Category: Grub Garage
Does anyone have any idea as to how I can clean my percolator? It's an electric model that apparently was never used. I bought it from Ebay, still in the box, with all of its paperwork. But it is over 40-years-old. It works fine, but there is an aftertaste that I don't like. I washed the inside with my Earth Friendly dish soap, ran it through a cycle with water and vinegar, then just water, and the taste was still there. I sent the internals down and my parents washed them in the dishwasher, so they no longer smell. But I still don't know about the main part, and of course, I can't submerge it, because it's electric! Any ideas?
Because it is older, what you are tasting is some metal taste.
Back at that time, it was one of the drawback to making coffee in one of these, that metal taste due to curing.
Even cheap new ones will have it, because coffee stripps the metal, or cleans it when you make coffee. Smile.
You probably make your coffee strong.
If you don't like that metal taste, buy yourself one that is stainless steal.
You can buy them new, or used, but stainless steel, is what you'll want.
Oh, and I don't mean coated stainless steel, because some are only made to look like it on the outside. I mean solid inside and out.
You'll find that in the description.
True. I never had this issue with my mocha pot that went on the stove. I don't know if it was steel or aluminium. *smile* That said, I could understand if a lot of coffee had been made in this machine, but this appears never to have been used. That's why I thought it was because it was in storage. Even water, when I boiled it, had an odd taste. I will have to try it, now that the components were made. This is a Corningware four cup maker if that helps. Oh, and I do enjoy strong coffee.
Doesn't matter.
It could be new. Coffee grabs the airon in metal, or tin.
Have you ever drank from a tin cup?
That gives you an idea.
Add coffee, and strong coffee, and you get more of that metal taste.
You have seen these steel coffee cups that are to keep your coffee hot.
The cheaper modes, and I have one, make it taste a bit metallic.
I have another from Starbucks, and that bad boy can keep your brew hot for hours, and it taste clean.
Was just using it now, because I'm moble. Lol
Just get a good one.
Same product,, just stainless steel.
You can also use a french press. They're made of glass, so they don't react
with anything. They're cheap. You can get them in all kinds of sizes. They make
better coffee. They allow you to make stronger coffee better, because just
putting more grounds in will only give you bitter coffee, not stronger coffee.
They are, in my opinion, a coffee lover's best friend.
I was meaning to try one of those for awhile. *smile* Right now, I have a very nice medium roast coffee. from Mt. Whitney Coffee Roasters,called Organic Shade Grown Peru. I have two conical bur grinders, and I know the all-ceramic one, at least, is adjustable, but I must figure out how to do that. The plastic one, with ceramic elements, is set to a fine grind, like for espresso, and i'm not sure if that can be changed. But oddly enough, that actually works perfectly in my automatic drip machine! This coffee is very rich in flavour, but so smooth that I can drink it black, with just sugar! Maybe, I should try their dark Sumatran blend for the percolator.
My glass one broke after ten years of hard use, so I got a plastic French press, does a better job of sealing in the warmth and it's wonderful. As good as the glass one was.
Hmmm, I always ran a bit of vinegar through mine, then a few cycles with just water. Always worked. I guess the key is to run enough water cycles that the vinegar taste goes away.
I do the vinegar thing about once a week.
It isn't the vinegar taste she's experiencing, but the tin, or metal after taste when you brew coffee in a metal container I am guessing.
This taste doesn't bothers some people, but for me, I can taste it, so don't use metal containers unless as I've stated before.
I'm sure that there is a way to get rid of the taste/smell, since the components are now clean. I still think it's just 40 years of storage that's causing the problem. *smile* I'll update you on how things work out.
Mine has a metal pot, but I've got a feeling the insane amounts of cream and sugar I put in compensate for that metallic taste.
So what's better and cheaper to own and maintain, the French press or the coffee pot? My parents gave me their old coffee pot which works fine, but I don't really want hot coffee all the time. wish I knew how to make blended coffee drinks myself. Hell, I don't even have a blender, nor do I have the space for one.
If you don't have much space, the french press is good.
If you are given a coffee pot, well, it's free, so.
I personally use a glass pot, but the filter on mine is a basket, not paper.
I also graind my coffee fresh from means when I make it.
The container is glass, so no after taste or other type taste in my brew.
I have a plastic drip machine from Kenmore. How i clean it is that i measure out a cup of water and put 2 table spoons of white vinegar. run it through the machine and then run clean water twice after and then all the bad taste is gone.
French press will be the cheapest option with good coffee. Also, it is easy to clean and maintain. What i found though, with French press i tent to waste a lot of coffee. What will be the common measurement people use for a French press that hold around 3 to 4 cups of coffee?