How to Make Latte with Moka Pot? Which Moka Pot Brand is Best? What's the Ideal Coffee-to-Water Ratio for Moka Pot?

Understanding Moka Pot Coffee Extraction

Because the coffee extraction method of the Moka pot is consistent with espresso machines - both are pressurized - it can produce a black coffee with concentration close to espresso. For this reason, many people use it as an alternative to espresso machines, creating various coffee drinks after producing high-concentration coffee, following Italian espresso preparation methods. Such as Americano, latte, mocha, and so on...

The Challenge with Milk-Based Coffee

Recently, FrontStreet Coffee's backend received numerous related inquiries. Most friends reported that although they used the Moka pot to replicate "latte coffee" (Moka pot coffee with milk), the taste was simply disappointing. The coffee flavor was there, but the texture was watery and thin. Even after reducing the amount of milk, the texture still felt consistently watery. This situation mainly occurs because the coffee concentration is insufficient! Although the Moka pot and espresso machines both use pressurized extraction, its pressure is far below that of espresso machines. Following conventional methods, the coffee concentration can only approach other coffees rather than completely matching espresso. While the ratio of milk to coffee is certainly important, as long as the coffee concentration isn't high enough, even if we adjust the proportion of milk in coffee, the resulting milk coffee won't have outstanding performance.

Adjusting Moka Pot Coffee Concentration

In summary, what we need to adjust is quite clear - the concentration of the Moka pot coffee itself. If we want to increase the concentration of Moka pot coffee on its existing basis, we need to reduce the amount of water used while increasing extraction efficiency.

Why Adjust the Coffee-to-Water Ratio?

Coffee concentration refers to the percentage of dissolved coffee substances in the coffee liquid. When the amount of coffee substances remains constant, less water means a higher proportion of coffee substances, in other words, higher coffee concentration. Conversely, when there's more water, the proportion of coffee substances decreases, resulting in lower concentration.

Therefore, if we want to increase the concentration of a cup of coffee, we need to minimize the hot water used during extraction, reducing the proportion of water in the coffee liquid. Conversely, if we want to decrease the concentration of a cup of coffee, we need to increase the amount of hot water used.

Why Improve Extraction Efficiency?

When the hot water for extraction is reduced, the overall extraction efficiency will decrease. If we want the coffee to have a richer flavor, we need to improve extraction efficiency in other aspects.

Similar to other extraction methods, there are many ways to increase extraction efficiency with a Moka pot: adjusting the coffee grind to be finer, increasing the amount of coffee powder used, reducing heat when coffee starts to flow to extend extraction time, and so on.

Choosing the Right Coffee Beans

If we want to make milk coffee that better suits our taste, we need to pay attention to the selection of coffee beans. For example, if you want a mellow, rich, low-acidity milk coffee, it's best to choose medium-dark or dark roast espresso blends, or Indonesian and Brazilian single-origin beans with similar roast levels. If you prefer milk coffee that's less bitter, with some acidity and a fresher profile, you can choose medium-light roast coffee beans from regions like Ethiopia or Panama, which will have richer floral and fruit notes. Alternatively, if you want milk coffee with prominent flavors and "personality," you can choose some anaerobically processed coffee beans.

How to Make "Latte Coffee" with a Moka Pot

Okay, these are all the things to pay attention to. Without further ado, let's look at how to use a Moka pot to make delicious and rich latte coffee! (Quick tip: When making Moka pot coffee, it's best not to use water below 70°C. For details, you can check out this article: "Should I Use Cold or Hot Water for Moka Pot Coffee?")

For this demonstration, FrontStreet Coffee is using our "frequent guest" from other articles - Sumatra Golden Mandheling. Its dark roast will bring a more intense roasted aroma and can extract more "crema" (although the crema doesn't serve much purpose). The parameters are as follows: 20g coffee powder, grind consistency similar to flour, initial water temperature of 80°C, and coffee-to-water ratio of 1:4 (using 20g powder with 80ml of hot water). First, we fill the Moka pot with water, coffee powder, and other materials, then heat it until extraction begins. (For specific steps, you can refer to other articles published on our official account, which won't be elaborated here)

When we hear the Moka pot start to make noise, indicating it's about to extract, immediately turn off the heat source. Then use the residual heat from the stove to extract the coffee liquid from the Moka pot. This action ensures that the coffee extraction process is slow and stable throughout, allowing the coffee to achieve sufficient extraction rate.

After extraction is complete, pour the coffee liquid into a prepared cup. Finally, just add the appropriate amount of milk, and a delicious milk coffee is ready! The amount of milk needs to be determined based on the roast level and processing method of the coffee beans. FrontStreet Coffee is using dark roast Golden Mandheling here and making a hot "latte," so 180ml of hot milk (65°C) is added, with a ratio of 1:3.5. (Latte art is optional; FrontStreet Coffee just did it for presentation purposes)

You can see from the color that this "latte" made with Moka pot coffee is very close to an authentic latte made with espresso (a real latte made with espresso). In terms of flavor, the nutty, chocolate, spice, and pine notes of Golden Mandheling are well expressed. Although the texture isn't as rich as an authentic latte, at least it doesn't have the heavy watery feeling like before. It drinks very smoothly and is quite excellent!!

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473