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Filter Coffee, French Press or Espresso: This Type of Coffee is The Healthiest

There has long been a debate about whether coffee is harmful or healthy. A study now makes it clear: it depends on the type of coffee.

Filter coffee, French press or espresso: which coffee variety is the healthiest?

For a long time, coffee, consumed daily and in large quantities, had a bad reputation. It promotes cardiovascular diseases, promotes high blood pressure and also has an acidifying effect, it was said.

In their study, Willet and his colleagues were able to reveal that the right type of coffee is – on the contrary – health-promoting. Daily coffee enjoyment can therefore even prolong life. According to the research team, not the gently prepared espresso, not the coffee with the gourmet crema from a portafilter machine, but simple filter coffee is the healthiest.

In addition to finding that coffee can help you lose weight by curbing your appetite and boosting your metabolism, the scientists identified other health benefits:
Filter coffee lowers cholesterol levels
enhances the pain relief of pills
has an anti-inflammatory effect
protects against certain types of cancer (skin, breast, prostate cancer)
reduces the risk of certain liver diseases (liver fibrosis and cirrhosis)
lowers the risk of heart disease

Coffee consumption reduces the risk of developing diabetes

In an earlier study by the same research team in 2006, it was shown that moderate coffee consumption also reduces the risk of developing type II diabetes.

Coffee contains many phytochemicals such as polyphenols and alkaloids. These are important antioxidants that have an anti-inflammatory effect and protect against free radicals, which attack cell structure and are involved in the development of various diseases (e.g. cancer, cardiovascular diseases). Coffee also contains a lot of magnesium, potassium and vitamin B3. In its overall effect, it can therefore positively influence intestinal health as well as sugar and fat metabolism.

In addition to these good ingredients, pollutants can also be produced when the beans are roasted. This is why the preparation of coffee is so crucial. Unfiltered variants, such as coffee from the French press or Turkish coffee, contain so-called diterpenes, which increase cholesterol levels.

Filter coffee is healthier than unfiltered coffee

The much-praised espresso, which is brewed gently, also contains fewer, but still a moderate amount of harmful substances. Here, too, a certain amount of coffee grounds remains in the cup, which is often drunk as well. The bad LDL cholesterol increases the risk of cardiovascular disease in coffees other than filter coffee by as much as 11 percent (when consuming six cups a day), the study found. Unfiltered coffee is therefore particularly dangerous for people with dyslipidemia.

If you drink filter coffee, you don’t have to worry about the quantity. A total of three to five cups a day are still considered healthy. Of course, the strength and roasting also play a role here. Incidentally, how bitter you perceive your coffee is partly dependent on your genes. Some people lack certain receptors that taste bitterness, which is why they perceive their coffee to be milder than others who have these receptors.

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Cooking Tips

French Press Instructions: This is How The Preparation Works

A cheap alternative to conventional coffee preparation is the French Press. We will explain how the French press works and what the pot has to do with France, Denmark and Italy.

What is a french press?

With a French press, also known as a press pot or coffee press, you can easily prepare coffee with hot water and ground coffee. The hot drink is prepared directly in the pot, which can also be used as a serving vessel. This method is called the full immersion method. In contrast to the pour-over method, in which water is poured over the coffee powder, with the full immersion method the ground coffee is directly in the water.

Where does the stamp pot come from?

As the name suggests, the device was invented in France around 1850. However, the pot was not patented until 1929 by the Italian Attilio Calimani. The shape we know today was only introduced to the market in the 1970s by the Danish manufacturer Bodum.

How is a French Press constructed?

Every French press is basically the same. Only the design varies from model to model. In most cases, a French press is made of glass, but there are also variants made of stainless steel or directly as a thermos flask. French presses are commercially available in different sizes from 0.35 to 1.5 liters filling volume. It consists of a holder in which a mostly glass, removable jug sits. A press stamp is integrated in the lid, on which a metal sieve is located. When preparing the coffee, the plunger is pressed down and the coffee grounds are separated from the finished coffee through the sieve.

How does the preparation of coffee in a French press work?

With the French Press, the coffee is ready to serve within minutes. All you need is hot water and ground coffee.

Ingredients required for 1 liter of coffee from the French Press:

Coffee beans for 60 grams of coffee powder
1 L of water with a temperature of about 96 degrees

Step 1: grind the coffee beans

The degree of grinding should not be too fine for preparation in a French press. Choose a medium to coarse grind. As a guide: The degree of grinding should be similar to that for filter coffee. If you don’t have a coffee grinder, you can also buy ready-made coffee powder. However, be sure to pay attention to the degree of grinding when buying.

Step 2: Boil the water

Before the water comes into contact with the ground coffee, the temperature should be around 86 to 96 degrees. Too high a temperature would result in a bitter taste.

Step 3: Fill in the coffee powder

Check the capacity of your French Press and how much coffee you want to prepare. As a guideline: If you have a pot with a capacity of one liter, put 60 grams of coffee powder in the French press. Then pour the appropriately tempered water completely into the pot. Make sure all the powder is wetted and don’t stir the mixture.

Step 4: Break open the crust

After four minutes, break up the crust that has formed on the liquid with a spoon. This process interrupts the extraction and most of the coffee powder sinks to the bottom.

Step 5: Continue Infusing (Optional)

Then wait five to eight minutes again. During this time, the fines (fine coffee particles) and the coarse particles of the coffee grounds sink to the bottom. This will make the cup a little clearer. However, this is only a recommendation and not a must. The coffee itself is ready to serve after four minutes of extraction (step 4). The longer you let the coffee steep, the stronger it gets. Of course, you can also influence the intensity of the coffee by choosing the coffee beans.

Step 6: Press down the stamp

Place the lid on the jug using the stamp press. Press down slowly and steadily using only the weight of your arm. This prevents the coffee powder from being stirred up again and nothing sloshing out.

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Food

The Perfect Coffee from the French Press

We believe there are two things that drive us in life: First, the never-ending quest for perfection. Second: coffee. But what if you try to combine these two things? Imagine that you should make the perfect coffee – and not with a fully automatic coffee machine, which supposedly knows and can do everything better, but with a French press. Real craftsmanship, precision, weighing the coffee powder to the exact gram… does the thought of it already bring the first beads of sweat to your forehead? It doesn’t have to be – perfection is in the nature of French Press coffee, so it’s easier to achieve than you think.

Regardless of whether you want to use a French press in the office or prefer to devote yourself to the fine art of brewing coffee at home: Buying a French press is always a great idea. Why? Because you get maximum output (great coffee) with minimal effort (few accessories). The customization of taste. is the great strength of the French Press coffee maker. Of course, the basics include the French press as well as a coffee grinder, a scale, a kettle and the coffee beans of your choice. Real experts are also equipped with a water thermometer.

Coffee for the French Press: Which one is the right one?

To the frequently asked question of which coffee is best suited for the French Press, everyone has to answer with their own taste. For many coffee lovers, the French Press is an opportunity to try out particularly exotic types of coffee, others rely on coffee from the local small roaster and still others are guided by recommendations from their fellow human beings.

Much more important than the choice of coffee type, however, is the quality, i.e. the condition of the coffee when it is associated with the French Press. Here, the freshly ground coffee is a must for connoisseurs in order to be able to fully enjoy the desired aromas.

Making the coffee from the Frech Press

Fortunately, you don’t have to exhaust yourself to grind the perfect French Press coffee with the hand grinder – a coarse grind, similar to sea salt, is sufficient. Ideally, your coffee grinder should have a disc or conical grinder. This creates an even grinding result, which in turn makes the expected taste of the coffee from the French Press more predictable.

On to the next step: Rinse the French Press coffee pot with hot water beforehand and fill it with 60 to 70 grams of the black gold that you have just ground for each liter of water used. And now it gets exciting: The water that has been boiled in the meantime must now have a temperature of exactly 96°C before it is quickly poured onto the coffee – keyword water thermometer. And if you’re already handling measuring instruments, you can start the stopwatch right away, because after four minutes it’s time to stir. Immediately afterwards, begin to push the plunger of the French Press down in one smooth motion. Patience is truly a virtue here, otherwise if you press too fast and too hard, the coffee will end up everywhere except on the bottom of the French press.

What comes out now is the ready-to-drink, incomparable, aromatic, PERFECT coffee from the French Press – assuming you don’t leave it in the French Press. Then there is a great danger that the coffee will continue to brew and become bitter. Hence our tip: Only brew as much coffee as you want to drink, or transfer the coffee to another container. Coffee specialties from the French Press require a few extra steps, which you can certainly do with ease.

Coffee from the French Press compared to the fully automatic coffee machine

Fully automatic coffee machines adjust the brewing temperatures, proportions and degree of grinding of the beans to the desired drink, thus ensuring optimal coffee enjoyment. In comparison, French press preparation is a process that requires a little more attention. Espresso, latte macchiato, cappuccino, flat white, or café crèma – you can have your personal favorite coffee in no time at the touch of a button. Grinding with the French Press coffee grinder can be a bit more time-consuming.

The French Press coffee maker can be used flexibly, is mobile and light. In its basic form, the coffee machine is already equipped with all the technical requirements for coffee production and, depending on the model, has different additional functions such as the simultaneous preparation of several drinks or the energy-saving mode. However, this also requires a permanent, fixed place.

What basically happens after every cup of coffee is cleaning – there is no difference between the fully automatic coffee machine and the French Press coffee maker. However, when it comes to cleaning, the French Press coffee maker has to be cleaned thoroughly by hand. In most cases, the fully automatic coffee machine takes over the cleaning of its used components fully or semi-automatically. Some parts of the coffee machine have to be dismantled and cleaned by hand, but the self-cleaning functions require special cleaning agents that have to be bought and refilled at regular intervals. Thus, compared to the French Press coffee maker, the fully automatic coffee machine does not necessarily require more cleaning, but at least it involves additional costs for the cleaning agents.

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Food

Swedish coffee culture – the perfect fika is achieved with the French press

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe said: “No pleasure is temporary, because the impression it leaves is lasting”. Everyone who has traveled to western Sweden appreciates the enjoyable coffee break that is taken daily in cozy cafes with delicious coffee and excellent cake. The fika tradition is unique in the world. You can also take a Swedish coffee break. The coffee for your fika works particularly well with the French press, because this allows the full aroma to unfold. Feel free to leave the filter coffee machine in the cupboard.

Fika – a special coffee break requires the French Press

Swedes call their coffee break, which includes eating delicious biscuits, cakes or fine Danish pastries, fika. The Swedish coffee break is taken together and is an excellent way to intensify contact with colleagues or to spend valuable time with friends.

The Swedish fika is very different from the customs of other countries, where you drink your coffee quickly while standing or walking. Swedes take time for each other, reduce stress by drinking coffee together, intensify contacts and treat themselves to delicious pastries and excellent cakes. The time together, the culinary delights and the delicious coffee from a filter coffee machine or a French press are what make the Fika what it is. Find out more about the differences between the preparation with the French press and the filter coffee machine.

Coffee for the fika – brew with the filter coffee machine or with the French press?

Most Swedes brew their morning coffee in a filter coffee machine. Swedes drink a lot of coffee, so capsule and pad machines are not common. The Swedes are nothing like the filter coffee machine.

The coffee that is drunk with the fika in the afternoon is prepared with the Swedish pot or the French press. Anyone who boils their favorite hot drink will be rewarded by the full-bodied aroma. Brewed coffee is characterized by a lot of body. The oils and fats contained in the coffee are not filtered out during filterless preparation. When it comes to coffee enjoyment, it makes a difference whether you use the filter coffee machine or the French press. Filter coffee machines and French presses only offer two methods of preparation for the fika, among many others.

Coffee is offered in Sweden in the two degrees of grind “Kok” (cooking coffee) and “Brygg” (brewed coffee). Swedish coffee packaging contains both the designation of the degree of grinding and a coffee pot or filter symbol. This tells you whether you should brew or boil the coffee. With the French Press you can boil coffee and with the filter coffee machine you can brew brewed coffee.

In the coffee perfect online shop you can buy high-quality bean and filter coffee for the Fika.

Swedish coffee tastes less acidic and stronger than our coffee. The beans are roasted darker in the north and the beans are selected for types that are less acidic. You will taste these two differences, regardless of whether you prefer to prepare your coffee with the filter coffee machine or the French press.

How you make the coffee for the fika depends on what type of guy you are:

Cook boiled “Kok” in a pot or French press

Traditionally, Swedish coffee “Kok” is boiled with water in a pot. The coffee powder falls to the bottom of the pot and the hot drink is carefully poured into a cup. The coffee powder settles in the cup. After enjoying the coffee you can read the coffee grounds.

This method of preparation is preferred by many Swedes for the fika, but in this country it is not for everyone because of the coffee grounds, which unfortunately are always drunk.

If you want to have the full coffee experience without coffee grounds in the cup, prepare your favorite hot drink with the French press. Very fresh coffee “Kok” without coffee grounds is child’s play with the French press. Pour hot water over the coffee in the French Press, let the coffee steep and use a metal sieve to press down the coffee grounds. In contrast to the filter coffee machine, the metal sieve in the French press does not filter, but preserves the fats and oils that are in the coffee. The coffee is characterized by an aromatic fullness. If you want the full aromatic taste, you should prepare the brewed coffee with the French Press. Brewing systems cannot compete with the French Press.

Cooked out prepare “Brygg” in the percolator or in the filter coffee machine

Coffee that has the “Brygg” grind can be prepared in the filter coffee machine or in the percolator. In the percolator, the boiling water is pushed up through a pipe and runs into a perforated steel container containing the coffee powder. From there it drips back down into the water as coffee. The percolator is very suitable if you only pour a few cups.

If you opt for the filter coffee machine, you should dose the coffee powder less than you are used to. The Swedish coffee is stronger and darker than the German. The filter coffee machine is very suitable if you want to prepare several cups. Unfortunately, the coffee powder loses some of its aroma when brewed in the filter coffee machine, since the fats remain in the filter. However, it is useful when several people are doing the fika together.

Summary:

You can boil or brew the Swedish coffee for the fika.
The Swedish coffee varieties are called either “Kok” or “Brygg”.
For reheating, try the French Press. The aroma is not filtered out by the French press, but can be drawn into the hot drink, including the coffee fats and oils, and you can enjoy coffee without annoying coffee grounds in the cup. The French Press is far superior to the typical Swedish pot because the coffee stays in the press. The coffee is more aromatic in the French press than in the filter coffee machine.
The filter coffee machine is well suited to preparing many cups at the same time.
The coffee from the filter coffee machine offers a little less flavor than boiled coffee.
Brewing in the percolator offers excellent coffee enjoyment.
If you want a full aroma, the French press is the preferred choice.

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