Coffee

Peter measures coffee grounds by volume and water according to the carafe. When I make coffee I measure it by weight, but I don’t make it often enough to remember what the Internet says to do (for example, at this calculator, which doesn’t measure in “coffee” cups but in standard cups). I can manage to fill a filter and turn on the coffee machine in an uncaffeinated state, but we also have a French press that I don’t use often enough to remember how it works, so step-by-step instructions are included for that.

So here’s what appears to be the usual ratio, plus some math worked out for you because clearly you haven’t had your coffee yet.

Ingredients

Drip coffee machine

• 7 grams coffee
• ½ c. water

That would be 14 g. per 1 c., or my usual dose, 21 g. per 1 ½ c. Back in my heavy-drinking days, I did 28 g. in 2 c.

French press

• 10 grams coffee
• ½ c. water

That would be 20 g. per 1 c., or my usual dose, 30 g. per 1 ½ c. I have never heavily drunk from a French press, but it would be 40 g. for 2 c.

Directions

Follow the directions that came with the machine.

For a French press:

1. Remove the plunger.
2. Add coffee. (I weigh it in the carafe.)
3. Add below-boiling water. (I transfer it from the kettle to a Pyrex measuring cup, which I figure is enough cooling.)
4. Stir, preferably with a non-metal implement. (The handle of a cheap wooden spoon works in a pinch.)
5. Reinsert the plunger to the coffee line. Do not plunge.
6. Wait 3–4 minutes.
7. Plunge and serve.