Coffee drinks can be a bit expensive to have at cafés if you are a regular drinker. You may want to invest in a Moka Pot and experiment at making some yourselves at home.
Let me introduce you to the Bialetti Moka Pot, a stovetop coffee maker that you can get for around RM168++ for a 3 cup version. No need to spend thousands for an expresso maker. This is a good start for new home brewers. Its made of aluminium, so its light and heats easily. Has 3 main parts, the water chamber, upper coffee chamber and a funnel filter where you put the coffee. The handle is made from bakelite plastic so it does not transfer heat from the aluminium body. It looks really shiny and if a BattleStar Galactica Cylon drinks coffee, the Bialetti Coffee Pot will be the perfect prop for this.
Making coffee should take about 5 minutes. Fill the bottom chamber with water, preferably not tap, and fill the funnel filter with a fine ground coffee. You can buy this at coffee shops or supermarket at about RM20 for 200gm. Should make about 40 cups or so ( I think).
I prefer mid strength, full bodied coffee. Don’t tamp (press down and compact the coffee ground) the funnel. Just fill it in full and flatten the top with your finger. Place it in the bottom chamber and screw it in place with the top chamber. It has a gasket that will keep the pressure in so no need to screw in too tight.
Next, very important. The coffee extraction process. Place the moka pot over a low/med flame. Not high. Why? Because we want to make sure that the coffee is extracted slowly hence carrying all the flavour and aroma along with it. So how does it work? Simple. Water boils in the bottom chamber. Gasket seals water vapour creating a pressurised bottom chamber. Pressure has no where to escape but through the funnel to the top chamber. But wait! Our coffee ground is in the way. So water vapour gets pushed through the filter (and ground coffee). Hence coffee is extracted and collected in the upper chamber. If coffee flows slowly into the upper chamber, you know that your brew is good. That’s why the flame has to be low. A fierce flame will quickly boil water and make vapour pass faster through the filter thus giving a watery coffee taste instead of a thicker fuller aroma liquid. Once you hear a soft gurgle, check the upper chamber to see if the extraction is complete. About 5 minutes. Do not let the coffee boil.
Heat some milk and my guideline is add 1 part coffee to 2.5 parts milk in a coffee cup. Use sugar cane brown sugar for a great tasting coffee. It gives a nice 'lemak'/rich taste to the coffee. That’s all.
You’ll love the recommended proper cleaning method. Use water to rinse and wipe dry. You don’t want to soap this moka pot as you want to retain the oil from previous brews which makes the next brew taste better. Kinda like a Chinese teapot. I got mine in Melbourne for about RM100. Had I known earlier that this little gadget could make a mean latte, I wouldn’t have minded forking out the RM168 in Malaysia. If you are a coffee lover, you will love this simple gadget. Looks like it can last a lifetime…
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If you go overseas, do look out for the stainless steel version of the moka pot (from Bialetti too). They are easier to clean and works fine on an induction cooker or hot plate too. I haven't seen it locally but it should be available in Singapore or Hong Kong.
by Jon January 02, 2011 2:28PM
Much obliged, Adly!
by speedipus June 30, 2010 10:54AM
speedipus: It's more common now. Starbucks sells them. Alternatively try Isetan. I also saw them at Subang Parade, at the hardware section near the Cold Storage Supermarket
by Adly June 17, 2010 10:03AM
So where can we get one of these in Malaysia again? I burned mine after forgetting I left it on the stove... :(
by speedipus June 15, 2010 1:30AM
It's a great little thing, isn't it?
by Adly May 05, 2010 9:30PM
hey bro, I bought this exact 3 cupt model in the UK for about RM100 too. It's brilliant, been having great expressos daily!
by saa73 May 05, 2010 6:26PM
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