Manufacturer | Bialetti |
---|---|
Release date | 1933 |
The moka pot [1] [2] is a stove-top or electric coffee maker that brews coffee by passing hot water driven by vapor pressure and heat-driven gas expansion through ground coffee. Named after the Yemeni city of Mocha, it was invented by Italian engineer Luigi Di Ponti in 1933 [3] [4] [5] who sold the patent to Alfonso Bialetti, an aluminum vendor. It quickly became one of the staples of Italian culture. Bialetti Industries continues to produce the original model under the trade name "Moka Express".
Spreading from Italy, the moka pot is today most commonly used in Europe and in Latin America. It has become an iconic design, displayed in modern industrial art and design museums including the Wolfsonian-FIU, the Cooper–Hewitt, National Design Museum, the Design Museum, [6] the London Science Museum, The Smithsonian and the Museum of Modern Art. [7] Moka pots come in different sizes, making from one to eighteen 50 ml (2 imp fl oz; 2 US fl oz) servings. [8] The original design and many current models are made from aluminium with Bakelite handles.
Moka pots are typically made of aluminium, though they are sometimes made out of stainless steel or other alloys. Some designs feature an upper half made of heat-resistant glass.
Moka pots are used over a flame or electric range. Stainless steel pots, but not aluminium, can be used with induction cooking.
A number of physics papers were written between 2001 and 2009 utilizing the ideal gas and Darcy's laws, along with the temperature-dependent vapor pressure of water to explain the moka pot's brewing process. [9]
A rubber gasket ensures a tight seal between components, and a safety valve prevents over-pressurization.
The boiler (marked A in the diagram) is filled with water to an etched line (or slightly below the safety release valve). While at-home makers generally do not preheat the water used, it can expedite the brewing process in commercial settings. [10] The metal filter funnel (B) is inserted. Finely ground coffee is added to the filter. How tightly the coffee is packed impacts how quickly the coffee extracts and the strength of the brew. [11] The collector (C) is then attached and the pot is heated, so that the water boils.
The heating of the boiler (A) leads to a gradual increase of the pressure due to both the expansion of the enclosed air and the raised vapor pressure of the increasingly heated water. When pressure becomes high enough to force the water up the funnel through the coffee grinds, coffee will begin to pour into the upper chamber (C).
When the lower chamber is almost empty, bubbles of steam mix with the upstreaming water, producing a characteristic gurgling noise—a signal that brewing should be stopped. Navarini et al. call this the "strombolian" phase of brewing, which allows a mixture of highly heated steam and water to pass through the coffee, which leads to rapid overextraction and introduction of undesirable flavors. [11]
Unlike a standard percolator, the moka pot never sends brewed coffee back through the coffee grounds.
Moka pots require periodic replacement of the rubber seal, a scouring of its removable filter, and a check that the safety release valve is not blocked. All parts of the pot should be scrubbed by hand using a mild detergent, as aluminium moka pots are not dishwasher safe. [12] [13] [14]
The potential for toxic amounts of aluminium migration being created by brewing an acidic beverage in an aluminium pot have been scientifically investigated, and determined to be "negligible" – falling below 1% of recommended total weekly intake level once a new pot has been used. [15] Following the pot's stabilization at below 1% with regular use, migration rose to a maximum observed level of just under 4% after a dishwasher cleaning, resulting in dishwasher use being strongly discouraged.
The moka pot comes in various sizes based on the number of 50 ml (2 imp fl oz; 2 US fl oz) espresso cups they produce. The following table lists the standard sizes for the Bialetti Moka Express.
Espresso cups | Metric units | US units | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Volume (ml) | height (mm) | base (mm) | Volume (US fl oz) | height (in) | base (in) | |
1 | 60 | 133 | 64 | 2 | 5+1⁄4 | 2+1⁄2 |
3 | 200 | 159 | 83 | 6+1⁄2 | 6+1⁄4 | 3+1⁄4 |
6 | 300 | 216 | 102 | 10 | 8+1⁄2 | 4 |
9 | 550 | 254 | 105 | 18+1⁄2 | 10 | 4+1⁄8 |
12 | 775 | 292 | 127 | 25 | 11+1⁄2 | 5 |
All brewed coffee flavor depends greatly on bean variety, roast level, fineness of grind, water profile, and the level of heat used. The moka pot is no different.
Moka pots are sometimes referred to as stove-top espresso makers. However, a typical moka coffee is extracted at relatively low pressures of 1 to 2 bar (100 to 200 kPa), [11] while standards for espresso coffee specify a pressure of 9 bar (900 kPa). Therefore, moka coffee is not considered to be an espresso and has different flavor characteristics.[ clarify ] [16] [17]
Among the variations to the moka pot design that have been introduced are those to expedite brew time, create milk froth, and allow microwave brewing.
To expedite brewing, a weighted valve called Cremavent has been added as a pressure regulator on top of the nozzle that allows pressure to build up inside the water tank in a manner similar to a pressure cooker. As pressure builds up more quickly in this method (since there is much less leakage of vapour) compared to the standard moka pot, it reaches the level required for water to rise through the ground coffee in a shorter time. The result is coffee brewed at a higher pressure and temperature than the standard pot, making it more similar to espresso and therefore with more visible crema. [ citation needed ]
Another variation allows for milk to be frothed and mixed with the coffee during brewing. [19]
While not producing unsafe levels, brewing with the pot after dishwasher usage results in a larger aluminium content leaching into the coffee.
[H]uman inner aluminum exposure through the proper use of aluminum moka pots is negligible. Even under the worst-case scenario of washing the moka pots in a dishwasher, the uptake amounts to only 4% of TWI. The manufacturers expressly warn not to clean the aluminum moka pots in the dishwasher.Summary: An initially low level of aluminium migration (of under 3% recommended total weekly intake (TWI)) occurs after the first use of a new pot, after which the level stabilizes below 1% TWI, decreasing with each observed use; migration after dishwasher cleaning increases to a maximum observed level of just under 4%, and thus dishwasher cleaning is strongly discouraged.
Espresso is a concentrated form of coffee produced by forcing hot water under high pressure through finely-ground coffee beans. Originating in Italy, espresso has become one of the most popular coffee-brewing methods worldwide. It is characterized by its small serving size, typically 25–30 ml, and its distinctive layers: a dark body topped with a lighter-colored foam called crema. The term espresso deriving from the past participle of the Italian verb esprimere, itself derived from the Latin exprimere, which means 'to express', and refers to the process by which hot water is forced under pressure through ground coffee.
Italians are well known for their special attention to the preparation, the selection of the blends, and the use of accessories when creating many types of coffees. Many of the types of coffee preparation known today also have their roots here. The main coffee port in Italy is Trieste where there is also a lot of coffee processing industry. Italian coffee consumption, often espresso, is highest in the city of Trieste, with an average of 1500 cups of coffee per person per year. That is about twice as much as is usually drunk in Italy.
Drip coffee is made by pouring hot water onto ground coffee beans, allowing it to brew while seeping through. There are several methods for doing this, including using a filter. Terms used for the resulting coffee often reflect the method used, such as drip-brewed coffee, or, somewhat inaccurately, filtered coffee in general. Manually brewed drip coffee is typically referred to as pour-over coffee. Water seeps through the ground coffee, absorbing its constituent chemical compounds, and then passes through a filter. The used coffee grounds are retained in the filter, while the brewed coffee is collected in a vessel such as a carafe or pot.
A coffee percolator is a type of pot used for the brewing of coffee by continually cycling the boiling or nearly boiling brew through the grounds using gravity until the required strength is reached. The grounds are held in a perforated metal filter basket.
An espresso machine brews coffee by forcing pressurized water near boiling point through a "puck" of ground coffee and a filter in order to produce a thick, concentrated coffee called espresso. Multiple machine designs have been created to produce espresso. Several machines share some common elements, such as a grouphead and a portafilter. An espresso machine may also have a steam wand which is used to steam and froth liquids for coffee drinks such as cappuccino and caffè latte.
Gaggia is an Italian manufacturer of coffee machines, especially espresso machines, in addition to small kitchen appliances. The company is owned by the Evoca Group.
Iced coffee is a coffee beverage served cold. It may be prepared either by brewing coffee normally and then serving it over ice or in cold milk or by brewing the coffee cold. In hot brewing, sweeteners and flavoring may be added before cooling, as they dissolve faster. Iced coffee can also be sweetened with pre-dissolved sugar in water.
Lungo, known in full in Italian as caffè lungo, is a coffee beverage made by using an espresso machine to make an Italian-style coffee—short black with more water, resulting in a larger coffee, a lungo.
The Neapolitan flip coffee pot or cafetière Morize is a drip brew coffeemaker for the stove top very popular in Italy and France until the 20th century. Unlike a moka express, it does not use the pressure of steam to force the water through the coffee, relying instead on gravity.
La Marzocco, founded in 1927, Florence, by Giuseppe and Bruno Bambi, is an Italian company specializing in high-end espresso coffee machines. It is based in Scarperia, with branch offices worldwide.
Rancilio is an espresso machine manufacturer, founded in 1927 by Roberto Rancilio in Parabiago, Italy.
Coffee preparation is the process of turning coffee beans into liquid coffee. While the particular steps vary with the type of coffee and with the raw materials, the process includes four basic steps: raw coffee beans must be roasted, the roasted coffee beans must then be ground, and the ground coffee must then be mixed with hot or cold water for a specific time (brewed), the liquid coffee extraction must be separated from the used grounds, and finally, if desired, the extracted coffee is combined with other elements of the desired beverage, such as sweeteners, dairy products, dairy alternatives, or toppings.
Alfonso Bialetti was an Italian engineer who became famous for introducing the Moka Express coffeemaker. Designed in 1933 the coffee pot has been a style icon since the 1950s. While many variations of the Moka have been developed, including the Bialetti cow-printed Mukka Express, the original remains a time-honoured classic. Bialetti was also the founder of Bialetti Industries, now an Italian kitchen-ware company. The Bialetti brand is now owned by Bradshaw International, which manufactures and sells Bialetti brand kitchen-ware.
Caffè americano, also known as americano or American, is a type of coffee drink prepared by diluting an espresso shot with hot water at a 1:3 to 1:4 ratio, resulting in a drink that retains the complex flavors of espresso, but in a lighter way. Its strength varies with the number of shots of espresso and the amount of water added. The name is also spelled with varying capitalization and use of diacritics: e.g., "café americano".
Bialetti is an Italian brand of coffee machines, cookware and small kitchen appliances founded by Alfonso Bialetti. The brand is owned by Bialetti Industries.
Coffee machines sold under the trademark "Atomic coffee machine" existed both as stove-top device, and electrical versions.
Caffè crema refers to two different coffee drinks:
Caffè d'orzo, often shortened to simply orzo, is a type of hot drink, originating in Italy. Orzo is a caffeine-free roasted grain beverage made from ground barley. It is an espresso-style drink, and when prepared from the roasted barley directly, it can easily be made in typical espresso machines and coffeemakers. In Italy it is widely available in coffee vending machines and traditionally considered a coffee substitute for children.
A coffeemaker, coffee maker or coffee machine is a cooking appliance used to brew coffee. While there are many different types of coffeemakers, the two most common brewing principles use gravity or pressure to move hot water through coffee grounds. In the most common devices, coffee grounds are placed into a paper or metal filter inside a funnel, which is set over a glass or ceramic coffee pot, a cooking pot in the kettle family. Cold water is poured into a separate chamber, which is then boiled and directed into the funnel and allowed to drip through the grounds under gravity. This is also called automatic drip-brew. Coffee makers that use pressure to force water through the coffee grounds are called espresso makers, and they produce espresso coffee.
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