We don't time-out percolation, we simply let the pot reach a boil, and when the water inside the pot is splashing (steadily) up against the inside glass-dome, we reduce the element temp to low (simmer), and enjoy!
We don't time-out percolation, we simply let the pot reach a boil, and when the water inside the pot is splashing (steadily) up against the inside glass-dome, we reduce the element temp to low (simmer), and enjoy!
i was lucky to find an old faberware percolator at a garage sale 10 years ago; the top went out but i was able to replace the part; shows you to buy old as opposed to the brand spanking cheap crap they put out these days and thanks for the ideas on the camp percolator; i have one so when the faber goes out i can use the stove top one
unfortunatly even as i write this i am not supposed to have real coffee; too many natural perservatives which i am allergic to; can you believe it? i miss my coffee; but i can have nescafe decaf? not sure what the difference is but at least its something hot too drink
"I 'll walk where my own nature would be leading. It vexes me to choose another guide" Emily Bronte
We went to a stove-top perculator about a year ago. The coffee is the best ever. Altho it does take a little time but its well worth it. We perk for 11 minutes.
Okay folks, here's the report from Rosa's test kitchen:
Made the first stovetop pot of coffee today around noon. I tried 2 tbsp per cup of water, let it perk for about 5 minutes after reaching a boil, and that was definitely too strong for my taste. It did have a good flavor to it though, so the technology shows promise and I think the coffee/water ratio just needs to be tweaked. This pot is also too small to be our regular daily coffee maker, so I think I will just use this one for my mad scientist experiments until I get it down to a science, and then decide if I want to invest in an 8-cup stovetop pot. I do have a new electric percolator that Farberware sent as a replacement under the warranty, so I'll continue to use that for our daily coffee for now.
We have a gas stove, so it's also a bonus to know that we can make coffee even if the electricity goes out!
This question brought back memories of my grandparents. Grandma used to make coffee on a stovetop percolator. I remember Grandpa being very upset when she cleaned it. He claimed it ruined the coffee.
Azure, Oh no, Grandpa would be pissed off at me! I spent a fair bit of time working it over with baking soda and vinegar. It's really kind of cute; it's Revere Ware.
OK, I tried a second pot on the stovetop yesterday, only using 1/2 the amount of coffee (1 tbsp per cup). I let it perk for about 5 minutes. This came out plenty strong enough and we liked it better than last week's pot. Here's my question. If we were going to use the stovetop method on a regular basis, I would want a larger 8-cup pot. How do you keep it warm once you've reached your desired strength after you pour your first round?
With the electric percolator, I take out the innards after we pour the first round, and this keeps it from getting stronger while it sits. But it has a heating element (this of course seems to be what burns out after a year or so) that keeps it warm. I know that the stovetop method makes for a hotter pot and coffee. Can I remove the innards without making a mess and burning myself? Or do I just need to play around by trial and error (with the bottle of aloe handy)? So my question concerns the second and third cups - how to keep them warm without making them too strong?
After our pot peculates, we turn the element down to simmer, Rosa. You may have to play around with it a little (with the two smaller elements on your stove) to see which element is best suited for the job.
As far as removing the innards of a stove-top coffee peculator, no need. If you keep the water level inside the pot below the coffee-basket, that will solve any further strengthening of the coffee.
Re: the strength of waiting coffee in your pot, unless you leave coffee in the pot for an extended period (between cups), you shouldn't notice any real flavour difference.
Thnks, Mrs. M. That makes sense - I guess if the water isn't hitting the basket, then it won't be getting any stronger.
That's right, Rosa. When I fill our pot with water, I fill to about, a 1/2" from the bottom of the basket, but if you don't make 10-12 cups at a time, you could go a lot less, because it's the percolating process that brings water up and into the coffee-basket.
Now that you have the coffee amount tailored to your needs, it's just a matter of fidgeting around a little with it to get it to where you want it, so you can enjoy perfect coffee.
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