Make French Press Coffee

What is French Press Coffee?

French Press is a method of making coffee that does not use a paper filter.  Coffee grounds are mixed with hot water in a press pot, sometimes called a coffee press.  The press pot is usually a small glass coffee pot with a metal strainer that is pressed from the top of the pot to the bottom, trapping the coffee grounds at the bottom of the pot.  Thermal press pots are also available- a nice feature to keep coffee warm after brewing.  French press coffee has intense coffee flavor and retains more oil from the coffee beans than coffee brewed using a paper filter.

Coffee Press Pot for Making French Press Coffee
Image Courtesy of Leland  CC-SA-30

How much does French Press Coffee Cost at a Coffee Shop?

French press coffee is served at most coffee shops.  You can get a French press coffee for about $3 at a coffee shop.  French press coffee takes some special effort to prepare, hence the higher price.  Also, it will take a few minutes to make a French press coffee.  Baristas will be happier to make a French press coffee when it is slow rather than when there is a rush of people waiting for coffee.  Even if French press coffee is not on the menu, most coffee shops can make this if you order it.

Is French press coffee bad for you?

Coffee contains cafestol, a substance found in the oily part of coffee that can increase LDL cholesterol levels.  A paper coffee filter removes cafestol.  Coffee prepared without a filter such as French press, or cowboy coffee contains more cafestol.  Turkish coffee, in which finely ground coffee is mixed with water and allowed to settle also contains cafestol.  Coffee brewed in an espresso machine without a paper filter also contains some cafestol.  So take it easy on French press coffee if you are worried about cholesterol.

Coffee made from a standard coffee maker or using pour over methods filters nearly all of the cafestol since these coffee brewing methods use a paper coffee filter.  I was concerned about single cup brewers such as Keurig or Verisimo.  Do the little K-cups and verismo pods have paper filters inside?  I was drinking some Keurig coffee every day, so I was concerned enough to take a K-cup apart and see if there is a coffee filter inside.  As the pictures show, K-cups and verismo pods do in fact have a small paper filter inside.

How to Make French Press Coffee at Home

A Really Good Cup of Coffee
Image Courtesy of Julius Schorzman CC-SA-20

You can buy a press pot for under $20.  The press pot is a simple machine, without a power cord.  It consists of a glass container and a metal strainer with a plunger handle.  Most press pots are glass, but thermal press pot are also available that will keep your French press coffee warm in the pot.  The press pot may also have a small stand to hold the pot upright on the countertop.  The press pot is likely the only equipment you’ll need to buy to make French press coffee at home.

Instructions to make French press coffee at home

Step 1: Place coffee grounds in the press pot.  If you don’t have a coffee grinder, you can buy ground coffee and use this to make French press coffee.  For the best possible French press coffee, you’ll want to buy whole coffee beans and grind them just before brewing.  If you want the best possible coffee, buying whole beans and grinding them just before brewing is the way to go.

Step 2:   Heat water to pour into the press pot.  A tea kettle works well.   Bring water to a boil and let it cool for a few minutes.  The ideal water temperature is about 200 degrees F.  You could also heat water in the pot of your coffee maker by running water through your coffee machine without adding any ground coffee.

Step 3: Add hot water to fill the press pot and stir briefly.

Step 4: Let the coffee brew to taste, typically for about 4 minutes.

Step 5: Press the plunger on the press pot to move the strainer to the bottom of the pot, trapping the coffee grounds at the bottom.  Now, serve delicious French press coffee.  If you have a glass press pot, you’ll want to drink the coffee right away while it is hot or put it in a thermal carafe or thermal coffee cup.  If you have a thermal press pot, you can take your time.

Copyright © 2013 by Dr. Penny Pincher.  All Rights Reserved. Coffee Maker Journal

Make Pour Over Coffee

What is Pour Over Coffee?

Pour-over coffee is made by slowly pouring hot water over coffee grounds to produce a flavorful coffee brew.  This method of coffee brewing is also called hand pour coffee or manual coffee brewing.  You can make regular or decaf pour over coffee.

The water for pour over coffee is typically heated in a kettle with a small spout to allow the hot water to be poured slowly over the ground coffee.  The coffee grounds are held in a ceramic, glass, or plastic cone with a cone filter to extract maximum flavor.  A pour over stand may be used to hold the coffee grounds above a cup for single cup brewing.  Some single serve pour over cones fit on top of a coffee cup and do not require a stand.  Pour over coffee makers include the pour over cone and a coffee pot to allow pour over brewing of an entire pot of coffee.

Pour Over Coffee at a Coffee Shop

Most coffee shops serve pour over coffee upon request.  I sometimes order pour over at Starbucks if I have time.  A pour over is guaranteed to be really fresh and it has really good flavor.  It takes about 5 minutes to brew a pour over coffee, sometimes longer if the coffee shop is busy.  Making a pour over requires some attention from the barista to slowly add water a little bit at a time.  I think having a pour over is a good way to make drinking an afternoon decaf more interesting.

Some coffee shops serve pour over coffee as their standard coffee.  Java House in Iowa City, Iowa has a coffee bar with 8 stations and brews coffee by the cup using pour over.  When you order, they scoop the ground coffee of your choice into one of the cones and start pouring water.  Java House uses a small water kettle heated on an electric heating element.  They tell you which picture goes with your cup so you can get the right one.  When it is nearly full, they ask you if you want room for cream.

Pour over coffee bar at coffee shop
Image Source: Dr. Penny Pincher

Pour over coffee brewing.  Note small kettle on electric heater in background.
Image Source: Dr. Penny Pincher

How much does pour over coffee cost at a coffee shop?

Pour over coffee costs a bit more than regular coffee, I paid $2.65 for my most recent cup of pour over coffee at a coffee shop.

Make Pour Over Coffee at Home

You can make pour over coffee at home easily, and the equipment does not cost much at all.  A basic setup includes a coffee dripper and some cone filters.  A specialized kettle with a small spout is helpful, but you can give it a try with a standard tea kettle if you already have one.

You can get a basic set-up for about $10:  a plastic filter cone and a box of paper cone filters.  Here's a basic coffee dripper that uses cone filters.

Single serve coffee dripper for pour over coffee sitting on a thermal coffee cup
Image Source: Dr. Penny Pincher

A kettle with a small spout helps a lot, but you can give it a try using things you already have.  Use a ceramic coffee cup to heat water in the microwave and carefully pour over.  You can also heat water in a tea kettle and carefully pour over.  If you plan to make pour over coffee on a regular basis, you'll want to get a kettle with a long spout like this stovetop kettle for pour over coffee.

How to Make Pour Over Coffee
Place your pour over cone on top of a coffee cup.  Place a paper cone filter in the pour over cone and add coffee grounds.  Carefully pour hot water over the coffee grounds.  The water temperature should be about 200 degrees F.  Do not use boiling water- this will result in bitter coffee.  If you boil water, you'll want to let it cool for a few minutes.  Add the water a little bit at a time, keeping the cone about 1/2 full.  In a few minutes, you'll have a really good cup of pour over coffee.

Copyright © 2013 by Dr. Penny Pincher.  All Rights Reserved. Coffee Maker Journal

How to Make Coffee During a Power Outage without Electricity

How can you make a cup of coffee during a power outage?  

There are ways to make coffee without electricity during a power outage.  First are instructions for using your coffee maker without electricity during a power outage.  Second are instructions for making cowboy coffee without a coffee maker.

Method 1: How to Use your Coffee Maker without Electricity

Of course, coffee makers need electricity to work.  But there is a way you can still get a hot cup of coffee without electricity.  These instructions also work if your coffee maker is broken since you can by-pass the parts of your coffee maker that require electricity to operate.

Make Coffee without electricity!
Image Source: Dr. Penny Pincher

The functions of a coffee maker that require electricity are the clock/electronics, the heating element that heats water for brewing, the pump that delivers hot water to the filter basket, and the burner that keeps the coffee warm in the pot.

If you need to make coffee without electricity, you can heat water using a method that does not require electricity.  You can pour the hot water directly into the filter basket, eliminating the need for an electric pump.  You’ll need to do without the burner to keep the pot warm- you can pour the hot coffee into an insulated container or simply drink it right away.  And you won’t need the clock or buttons on the coffee maker when using it during a power outage.

So how exactly can you make coffee using a coffee maker during a power outage?

Step 1.  Place a paper filter in your coffee maker as usual

Step 2. Fill  the filter basket of your coffee maker with coffee grounds as usual

Step 3.  Heat water using a method that does not require electricity:

• If you have a gas oven, use the stovetop to heat water in a tea kettle.
• If you do not have a gas oven, use a gas grill to heat water in a pan.  Important- use the gas grill outdoors only to avoid carbon monoxide hazard.
• If you don’t have a gas oven or gas grill, you can use a camp stove to heat water.  Note that camp stoves are safe for outdoor use only.  You can also build a campfire and heat water by suspending a pot over the fire or using a camp grill.

You’ll want to boil the water and let it cool slightly for a moment.  Heating enough water for a pot of coffee will take about 10 minutes.  The ideal water temperature for brewing coffee is about 200 degrees F.  Don’t use boiling water, it will make the coffee taste bitter.  You’ll want to let boiling water cool for 30 seconds to 1 minute before pouring it into the filter basket.

Step 4. Slowly pour the hot water directly into the filter basket of your coffee maker.  Coffee will begin filling the pot.  Continue pouring hot water into the filter basket.  If you used a pan in step 3, it may be easier to use a coffee cup or measuring cup to scoop the water from the pan and pour it into the filter basket.

How to make coffee during a power outage
Image Source: Dr. Penny Pincher

The coffee maker shown in the picture- a Melitta 10-cup with thermal carafe- has easy access to the filter basket by lifting the lid on top.  Some coffee makers do not have such easy access.  On these you may need to remove the filter basket, fill it about 3/4 full of hot water, and carefully replace it so that coffee will flow into the pot.


Step 5. Enjoy hot coffee during a power outage.

If you have a thermal carafe on your coffee maker, you can drink your coffee as usual.  If you have a glass coffee pot, you’ll want to pour the coffee into insulated coffee cups or a thermos right away to keep it warm since the burner on your coffee maker will not keep it warm without electricity.  You may want to adjust the amount of grounds and brew one cup at a time.

This method for making coffee is a variation on a technique for making coffee called pour over coffee.   I have been using this method to make coffee for a few days since my coffee maker broke.  My broken coffee maker produces steam, but hot water does not reach the filter basket.  I couldn't bring myself to buy a cup of coffee for over $2 at a coffee shop, so I decided to improvise.

A coffee maker designed to work without electricity

If you plan to frequently make coffee without electricity- for example when camping- you can get a coffee maker powered by a propane cylinder.  This is an automatic drip coffee maker that works without electricity at all- amazing!

Method 2: How to Make Cowboy Coffee without a Coffee Maker

If you don't have a coffee maker, you can make "cowboy coffee".  Heat water to boiling in a pan, then let it cool to about 200 degrees F.  See step 3 above.  Add the coffee grounds into the hot water and stir.  Let the grounds settle and pour the coffee out of the pan after about 5 minutes.  You can also use a coffee cup to dip coffee out of the pan.  If you remove the coffee carefully, most of the grounds will stay on the bottom of the pan.  If the grounds are getting in the coffee, you can stuff a coffee filter into your coffee cup, pour the cowboy coffee into the cup, and slowly lift the coffee filter to strain the grounds.  This method can be a bit messy, but some coffee is better than no coffee at all!

Copyright © 2013 by Dr. Penny Pincher.  All Rights Reserved. Coffee Maker Journal

Coffee Alternatives: These Coffee Substitutes have Less Caffeine

Coffee Alternatives

Coffee is great, but since it has lots of caffeine, drinking it in the evening can interfere with your ability to get a good night's sleep.  Even drinking too much coffee during the day can result in headaches due to the caffeine content of coffee.

What coffee alternatives are available that have less caffeine or are caffeine free?

Half Caff Coffee

Half Caff coffee is a mix of regular coffee and decaffeinated coffee that has half the caffeine of regular coffee.  You can make this by mixing equal parts of ground regular coffee and ground decaf coffee.  You can also buy bags of pre-mixed half caff coffee.  Since half caff coffee still has caffeine, you'll still need to limit your consumption somewhat to avoid getting too much caffeine.

Half Caff coffee has one half the caffeine of regular coffee
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

Decaf Coffee

Coffee can be decaffeinated through chemical processes.  The processing removes caffeine from coffee beans by creating an environment with low levels of caffeine surrounding the beans.  The caffeine from the coffee will naturally move to the surrounding area with less caffeine.  This process is repeated until the coffee contains almost zero caffeine.  Since decaf contains almost no caffeine, you can drink lots of it and drink it at night without interfering with your sleep.

Decaffeinated coffee
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

Hot Chocolate

Hot chocolate is an alternate to coffee that has much less caffeine.  You can buy packets of hot chocolate power that you mix with hot water to make hot chocolate.  Some hot chocolate brands even have marshmallow packets that you can add if you wish.  For a treat you can make hot chocolate from chocolate bars and milk instead of powdered mix.

Chickory Brewed Beverages

A coffee substitute can be made by brewing roasted chickory root.  Chickory is a perennial plant that has edible leaves and roots that can be roasted and ground to make a coffee substitute.  Chickory has been used as a coffee substitute in situations where coffee was not available, such as in prisons and during the Union blockage of New Orleans during the Civil War era.  Coffee with chickory is still a traditional drink served in New Orleans.  Since chickory is caffeine free, you can drink it any time without the side effects of caffeine.

Dandelion roots can also be roasted and ground to make a caffeine free substitute coffee brew similar to chickory brew.

Roasted chickory can be found in organic food stores or on the internet. You can find your own dandelion roots and roast them yourself, or purchase roasted dandelion roots on the internet.

Roasted Chickory from Amazon.com- ready to brew

Carob Brewed Beverages

Carob is used as a substitute for cocoa and is naturally caffeine free.  After noticing that carob was a main ingredient in some coffee substitute beverages, I tried using carob baking powder in my coffee maker.  I just place it in the coffee filter instead of coffee grounds and brew like coffee.  It tastes sort of like hot chocolate only a bit more bitter.  Brewed carob is an inexpensive coffee substitute.

Carob Powder- brew your own coffee substitute
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

Coffee Substitute Blends

Teeccino coffee alternative
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

You can buy coffee substitutes that you brew in your coffee maker to replace ground coffee.  Several coffee substitute blends can be found at organic food shops or on the internet.  These products are blends of ingredients such as chickory, carob, roasted grain, roasted nuts, and other natural ingredients.  Not only do coffee substitutes have no caffeine, but they are much less acidic than coffee as well.  Teeccino, Pero, and Postum are examples.  Teccino has a chocolaty, nutty flavor.

Pero coffee substitute
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

Deals on Coffee Substitutes from Amazon

Hot Tea

Hot tea varieties include both regular and decaf tea.  Either type of tea contains much less caffeine than coffee.  You can switch to decaf tea in the evening to avoid interfering with your sleep quality.  Another benefit of tea is that it is less expensive than coffee.

Hot tea is an alternative to coffee with much less caffeine
Image source: Dr. Penny Pincher

Copyright © 2013 by Dr. Penny Pincher.  All Rights Reserved. Coffee Maker Journal

Keurig vs. Starbucks Verismo vs. Senseo Coffee Brewing Systems

Single Serve Coffee Brewing Systems

There are three major competitors in the single serve coffee brewing market:

• Keurig
• Starbucks Verismo
• Senseo

These coffee machines promise a hot fresh cup of coffee fast.  Which is better: Keurig, Verismo, or Senseo?

Keurig Review

The Keurig brewer uses small plastic cups filled with ground coffee called K-cups.  The K-cups have a tiny built-in coffee filter and are sealed with a foil lid to maintain freshness.  The Keurig brewer has a needle that punctures the foil lid injects hot water into the K-cup.  A cup of coffee is brewed in about 15 seconds.

Keurig Coffee Brewers start at about $65

The Keurig coffee brewing systems are currently very popular, and the machines and K-cups are readily available:

• Keurig machines and K-cups are common on store shelves at discount stores (Wal-mart, Target, K-mart)
• There are several Keurig machines at the office
• K-cups are sold in grocery stores

Keurig machines vary in cost depending on the size and control screen options.  The price range is about
$65 to $500.

The K-cups cost about 65 cents per cup, which is about twice the cost of the same amount of gourmet ground coffee.  A new Keurig brewer format has been released that uses Keurig Vue Packs instead of K-cups.

K-cup for Keurig Brewer contains ground coffee and built-in coffee filter
Image Source: Dr. Penny Pincher

Starbucks Verismo Review

The Starbucks Verismo brews coffee in a manner similar to the Keurig brewer.  The Verismo uses plastic cups called Verismo Pods that contain ground coffee and a built-in filter.  Like Keurig's K-cups, the Verismo Pods are also sealed with foil lids to maintain freshness.  The Verismo Pods appear to be about half the size of K-cups.  Like Keurig, the Verismo produces a fast, hot cup of coffee.

Verismo System 580 sells for about $180
Image Source: Dr. Penny Pincher

Unlike Keurig, the Verismo also has milk pods.  These are used to brew latte drinks.  The milk pods are filled with milk rather than ground coffee.  The Verismo machine comes in 5 color choices.

Verismo Pods cost about 65 cents each for brewed coffee pods, $1.25 for espresso pods and milk pods.

Verismo with Verismo Pod
Image Source: Dr. Penny Pincher

Senseo Review

Senseo coffee pods are sort of like round tea bags that contain ground coffee.  This is an older style of single serve brewer.  The machine opens up to allow you to insert a Senseo Pod.  Senseo machines start at about $65.

The Senseo pods are much less expensive than Keurig or Verismo pods at about 35 cents each.  This is about the same cost as ground gourmet coffee.  Sometimes you can find cheap Senseo coffee brewers on eBay.

Keurig vs Verismo vs Senseo Review

Machine Cost:

• Keurig and Senseo entry level machines are much less expensive
• You can find basic Senseo machines very cheap- around $25
• A Verismo machine costs about twice as much for a similar system
• Look for better Verrismo prices on eBay or Amazon instead of buying in a Starbucks store

Availability of Coffee Pods:

• Keurig K-cups are easily found in grocery, discount stores, and on-line
• Verismo Pods can be found at Starbucks stores and on-line
• Senseo Pods can be found at some discount stores and on-line, but are not as easy to find as Keurig K-cups

Cost of Coffee Pods:

• Senseo is the cheapest at about 35 cents per cup
• Keurig and Verismo are the same for brewed coffee at about 65 cents per cup
• Verismo has some more expensive pods for espresso and latte drinks

Coffee Quality:

• Keurig and Verismo produce high quality coffee
• Senseo tastes a bit watered down- too much "tea bag" flavor
• Senseo pods also go stale much more quickly than K-cups or Verismo Pods

Recommendation:

• Keurig is the best value for brewed coffee: inexpensive entry-level machine, readily available coffee pods, and makes great tasting coffee.  Check out Keurig coffee brewer deals on eBay.
• Keurig has refillable K-cups available so that you can use your own ground coffee to make your own K-cups to save money.
• Verismo may be worth considering if you want espresso or latte drinks as well as brewed coffee.  Check out Starbucks Verismo coffee brewer deals on eBay
• If cost is a major factor, Senseo is the least expensive single server brewing system.  Both the Senseo brewer and the Senseo coffee pods are the least expensive option.

Copyright © 2013 by Dr. Penny Pincher.  All Rights Reserved. Coffee Maker Journal

How Does the New York City Soda Ban Affect Coffee?

Why do I Care about the Soda Ban in NYC?

I have never been to New York City, and I don’t drink soda.  So why do I care about the soda ban in NYC?  The ban affects coffee, and that’s something I care about…

Will the NYC Soda Ban Affect Coffee?

The soda ban in New York City, which goes into effect on Tuesday March 12, 2013, bans the sale of soda in servings of over 16 ounces.  This applies only to “regular” soda and not diet soda.  Coffee over 16 ounces is also impacted by the regulation if sugar is added.  It is then a sweetened beverage like soda and is regulated.  Most coffee shops and fast food restaurants will comply with the regulation by having customers add their own sugar and flavoring to coffee over 16 ounces.  Others may limit adding a certain number of packets to the coffee based on the size of the coffee.

NYC Soda Ban will Affect Coffee over 16 oz with Sugar Added
Image Source: Dr. Penny Pincher

What will this mean for coffee drinkers and their morning routine?  I see 3 likely ways coffee drinkers will deal with this starting Tuesday morning:

1. If coffee drinkers want the convenience of having the barista add their sugar, they could order a smaller size- 16 oz or less.  I would anticipate few coffee drinkers would take this approach.  If you are used to drinking a 20 oz or 24 oz coffee, a smaller size simply will not do.    However some people will probably switch to either drinking one smaller coffee, or simply ordering 2 small coffees with the amount of sugar they like added.
2. Another approach would be to order the same size coffee as usual, but drink it black instead of adding sugar.  Again, unlikely for most people.  If you are used to cream and sugar, it would be hard to suddenly switch to drinking black coffee.  I imagine some people may end up learning to drink black coffee.
3. So that leaves option 3- add your own sugar at the coffee shop.  This will be somewhat inconvenient.  You’ll have to stop at a self-serve counter, take the lid off of your coffee, add sugar, stir, and put the lid back on.  Chances are there will be long lines in the mornings and frustration will run high at the sugar counter when supplies run out, etc. 

Will the NYC Soda Ban Lead to Less Sugar Consumption?

Overall, I think most people will end up drinking the same amount of coffee with the same amount of sugar, at least at first.  The new regulation will call attention to the health effects of consuming too much sugar.  That combined with the new inconvenience of getting sugar in your coffee may lead to less consumption of sugar in coffee over time.

Giant Soda- You wont get one of these in NYC
Image Source: Dr. Penny Pincher

Really the soda ban has minimal affect on the sugar supply in NYC- sugar will still be cheap and plentiful after the ban.  You can add it to drinks yourself, order multiple smaller drinks, or bring larger drinks from elsewhere.   The ban will have more of an impact on the demand for sugar in NYC.  If it is inconvenient to get large sugary drinks, people will find more convenient alternatives over time.

The soda ban in NYC reminds me of the smoking ban that went into effect here in Iowa a few years ago.  Smoking was banned in restaurants and bars.  Of course smokers and bar owners complained about this law, but it went into effect.  Smoking has also been banned at outdoor events such as football and baseball games.  I wondered how this would go over, but the smoking ban is effective- I haven’t seen it violated.

The smoking ban was enacted for health and safety reasons to protect employees at places like restaurants.  Does the government have the authority to regulate portion size of food products?  One example of government regulation of consumption is in the area of energy efficiency.  Automakers must maintain minimum fuel efficiency for vehicles across their fleet.  Light bulbs must meet energy efficiency standards and will likely lead to the phasing out of incandescent light bulbs in 2020.  So the government has a history of regulating the consumption of legal products for the good of the public.

It will be interesting to see:

1. Will the soda ban changes sugar consumption in NYC?  
2. Will public health improve in NYC after the ban is enacted?

I think sugar consumption in NYC will be reduced somewhat within a few months.  If public health does improve in NYC after the soda ban, I may see you at the sugar counter loading up your coffee in a few years…

Postscript

The New York City soda ban of 2013 was called off at the last minute.  A court decision did not allow the ban to proceed as planned.

Copyright © 2013 by Dr. Penny Pincher.  All Rights Reserved. Coffee Maker Journal

K-cup cost: Is it expensive to make coffee with a Keurig Coffee Maker?

Are K-cups expensive?

You can buy a Keurig coffee maker starting at about $70.  Keurigs make a great cup of coffee very quickly using a special K-cup instead of a traditional coffee filter basket and ground coffee.  But how much do K-cups cost?  Is it more expensive to make coffee with a K-cup than from ground coffee or coffee beans?

K-cup selection
Image Source: Dr. Penny Pincher

High quality ground coffee or coffee beans sells for $9.99 for 12 oz.
A package of 18 K-cups sells for $11.99, with a net weight of 6 oz.


K-cups cost more than twice as much as ground coffee or coffee beans.
The cost per cup for K-cup vs traditional coffee maker:

• 66 cents per cup of coffee from a premium K-cup.  The amount of coffee brewed with one K-cup is typically 4 to 10 oz, depending on how you set your Keurig machine to brew.  
• You can find cheap K-cups for less than 50 cents if you go bargain hunting.
• 28 cents is the cost to brew just under 8 oz of premium coffee from ground coffee or coffee beans. 
• 4 cents is the cost to brew just under 8 oz for cheap generic ground coffee

One advantage of making coffee one cup at a time with a Keurig coffee machine is that you are less likely to waste coffee.  If you brew a pot of coffee with a standard coffee maker, you are more likely to waste some coffee if it gets stale or cold.  Even considering efficiency, making coffee with K-cups is much more expensive.

What is inside a K-cup?

A K-cup is a plastic cup with a built-in tiny paper coffee filter.  Ground coffee is placed in the coffee filter at the factory, and a foil lid is sealed over to the top of the K-cup to ensure freshness.  When you place a K-cup in the Keurig coffee maker, a hole is punched though the foil on top and through the plastic cup on the bottom.

K-cup with hole punched through foil lid
Image Source: Dr. Penny Pincher

K-cup with hole punched in bottom of cup
Image Source: Dr. Penny Pincher

The Keurig coffee maker forces hot water into the K-cup through the hold in the lid using a special needle.  The hot water contacts the ground coffee in the K-cup and brews.  A tiny coffee filter is attached inside the plastic K-cup and filters the coffee, keeping the grounds inside the K-cup as brewing occurs.

Ground coffee inside a K-cup
Image Source: Dr. Penny Pincher

Coffee filter inside a K-cup
Image Source: Dr. Penny Pincher

Can you make your own K-cups for your Keurig and save money?

Yes.  You can buy reusable cups to use your own ground coffee to make your own K-cups that work in Keurig coffee makers.  Some reusable K-cups have disposable filters, and some have reusable filters.  The disposable filters cost only a few cents each.  Making your own K-cups using your own ground coffee is potentially a lot less expensive than purchasing K-cups.  Reusable K-cups start at less than $10 and will quickly pay for the initial expense.  Below is a picture of a MochaMate Refillable Filter Cup for Keurig K-Cup Brewers

Refillable K-cup for Keurig Brewers from Mochamate
Image Source: Dr. Penny Pincher

Save money by making your own K-cups:

Look for reusable K-cup filter kits on eBay.

Deals on Amazon:

Copyright © 2013 by Dr. Penny Pincher.  All Rights Reserved. Coffee Maker Journal