Coffee: how we fell in love with our moka pot

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This page contains affiliate links, meaning that I may get a commission if you make a purchase, at no cost to you.

Ah, coffee! The magical elixir that turns grumpy morning zombies into functioning members of society. For the longest time we felt that we had it all figured out with our De’Longhi coffee machine. In fact, we liked the coffee machine so much we bought it twice (long story, one for another blog).

De'Lonngie coffee machine — We liked it so much we bought it twice!

The machine tells you when you need to descale it, tells you when you need to change the filter: it practically looks after itself!

Contents hide

1 Let’s take it!

2 Italy? What do the Italians know about coffee? And what’s a Moka?

2.1 Affiliate links below:

2.2 Share this article:

2.3 Like this:

Let’s take it!

One of the first things we researched was a solution for coffee. Let’s face it – there are way too many portable coffee solutions. Prior to our journey, I’ve tried the following:

None of them were convincing enough a solution as a long term travel coffee solution. We were stuck. For a while we travelled with instant coffee. Boy we missed our coffee machine. But we know we won’t be lugging 10kg of a machine with us around the world.

Then everything changed when we got to Italy.

Italy? What do the Italians know about coffee? And what’s a Moka?

According to the internet (which means it must be true), a lot. I won’t bore you with a copy and paste job but instead, I’ll get straight to it (for once).

When you stay in AirBnBs in Italy, every single one of them has a Moka pot. A Moka pot, also known as a stovetop espresso maker, is a classic method of brewing strong, flavourful coffee. We’ve seen those before: in movies, in other people’s home (most of the time as decoration) but this time we get to use it for real.

moka pot on top of aga — Our trusted moka

We can’t possibly say that our first impression was great. It was a bit fiddly and the coffee was far too strong for our liking. That all soon changed once we figured out the amount of coffee grounds to put into the Moka and how much water to fill in. Sure. Some AirBnB moka pots had leaking rubber seals which meant that the brewing didn’t really work, some had dented coffee chamber which meant that the brewing was suboptimal. But we were hooked. Coffee making has now become a ritual and the we look forward to every sip.

Moka pot outside — Me, my moka and myself

In short, we love it. We bought our Bialatti Moka and had it shipped to where we were staying and had been travelling with it since. It is definitely coming in the suitcase to Malaysia then New Zealand and around the world with us! All it asks from us is that we replace the seal from time to time!

Here’s a simple guide to using a Moka pot:

Start by unscrewing the Moka pot and removing the filter basket and funnel.
Fill the bottom chamber of the Moka pot with fresh, cold water up to the safety valve level. Avoid overfilling.
Insert the funnel into the bottom chamber and fill it with medium-fine ground coffee. Do not tamp the coffee down; simply level it with your finger.
Reattach the top chamber of the Moka pot, ensuring a tight fit.
Place the Moka pot on a stovetop burner set to medium heat. Make sure the handle is positioned away from the heat source.
Allow the water in the bottom chamber to come to a boil. As the water heats up, it will create pressure, pushing hot water vapor through the coffee grounds and extracting the coffee flavors.
Pay attention to the brewing process: you should hear a gurgling sound and see coffee slowly filling the top chamber. This usually takes a few minutes.
Once the top chamber is filled with coffee and there is only steam coming out, remove the Moka pot from the heat source.
Enjoy your rich and aromatic Moka pot coffee!

Remember, cleaning your Moka pot after each use is essential to maintaining its performance and flavor. Take apart the pot and hand wash all the components with warm water and mild soap. Avoid using abrasive cleaners or dishwasher, as they may damage the pot.