Coffee makers

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ReenieHJ
ReenieHJ Posts: 9,724 Member
in Food and Nutrition
It's time for me to trade in my cheap $20 special Black and Decker coffee maker. I kind of left it on with an empty pot in it and burned the heck out of it. :(
I'm not sure if I want to buy that kind again; I'm perfectly happy brewing that way but wonder if Keurig would taste better; do a better job, be easier, worth the cost? Or any other kind of maker. I'm frugal so am not sure I want to pay the money. :blush: And simple so not in the market for fancy.
What do all you coffee drinkers use for making coffee at home?

Thanks :)
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Replies

  • MaltedTea
    MaltedTea Posts: 6,286 Member
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    I'm frugal but like aesthetics. So I have a moka pot that stays on my stovetop at all times.
  • L1zardQueen
    L1zardQueen Posts: 8,754 Member
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    French press for me too. IMO, Keurig makes a weak flavored coffee. Blech.
  • Chef_Barbell
    Chef_Barbell Posts: 6,644 Member
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    I personally like my Keurig because I like my flavored coffee pods. I got it from Costco for a good price.
  • rosebarnalice
    rosebarnalice Posts: 3,488 Member
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    French press girl here. Keurigs can be SO wasteful if you buy the little premeasured cups
  • goal06082021
    goal06082021 Posts: 2,130 Member
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    I have a dizzying array of coffeemakers. Let me tell you about them.

    1. French press - I got a 4-cup Bodum French press coffeemaker for Christmas and I've used it literally daily since 12/25. It makes precisely enough coffee at one time to fill the 20oz Yeti Rambler I also received for Christmas, or two good-size mugfuls of coffee for me and my husband. I also have an electric burr grinder and use freshly-ground beans that I purchased from a local roaster, so the coffee my French press makes is delightful. Cleaning is a little more involved than some other coffeemakers I have, but all of the parts are dishwasher safe, it's just the disassembly-reassembly and disposal of spent grounds that takes the barest amount of effort.
    2. Gen 1 Keurig - (link is to the current "basic" Keurig model, mine is older) scored this at a flea market some years back, we use reusable K-cups and grocery-store ground coffee (your Folgers, Maxwell House, etc). It's okay, it gets the job done, but I wouldn't buy one of these new. I've never been particularly impressed with the single-use K-cups; the coffee isn't great and it creates a lot of waste. It's also hard to clean.
    3. Stovetop espresso maker/moka pot - Requires very very finely ground beans. Cafe Bustelo comes ground finely enough, and I'm sure my grinder could also handle it. Requires kind of a lot of babysitting and takes longer than most of my other coffeemakers, but if you like espresso, it does what it says on the tin and makes very good espresso. Also requires some disassembly-reassembly, but you have to wait for the whole thing to cool down first.
    4. Aeropress - was my go-to before I got the French press for when I wanted a good cup of coffee. Plastic, but I've been carting this baby around for 10 years and it's still going strong. Dishwasher safe with minimal small parts. I'm still using paper filters, I keep meaning to grab a reusable metal one but I never remember when I'm in a position to actually buy one. Takes up very little counter space.
    5. Coffee siphon - I think I've actually used this thing maybe three times, ever. It's the most elaborate setup I have. Involves a butane open-flame burner, so that's exciting, but it also takes literally 15 minutes, and cleanup is a bit of a chore.
  • MaltedTea
    MaltedTea Posts: 6,286 Member
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    goal06082021 wrote: »
    I have a dizzying array of coffeemakers. Let me tell you about them.

    1. French press - I got a 4-cup Bodum French press coffeemaker for Christmas and I've used it literally daily since 12/25. It makes precisely enough coffee at one time to fill the 20oz Yeti Rambler I also received for Christmas, or two good-size mugfuls of coffee for me and my husband. I also have an electric burr grinder and use freshly-ground beans that I purchased from a local roaster, so the coffee my French press makes is delightful. Cleaning is a little more involved than some other coffeemakers I have, but all of the parts are dishwasher safe, it's just the disassembly-reassembly and disposal of spent grounds that takes the barest amount of effort.
    2. Gen 1 Keurig - (link is to the current "basic" Keurig model, mine is older) scored this at a flea market some years back, we use reusable K-cups and grocery-store ground coffee (your Folgers, Maxwell House, etc). It's okay, it gets the job done, but I wouldn't buy one of these new. I've never been particularly impressed with the single-use K-cups; the coffee isn't great and it creates a lot of waste. It's also hard to clean.
    3. Stovetop espresso maker/moka pot - Requires very very finely ground beans. Cafe Bustelo comes ground finely enough, and I'm sure my grinder could also handle it. Requires kind of a lot of babysitting and takes longer than most of my other coffeemakers, but if you like espresso, it does what it says on the tin and makes very good espresso. Also requires some disassembly-reassembly, but you have to wait for the whole thing to cool down first.
    4. Aeropress - was my go-to before I got the French press for when I wanted a good cup of coffee. Plastic, but I've been carting this baby around for 10 years and it's still going strong. Dishwasher safe with minimal small parts. I'm still using paper filters, I keep meaning to grab a reusable metal one but I never remember when I'm in a position to actually buy one. Takes up very little counter space.
    5. Coffee siphon - I think I've actually used this thing maybe three times, ever. It's the most elaborate setup I have. Involves a butane open-flame burner, so that's exciting, but it also takes literally 15 minutes, and cleanup is a bit of a chore.

    Oh my! I feel like you and James Hoffman would REALLY get along...

    https://youtu.be/cSEgP4VNynQ
  • lynn_glenmont
    lynn_glenmont Posts: 9,964 Member
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    I recommend French press or pour-over. Both are inexpensive and require no counter space (unless you go for a fancy pour-over set-up). Pour-over is super easy clean-up; French press is pretty easy. Finally, they don't have electrical or moving parts to break down (although a glass press or glass/ceramic pour-over set-up obviously can break if dropped).

    I just use a plastic funnel, paper filter, and a coffee mug for my pour-over set-up most of the time, unless I'm doing a full pot, in which case I use the basket and pot/carafe I saved when the heating unit in my old drip coffeemaker broke. You can get a plastic or (better) ceramic pour-over doohickey with a flat bottom that lets it sit on top of your cup.
  • gigius72
    gigius72 Posts: 183 Member
    edited January 2021
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    I have an Italian espresso machine. If I well remember I found it at target.
    I bought my wife a kureg, but she uses it mostly for tea (you can put the tea bags where the pod goes, or buy a small adapter and use bulk tea).
    You can make coffee on kureg as watery or as strong as you want, so I'm sure you can find the right consistence you want. The only thing you can't do is espresso, not enough water pressure.
  • youngmomtaz
    youngmomtaz Posts: 1,075 Member
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    I love French press coffee. I bring my press if I have to go to my parents house(they drink instant) or my in-laws house(keurig users). I hate keurig, it all tastes like burnt plastic to me.

    We use an electric drip maker most mornings. I like it because I set it up the night before on its timer and then wake up and not have to add another thing to my to do list. It makes drinking coffee with my husband more pleasurable because we are relaxed. My family splurged and bought me a breville espresso machine in the $300 range about 3 years ago. It is my love and we use it primarily on the weekends and occasional weekday afternoons.
  • cmhubbard92
    cmhubbard92 Posts: 5,018 Member
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    I recently purchased the Hamilton Beach FlexBrew(I think it was around $80). My (very old) keurig had stopped heating water, and my regular use coffee pot was on the fritz.
    It brews a 12 cup carafe, as well as k cups/single serve cup or travel mug. I've been using it since before Christmas, and love how easy it is to use. Plus, I no longer need to have more than one appliance for my coffee needs.
  • callsitlikeiseeit
    callsitlikeiseeit Posts: 8,627 Member
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    this is the one ive had for several years and I love it. my old pot died, I borrowed (this same model) from a friend and ended up purchasing it. i don't do the k cups often, but when I have coffee in the afternoon or at other random times, its fantastic to be able to make just one little cup. we go through way too much coffee in the mornings to do kcups at that time of day LOL

    8lm4inyn2mce.jpg
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,166 Member
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    I don't like Keurig in concept because of the waste, let alone the cost, let alone sanitation concerns with some models. Very convenient, though.

    I only drink a couple of cups a day, but even when hubs was alive, we used a filter cone (plastic or porcelain thingie that sits on a cup (small size cone) or thermal pitcher (bigger sized cone). (Like NorthViewVintage showed.) They require a filter. Paper filters are more wasteful (though compostable), reusable filters are IME slower and make a harsher coffee (require a different amount of coffee), maybe let a little powder grounds through into the coffee. Process: Heat water, pour through ground coffee in filter/cone combo. Easy.

    When there were two of us, we made the coffee in one of those insulated thermal pitchers (glass liner) like many offices use in meetings. The coffee stays hot (in a good one) for hours, and doesn't develop harshness like on a burner to stay hot. Now, I just do cup at a time atop my coffee mug.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,898 Member
    edited January 2021
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    I had a Hamilton Beach FlexBrew carafe plus K-cups/single serve cup and my OH had a Hamilton Beach Single-Serve. When we combined households we went with the single serve. Both were fine but the single serve takes up less space so the bigger one went up in the attic until my brother's coffee maker died and he got it.

    IMO Keurig cups are overpriced and wasteful. I have a reuseable filter basket so zero waste except for the grounds, which are compostable.
  • chris89topher
    chris89topher Posts: 389 Member
    edited January 2021
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    I have the Ninja CM401 and love it. Never used the frother or carafe though. I've had it a year or two and it's been great. I had multiple Keurigs for years before that but it finally clicked in my head how wasteful they are and had to jump off that ship.

    This is the one I have but they are on sale for lower price fairly often in stores.

    https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07TKNHX29/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_fabc_M0FdGbVDGH678?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
  • dragon_girl26
    dragon_girl26 Posts: 2,187 Member
    edited January 2021
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    French press if you want good coffee

    Keurig if you want quick and convenient .

    I have both, and quick and convenient usually wins when it's 6 AM and I need all the caffeine.
  • Luke_rabbit
    Luke_rabbit Posts: 1,031 Member
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    I concur that an electric percolator makes the best coffee.

    Personally, I really dislike using a French press. We gave ours away. Keurig seemed too wasteful/expensive for us, especially since my spouse will drink a whole pot every day.

    We bought a Cuisinart that does a good job. It's definitely superior to the old Black and Decker.

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