Lattes are mild-flavored in comparison to black coffee, making it a popular choice for caffeineoholics across the globe.
Baristas get creative, expressing their own artistic touches right in the drink – making it the most instagrammable cup of coffee on the internet!
Going to your favorite local coffee shop for your daily dose of latte is expensive. Today, we’ll teach you how you can make the perfect cup of latte (that can top your go-to barista) in your own home.
Making Your Starbucks-Style Lattes
Lattes are simple: It’s a combination of two shots of espresso and three ounces of steamed milk. Just add a foam topping for the cherry on top. And voila! You’ve got yourself a cup of latte.
While Espressos are god-sent for on-the-go businessmen and busybodies, it can be acidic. This is especially the case when the pressure during the extraction is too much OR when the beans used are older.
Adding milk to your espresso doesn’t only cool it down, but it relieves your mouth from its heavy presence. People who like to enjoy their cup of coffee sip after sip, solely adding steamed milk works wonders. Together with its microfoam bubbles, it brings out the fineness of the espresso.
Grinding
Grind your ground coffee finely to make the perfect espresso shot. To ensure quality, use the grains of your home’s table salt as a reference – these grounds should be grinded to that of salt.
Once you’ve noticed the coffee grounds to cluster and stick together, that’s your go signal that your ground coffee is in the ideal size.
For beginners, it’s okay to stick with the conventional grinding method. However, once you’ve gotten used to the process and become more skilled, you can tryout different coffee grinds to get your preferred flavor.
Pro Tip: Use a burr grinder to grind your coffee beans to make a fresher shot of espresso. It gives you the power to control the texture of your espresso beans, whether it may be finer or coarser. Burr grinders are perfect when you’re after consistency.
Preparing & Steaming
You need to prepare six ounces of milk for a cup of latte. Remember to prepare six ounces of milk for every ounce of espresso. If you plan on making a bigger cup of latte, simply follow espresso-milk ratio.
- First-timers may use nonfat milk in the process as it’s the easiest and fastest way to make latte foam. However, it won’t have the richness in flavor compared to milk with fat.
- Whole milk is recommended for people with more experience. It may be the hardest to make foam, but it’s more decadent than any other milk.
- If you want to meet halfway, you may use 2% milk as it makes foam well while giving your latte flavor.
At the very least, ensure that your frothed milk is not any hire than 145º F as it can burn the milk. Change the angle of your pitcher that will allow the steaming wand to make a circular motion, this would rotate around the frothing pitcher, giving off smooth steam.
Take note of the tip placement, it should be below the topmost of the milk. You’ll see a formation of microfoam bubbles instead of the usual bigger ones. Pay attention to the sound, it resembles that of a sizzling grill.
Once that’s done, let the milk rest for a while. Just give enough time for the foam to go up while the liquid remains as is. This is important as this allows you to properly layer your latte.
Measuring
Depending on your preference, an espresso shot has a precise amount of coffee. As I’ve mentioned beforehand, however, lattes in coffee shops are composed of two shots of espresso.
Ideally, a shot of espresso would need 18-21g. Simply grab your portafilter and measure it using kitchen scale.
Making the shots
Once you have tamped your coffee, all you need to do is secure the portafilter, and press the button to start brewing. A shot of espresso takes about thirty seconds to brew; however, it may vary from one machine to another.
Pouring the froth
You may use a spoon to help regulate the course of the froth’s foam. Keep a keen eye, no foam should go in your drink, wait until you’re 1/4 in.
If you’ve followed these instructions correctly, you’ll get a smooth, creamy brown cup of latte with a nice frothy top.
Of course, exploring your artist side in you is completely optional. You may have fun with some creative latte art to make your drink more personalized!