffee beans suitable for Moka pot brewing on the Front Street bean list. You can choose the one that suits your taste to make Moka pot coffee. Front Street hopes that every customer who places an order can taste the aroma of coffee during the best tasting period, so it will ensure that only beans freshly roasted for 5 days are shipped.
Detailed tutorial on how to operate a Moka pot
Before making coffee, we need to prepare fresh coffee beans, water, a grinder, a heated gas stove (or induction cooker), and our protagonist - a Moka pot. Front Street Coffee Beans uses Front Street's own roasted "Front Street Black Cocoa Blend Coffee Beans", which is a combination of Front Street Brazilian Red Bourbon and Yunnan Granules.
First remove the base of the Moka pot and add pure warm water to the lower pot. This can shorten the brewing time and prevent the coffee powder from being heated too quickly and causing the flavor to burn and become bitter. The water volume is controlled at about 0.5cm below the pressure relief valve line. The safety valve prevents the coffee pot from exploding due to the clogging of the extraction channel caused by grinding the coffee powder too finely. If the safety valve is submerged by water and the extraction channel is blocked, the consequences of an explosion in the high-temperature coffee pot will be disastrous.
To extract rich black coffee, the grinding degree must be finer than ordinary hand brewing. The Front Street store uses an EK-43s grinder with an EK-43s#3-3.5 scale. The control of the amount of powder depends on the size of the Moka pot. The one used here in Front Street is the Bileti Classic Pot for three people, with an amount of 18g of powder. Pour the ground coffee powder into the grinder trough, fill it until it is nine-tenths full, smooth it out with your fingers and put it into the base. There is no need to press hard, as an air layer that is too tight can easily block the flow of water upwards, thus affecting extraction.
Then tighten the upper and lower pots, dry the pot body with a towel and place it on a gas stove or induction cooker for heating. When using an open flame, be careful not to exceed the base of the Moka Pot.
Just wait for the moka pot to heat up. When you hear a hissing sound, turn to low heat and the coffee liquid and oil will slowly flow out. When you see that the upper pot of coffee liquid is half full, you can turn off the heat source, move the pot to the table, and use the remaining temperature and pressure in the pot to continue extracting the remaining coffee liquid.
Pour the extracted coffee liquid into the cup and taste it directly. In the mouth, there is a strong aroma of whiskey, vanilla, cream, sweet and sour berries, with the aroma of roasted nuts. Adding a certain proportion of hot water brings out the fresh and sour fruit, and when paired with milk, it has the sweetness of chocolate.
Finally, regarding the storage and maintenance of the appliance, Front Street will clean the Moka pot in time after each use to avoid coffee grounds stains, which are prone to odor transfer and burnt bitterness. If old coffee stains remain on the filter, gasket, and extraction channel, they may cause blockage and affect normal extraction.
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
