Barista-quality coffee is something we’ve all grown to love.
While it might be quick and easy to make an instant coffee, nothing quite compares to a professional, expertly crafted latte.
The decadent aroma of freshly ground coffee beans paired with the irresistible texture of steamed milk promises a timeless and irresistible combination. It seems complex, but you might be surprised to learn that you can craft very similar beverages – and without the full professional setup.
Barista coffee at home: Essential equipment
If you’d like to replicate those fancy café results in your own kitchen, you should make sure that you’re equipped with some essential tools and ingredients. Your priorities may change as you discover your tastes and preferences, too.
To get started with quality coffee at home, you will need:
- Coffee beans: Widely available in supermarkets and coffee shops, the beans are the most important item on your list. You’ll be able to choose from so many different coffee beans and blends, with most listed by origin country or roastery blend. You’ll find your favourites quickly.
- Grinder: If you’re buying whole beans and you don’t have a professional machine, it’s likely that you’ll also need a grinder to enjoy them at their best. Luckily, it’s easy to get your hands on some of the best coffee grinders to suit a range of budgets.
- Scales: For anyone keen to follow the process with precision, weighing scales will help to guarantee that you’re putting just the right amount of coffee into each cup. Weight influences the strength and balance of each espresso you pour.
If you’re not ready to buy a professional machine yet, you’ll also need to choose your brewing method.
Many people use simple, accessible tools like a cafetiere (also known as a French Press), stovetop espresso pot, or even handheld devices like the AeroPress. These all have their pros and cons, so it’s worth doing your research.
How to prepare the most popular drinks
Whether you’re craving classic café lattes or creative seasonal coffee drinks, learning to brew them at home can elevate your daily routine and unearth new flavour possibilities.
Just a few of the nation’s favourite coffees include:
- Latte: One shot of coffee – and the rest silky, smooth hot milk.
- Cappuccino: Two shots, with a light milky foam on top.
- Flat white: Just like a stronger latte, with more coffee and less milk.
- Iced coffee: A shot of coffee poured over ice and topped with cold milk.
Producing silky micro foam is an art, and it certainly takes practice if you’re learning at home. Check out the BBC’s flat white recipe for a head start on some of the stronger coffees you can make at home.
Troubleshooting
Having some trouble crafting the perfect brew? Sometimes, you might need a few pointers to fine-tune your coffee creations. A few of the most common challenges and some important tweaks include:
- Thin milk texture:
If your milk is too bubbly, it’s likely due to improper aeration or positioning of the steam wand. To fix it, keep the wand tip just below the surface for only the first few seconds.
- Weak shots:
A watery shot often means the water passed through the coffee too quickly, resulting in under-extraction. You can fix this by grinding your beans more finely or increasing the amount of grounds in your portafilter.
- Bitter flavour:
Bitterness occurs when the coffee is over-extracted, often because the water was too hot or the grind was too fine. To solve this, try grinding your beans slightly coarser or stopping your shot a few seconds earlier.
Don’t forget that it’s easy to tweak your drinks to suit your own taste. Simple additions like flavoured syrups can make a huge difference.
Making high-quality coffee at home means enjoying special, personalised flavours and experimenting with new styles too.
With more people investing in portable espresso devices and bean-to-cup devices, this market is only set to grow. Over the next few years, making barista-style coffee at home will become easier than ever before.
