Does Moka Pot Make Espresso? Differences Between Coffee Machine and Moka Pot

Is Moka Pot Coffee Really Espresso?

Recently, many friends have privately messaged FrontStreet Coffee to talk about Moka pots. In fact, FrontStreet Coffee has already explained everything clearly in articles from a few months ago, including the most basic brewing operations and details. Interested friends can review them (first article link, second supplementary link).

This time, FrontStreet Coffee wants to address the question about Moka pots: "Is coffee brewed from a Moka pot actually espresso?"

Because among the friends FrontStreet Coffee has encountered, many are moving in the direction of espresso coffee. After learning about semi-automatic coffee machines and considering their own budget conditions, they suddenly转向 to Moka pots. From a historical perspective, these two things indeed have some connection.

A Brief History

Here's a simple introduction to the history. The first generation of true espresso machines, "Ideale," was born in 1905. Its appearance was completely different from today's espresso machines. Ideale's extraction pressure was much lower than modern machines' 9bar, only 1.5bar. Its espresso was extracted within 45 seconds, and its body and flavor were inferior to modern espresso machines (basically black coffee without crema).

The Moka pot was invented by Bialetti in 1933. In terms of working principle, the Moka pot also extracts coffee substances quickly by generating pressure, with pressure around 1-2bar. This was very similar to coffee machines of that time, essentially a miniaturized espresso machine.

In the Italian dictionary around 1920 (by Alfredo Panzini), the first definition of "espresso" appeared as "concentrated coffee made using a pressurized machine or filter." The principle of making coffee with a Moka pot also fit very well with people's definition of espresso at that time.

The Modern Definition of Espresso

Returning to reality, what we call espresso today differs from what was defined at that time. The reason is that in 1961, Faema released the revolutionary new coffee machine E61, which could extract coffee with pressure up to 9bar, instantly surpassing previous coffee machines by a significant margin. The extracted coffee was more aromatic and rich, with more abundant, delicate crema.

From this time on, people's definition of espresso gradually changed. The difference between coffee made by espresso machines and coffee brewed from Moka pots became increasingly apparent.

From mainstream brewing parameters, espresso machines have a coffee-to-liquid ratio of 1:2 and pressure of 9bar. Moka pots have a coffee-to-liquid ratio of 1:5 and pressure of 2bar. Espresso made by espresso machines is more concentrated, with richer, more delicate, and longer-lasting crema.

Therefore, the Moka pot cannot be considered a transitional version or a budget alternative to espresso machines. From today's perspective on espresso, coffee brewed from a Moka pot cannot be regarded as the espresso we know. Coffee brewed from a Moka pot is simply a distinctive strong coffee.

How to Extract Rich Crema with a Single-Valve Moka Pot?

1. Bean Selection

Fresh dark-roasted beans are undoubtedly the best choice. Deep roasting makes the beans' texture more porous, allowing hot water to penetrate more easily, letting the carbon dioxide hidden within the beans that hasn't had time to escape be released with the hot water!

But be careful, the freshness mentioned here doesn't refer to beans that have just been roasted and freshly出炉. Because at this time, the carbon dioxide content is too high, which will hinder the extraction of aromatic substances, and the resulting coffee won't taste as good!

Therefore, the fresh beans mentioned here refer to beans that have been properly aged and are still within their optimal tasting period! Fresh beans contain the most carbon dioxide, and combined with the porous texture of dark roasts, allows us to more easily obtain a large amount of crema.

2. Grind Size

In addition to using relatively fresh beans, we also need to pay attention to controlling the extraction pressure of the Moka pot. Although it doesn't have pressure as high as 9Bar like an espresso machine, it doesn't mean it has no pressure! It's just smaller.

There are two methods for pressure control that need to be used together: one is the grind size! The Moka pot's grind size is finer than pour-over coffee but a tiny bit coarser than espresso grind!

(Left: Pour-over grind, Middle: Moka pot grind, Right: Espresso grind)

When you use the coarse grind of pour-over coffee, hot water will gush out directly due to lack of resistance! If you use espresso grind, it will be too fine, causing coffee liquid to not rise (because the Moka pot doesn't have enough air pressure to break through the resistance of the coffee puck), easily leading to explosion risks due to poor pressure release!

When you see that the coffee liquid hasn't risen for a long time, be sure to turn off the heat source immediately to ensure your safety! Therefore, whether using a manual grinder or electric grinder, it's better to adjust the grinder setting a bit coarser than espresso grind when using a Moka pot!

(Moka pot coffee made using pour-over grind size)

Once you've determined the beans and ground them, the next step is filling the coffee! This is another step in pressure control!

3. Coffee Filling

Generally, we choose the amount of coffee based on the size of the Moka pot we're using. FrontStreet Coffee is using a three-cup Moka pot here, which requires about 19g of coffee powder!

As you can see, the height of the coffee bed is higher than the groove. At this point, many friends might choose to press it down with their hands. Wait a moment! First, let's level it, then tap it from the side, left and right, to evenly distribute the coffee powder in the lower layer! This creates smaller gaps and effectively reduces channeling effects!

Then you can choose whether to press based on your grind size. If the grind is slightly coarser, you can press down lightly with your fingers while leveling to increase resistance and help crema form better! If the grind is slightly finer, there's no need to press, as the resistance is already sufficient, and you can directly prepare the upper pot to start brewing!

After pressing, pour 110ml of hot water into the lower pot, then assemble the filter basket and upper pot in order to start brewing coffee!

Wait until the crema covers the silver surface at the bottom of the Moka pot, then you can remove it from the heat source.

The residual heat is enough to extract all the remaining liquid.

Then, you've got a cup of Moka pot coffee with rich crema~ If your Moka pot is a dual-valve model, the crema will be even richer. Don't wait, start making any coffee you like and enjoy~‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍‍

Important Notice :

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