- Source: iweb.cooking.com
If you haven’t learned yet, you will come to learn that I’m a big foodie and love spending time in the kitchen trying new things While I don’t consider myself much of a beverage connoisseur I have to say that I have been obsessed with coffee for many years. Growing up, I had more than my share of light and sweet (and strong) coffee made by my Dad on those lazy weekends. After one sip, I no longer cared about the possibility that it would stunt my growth. Fine, I said…I’ll be short, but I will NEVER stop drinking coffee! Fast forward many years later, and here I am writing about one of the finest kitchen inventions…the French Press.
A French Press or “coffee press” is another way of brewing coffee. Basically, the big idea is that you use coarser grounds of coffee that brew in direct, constant contact with your hot water which leaves you with strong and rich coffee that absorbs much of the nuance and natural oils that more common electric brewers won’t give you. I’ve been using a press for about a year or so now, so you can imagine how devastated I was one morning when I, with my Herculean strength, pressed down a bit too hard on the “press” and broke that mother. Panic. How will I have coffee the next day? I don’t have to time to go get another press today! Deep breaths…
Luckily, in NY there are coffee carts and Starbucks everywhere so I was able to get my fix for the next couple of days until I found a new French Press from Bed, Bath and Beyond which was the only store around that managed to have some in stock. Caffeine crisis averted.! These days I’m enjoying my new press and hoping that it lives up to its “unbreakable” advertisement. Only time will tell! For a little insight on how to use a French Press, check out Coffee Geek’s How to Use a Press Pot. For a step by step check out the video below from Food Network’s Alton Brown as he shows us how to make perfect coffee using a French Press.