My first cup of cappuccino

[maisatomai]

Hi all, just got my delonghi machine 820b, Krups burr grinder gvx2 and a packet of freshly roasted coffee. I am really an idiot and hands on even after watching some youtube video about making cappuccino.

The step I planned to make when I get home
1) take some beans and grind to super fine
2) pour the powder into the powder holder (sorry I do not know what is that called)
3) Turn the machine on and allow it to flow.
4) Pour cold milk into the drink.

My question is
1) how many ml of beans do I need to grind to make a cup of cappucino?
2) and will the machine auto stop or must I press the button to make it stop?
3) what if I pour cold milk instead of steamed milk into the drink? What is that called

 

[CoffeeJunky]

First, you do not want to put coffee ground in the portafilter right away.

1. Turn on the machine, let it warm it up. Make sure your portafilter is warm and ready to brew.
2. Then ground your bean. You do not want to ground your beans too early.
3. Put around .7 oz of ground beans per cup.
4. Brew your espresso. This should take around 15-20 seconds. Not much more but that also depends on the machine and your ground.
5. Do not put any cold milk. If you want to add milk, steam the milk. One part of Espresso, one part Steam milk, one part cream will make Cappuccino.

 

[bprotsman]

CJ pretty much covered it. Don't forget the important step of tamping the grounds. Experiment with different styles but a good start is tamp straight down, pressing at 30 bs pressure, followed by a light twist to settle any stray grinds. After a few shots you will develop your own style based on what you like. I have a delonghi at home as well, makes a good shot!

 

[PinkRose]

Hello "maisatomai"

I'm wondering why you'd want to pour cold milk into your espresso, instead of adding steamed milk to make a cappuccino.

Maybe you're thinking of experimenting. . . .

If you make an espresso, and then pour cold milk into it, you'll end up with cold coffee with milk.

Rose

 

[Flori]

yes, they got it all covered . was wondering the same thing as pinkrose also? for cappuccino, the milk is usually steamed. care to explain your preference ?

flori
blogger, coffeeloversofworld.com

 

[maisatomai]

Hi all, thanks for your help. I managed to make my first cup of espresso.

For my country, maybe they are not so educated on espresso and that why some cafe just make do with cold milk.

I have another question. When I steam my milk for 10 sec, the volume become 3 times of my original as I am aware more water has been added.How do I deal with that?

 

[PinkRose]

Hello "maisatomai"

It sounds like you're making progress, and I hope you enjoyed your first espresso!

It's going to take some practice to get the milk to steam right. When you steam it, you're not adding more water, you're heating the milk and creating a foam, which should increase the level of milk to about 50%. It sounds like you're getting a lot of foam. As an experiment, let it sit and settle back down, and you'll see that you'll end up with the same amount of milk that you started out with.

There is a lot of information on the Internet, including videos and instructions on how to steam the milk. If you do a search for "how to steam milk for cappuccinos" you can explore and watch the videos.

Here are a couple of articles that may be helpful:

CoffeeGeek - Frothing for Newbies & Intermediates

Frothing Milk for Cappuccinos and Lattes - Espresso Guide ? Home-Barista.com

Keep practicing and experimenting, and you'll find what's right for you!

Rose

 

[maisatomai]

Thanks Rose for your encouragement!

 

[maisatomai]

I realised why there is 3x as much milk when I steam it. Because I pressed on the wrong button and the machine keep shooting water into my milk. Now I used the correct button and it fine. It really fun and interesting (my dad was arguing with me that the best way to heat milk is to place the glass in a tray of hot water.

Also when I bought the powder from the speciality store the store owner was telling me that the coffee is not strong and was teaching me how to brew. But I did not understand what he told me. Isnt all coffee powder the same? Fill the protafilter to full to get a shot of coffee?

 

[PinkRose]

What kind of specialty store are you buying your coffee from? Is it a store that sells roasted coffee beans and grinds them for you?

If so, ask to have it ground for an espresso machine, not a drip coffee maker. The beans need to be ground finer for the espresso machine.

 

[maisatomai]

What kind of specialty store are you buying your coffee from? Is it a store that sells roasted coffee beans and grinds them for you?

If so, ask to have it ground for an espresso machine, not a drip coffee maker. The beans need to be ground finer for the espresso machine.

Thanks. It is called supremo blend and a mixture of coffee beans. Anyway, I have a Krups grinder to grind the coffee (I suspect my dad did it wrongly. It does not look to be super fine to me)