Mug of coffee on wooden table with flowers on the side
FOOD NEWS
For The Ideal Cup Of Coffee, Let Your Machine Actually Finish Brewing
BY KAT LIEU
The smell of freshly brewed coffee can be so tempting that you want to drink it right away, but if you want the best cup of joe, let your machine finish brewing before enjoying.
Although many coffee machines have a pause feature, letting you remove the pot and pour yourself a cup mid-brew, you should refrain from doing so if you want a consistent flavor.
Because drip coffee machines use hot water to extract the flavor of coffee grounds, the water extracts the boldest flavors at the beginning, resulting in a strong brew.
Pouring a cup mid-brew will give it an overpowering flavor, and the coffee produced afterward will be weak. Waiting for the brew to finish will ensure every cup tastes balanced.
However, if your machine often produces diluted, watery coffee at the end of its brewing cycle, which waters down your cup, you can stop brewing before the very end.
Machines like Keurigs are prone to finishing off with noticeably watery coffee, so if you want a consistently robust brew, you don't have to wait until the end of the cycle.