Essential Latte Art Milk Frothing Techniques for Beginners! How to Create Silky, Dense Milk Foam

The daily emotional journey of beginners learning to froth milk is always: I should just give up! No, I must persevere... ah, it's too thick again, I give up! I won't give up, let me try again! I know you'll say: Please remove the surveillance camera! As an essential part of making latte coffee, the degree and quality of milk frothing will affect the visual and tactile experience of a cup of latte coffee.

Why can milk form stable foam, and what is the principle of milk frothing?

What affects the stability of milk foam is the casein micelles in milk protein and whey protein. The presence of casein micelles creates tension on the milk surface. When steam impacts the milk surface, it forms numerous bubbles of varying sizes. Then, by adjusting the position of the steam wand to make the milk create a vortex that "chops up" larger bubbles, you can obtain fine milk foam with a smooth surface.

Under normal circumstances, whey protein surfaces are hydrophilic. Through stirring or heating, they gradually "unfold," exposing their hydrophobic parts. These parts will adhere to the generated bubbles, reducing surface tension and slowing down the bursting speed, making the milk foam more stable.

When you press the steam wand button, you'll find there are 4 air outlets (different brands and models may vary, with single-hole, 2-hole, or 3-hole designs). If we half-bury it in the milk surface and press the steam wand button, it will introduce air to froth the milk at this time. If fully buried in the milk, it won't froth the milk but will only heat the milk through hot steam!

Milk Frothing Demonstration

1. Optimal capacity for milk frothing

Frothing milk requires a reasonable frothing capacity. FrontStreet Coffee recommends using 40-60% of the pitcher's total capacity. Too little or too much milk will test your frothing technique. Of course, besides this factor, you also need to consider the actual amount of milk used for one cup of coffee to avoid excessive waste. FrontStreet Coffee uses a 550ML pitcher, with a milk injection amount of 250ML (just reaching the bottom of the pitcher spout).

(Solid line shows milk amount, dotted line shows capacity after frothing)

2. Frothing position

Before preparing to froth, first turn on the steam wand switch to release condensed water vapor (turn off the switch after release). Then pull out the steam wand at a 45-degree angle, using the pitcher spout to stabilize the steam wand's position. This time the steam vortex is counterclockwise, with the steam wand positioned to the right of the liquid surface center cross, in a half-buried state.

3. Frothing stage

Turn on the steam switch, and you'll hear a "zee-zee" sound. This is the frothing stage. Depending on the desired milk foam thickness, the frothing time will vary (longer frothing time results in thicker foam). Generally, frothing milk from 50% to 60% volume (latte foam thickness) takes about 3 seconds. The milk's rotation direction should uniformly form a vortex.

4. Texturing stage

At this point, you need to fully bury the steam holes, only heating without further frothing. Don't bury the steam holes at the very bottom - it's recommended to keep them in the foam layer, which helps with texturing (breaking down coarse foam into fine foam). When should you stop? This depends on your milk temperature, generally controlled between 55-65°C. Too high a temperature will cause protein denaturation (generally, protein denaturation in food occurs at around 60°C).

Common problems for beginners in milk frothing, try these tips below!

Problem 1: Milk splashes during frothing

This is a very dangerous situation. Beginners learning to froth milk don't have stable control and grasp of the steam wand angle and the depth of the steam wand tip (hereafter referred to as the steam tip) in the milk. This can cause milk to splash out when steam is first turned on or when hands become unsteady later, moving the pitcher too much and causing the air outlets to contact the milk surface, with steam impact force making milk splash.

Tip 1: Always maintain contact between the pitcher and steam wand

When beginners can't stably control the pitcher's movement amplitude, FrontStreet Coffee suggests using the pitcher spout as a pivot point, keeping the pitcher's edge in contact with the steam wand. Whether you need to adjust the pitcher's angle or move it up and down later, maintain contact between both to avoid sudden "floating" where steam rushes out of the milk.

Problem 2: Milk foam is not fine enough

What makes beginners break down isn't failed latte art, but no matter how they froth, the foam isn't fine enough, with many coarse bubbles. When integrated with coffee and drunk, the mouthfeel will send you this signal: Do I look happy to you?

Tip 1: Turn on the steam briefly before frothing milk

When steam in semi-automatic espresso machine steam tubes cools down, it becomes water that remains in the tube. Therefore, before each milk frothing, please release some steam first until no water sprays from the tube. Steam with water content will produce large bubbles when frothing milk.

Tip 2: Hold the steam wand in the pitcher at a 45-degree angle

The 45-degree angle means the direction of the pitcher's 2-3 o'clock or 9-10 o'clock positions. Using this angle to froth milk can help the milk quickly form a small vortex. The appearance of the vortex can "pull" coarse foam into the liquid surface.

Tip 3: Steam tip depth in milk surface should be 0.8cm-1cm

The steam tip shouldn't be buried too deep - after all, milk frothing is mainly about incorporating air into the milk. If it's too deep, the steam holes can't contact air to form a vortex. If it's too shallow, steam impacts the surface, creating coarse bubbles and causing milk to splash.

Problem 3: Milk foam is too thick

The thickness of milk foam depends on the foam generated when steam properly contacts the liquid surface - we call this the aeration process. The longer the aeration time, the more foam produced, and the thicker the milk foam becomes.

Tip 1: Only need to "zee" 4-5 times during aeration

Adjust the steam tip depth to 0.3cm and turn on the steam switch, you'll hear a "zee-zee" sound. This is the aeration stage. For latte art, the ideal milk foam thickness is 1cm, so we don't need excessive aeration. After hearing the zee-zee sound 4-5 times, adjust the wand depth back to 0.8-1cm, maintaining a 45-degree angle to create a vortex that eliminates coarse bubbles and heats to the appropriate temperature.

Problem 4: Milk frothing temperature, how to judge?

Is milk temperature really that important? Yes! The ideal temperature for milk frothing is between 55-65°C, not exceeding 70°C at most. Within these temperature ranges, lactose and other sugars are at their most "active." When milk is frothed to this temperature range and integrated with coffee, you'll find that this milk coffee, even without added sugar, delivers a sweet sensation both in aroma and taste.

Tip 1: Use a thermometer, don't practice "iron palm technique" from the start

Insert a digital thermometer into the pitcher before starting to froth, while gradually feeling the temperature changes of the pitcher with your palm. Pay attention to one point! For example, if you need to froth milk to 55°C, you can stop heating when the thermometer shows 53°C, as the milk will continue to rise by 1-2°C after stopping.

For professional coffee knowledge exchange and more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat official account: cafe_style)

For more specialty coffee beans, please add FrontStreet Coffee's private WeChat (FrontStreet Coffee), WeChat ID: kaixinguoguo0925

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473