The French Press Coffee Technique With A Far Easier Cleanup

The humble French press is a surprisingly versatile kitchen item. Tasting Table even rounded up 14 unique French press uses apart from brewing coffee. But if you stick to the typical use for the tool, then you likely know it can be a bit of a pain to clean after pressing the coffee grounds into the bottom of the glass jug. The grounds cling to the glass and usually have to be scraped out with a long spoon before you can wash the vessel. To avoid this — and make a more consistent cup of coffee — all you have to do is switch up your brewing method using no more than the equipment you already have.

Though the aptly named French press is meant for pressing the coffee grounds through the water to the bottom of the cylinder once it's done brewing, you can actually use a pull method to achieve the same results — without the messy cleanup. Instead of adding the water and coffee grounds (using the ideal 1:17 coffee-to-water ratio, of course) followed by the plunger, you should add the water and coffee grounds after the plunger has been pressed to the bottom. Once the coffee has brewed for the desired amount of time, you then simply pull the plunger up, catching all the grounds as you do; this is known as the French pull method. 

Once you've pulled the plunger and the filter up with the coffee grounds on top, all you have to do is tap the plunger over the trash can to dispose of your spent grounds. With a little rinse of the plunger and filter, you'll be set to brew again. The simple cleanup is noticeably faster and easier than scooping out all of the coffee from the bottom of the French press before thoroughly washing it each time you brew coffee. 

Apart from the cleanup, another advantage of using this method is that it allows you to completely stop the brewing process once you remove the plunger. The water won't have any more contact with the grounds, so you'll get a consistent cup of evenly-brewed coffee every time you refill your mug. To add more flavor to your French press coffee, try out our 12 tips, for example using water at as close to 200 degrees Fahrenheit as possible. Together, you can have the best of everything — excellent coffee without the messy cleanup. 

The only other piece of advice that you need is to remove the cover from the plunger, to make adding the coffee and water easier. This can usually be done by unscrewing the filter, removing the plastic or wood cover, then rescrewing the parts back onto the plunger.