What do you need to become a real barista at home?

A good coffee grinder may just be even more important than the coffee machine itself. The coffee grinder grinds your coffee beans with different grind settings. For an espresso, you need a very fine grind. That's because an espresso has to be made in about 30 seconds to release all the flavors and aromas in a short period of time. Is the espresso coming out too fast? It could be that your grind is too coarse. Does the espresso come out too slowly? That means that the grind is too fine. Set the grind size to a different setting and find out which espresso tastes better.

With a tamper, you tamp the ground coffee in your portafilter straightly. This has to be done very accurately. The straighter you tamp the coffee, the better it'll taste. This also works the other way around. If you don't tamp it straightly, the water won't run through the coffee evenly. That's why you have to choose the right tamper. Check the size first, because the tamper has to fit exactly into the portafilter. After that, look at the weight. With a heavy aluminum tamper, you don't have to apply as much pressure as with a light plastic tamper.

The best way to froth milk is with a milk pitcher. Fill the pitcher halfway and put the steam wand in the pitcher with milk. The lower you hold the milk pitcher, the more noise you hear. That's how the steam wand turns milk into foam. If you insert the steam wand deeper into the milk, you only heat up the milk. With a stainless steel milk pitcher, you can feel it when the milk reaches the right temperature. Simply hold the side of the pitcher with your hand until it's too hot to hold. Take off your hand and wait 5 seconds. That's when the milk has reached the right temperature.

After you've made a cup of coffee, you have to remove the coffee grounds from the portafilter. That's why a knock box is a must-have. That way, you can easily empty the portafilter without throwing coffee grounds everywhere or having to take it out with your hands. If you knock the portafilter onto the bar, the coffee grounds should come out right way. This doesn't damage the portafilter, because the bar is made for it. When the knock box is full, simply empty it in the trash can.

You can make a good cup of coffee with the tips above. Are you the type of person who wants the perfect cup? Get the following accessories to take your coffee to the next level. A tamping mat helps you tamp the coffee ground evenly, because it ensures more stability. Having trouble creating designs in your cappuccino? With a milk thermometer, you can see whether your milk has the right temperature for latte art. And coffee always tastes better if your coffee machine is clean. Expand your barista set with a cleaner brush and remove remaining coffee residue every day.