Bialetti stovetop cappuccino machine

[Tiggeroo]

I just bought one on ebay. It did not have the instructions or a measuring cup with it. I found some online directions but I"m having a bit of trouble with it. The espresso tastes strong but a bit watery. Also the milk foams but not nearly as much as it should. Any tips if you own one?

 

[Imzadi]

I don't have one. But, off hand, you might try a different brand of cappuccino. The one you have might be lacking the body & oils a better brand might have. You might also have the temp to high, so it's turning it into cappuccino too fast and not letting the beans steep enough to release proper, subtle flavors. OR, you could have the temp too high and a lot of flavor is coming out, without the subtle richness.

As for the milk, are you using the coldest milk possible? Put it in the freeser for a while before frothing. Also try low fat or skilm milk. They usually froth better. Alaso, make sure you froth from the bottom up. And pump the milk up and down around the steamer. If you just froth the top layer, it won't get very frothy.

 

[Tiggeroo]

I am using a good bean from my local coffee shop. La Calombe Nizza espresso beans. I think the problem might be setting the temp too high and cooking too fast. The bialetti is not a typical machine. It is kind of like a percolator with the water and beans in the bottom. The milk goes in the top compartment It steams or froths the milk depending on how you have it set. I will try putting the milk in the freezer for a bit and turning the temp down a bit. Any suggestions on espresso brands. It might be that another brand would work better with my machine.

 

[Imzadi]

It is kind of like a percolator with the water and beans in the bottom.

Any suggestions on espresso brands. It might be that another brand would work better with my machine.

I remember seeing those type of machines from ages ago, in people's houses. I do think they take a long time to make cappuccino. I know old coffee percolators did. You had to percolate for like 5-15 minutes, depending on how strong you wanted your coffee. That's why when drip coffee makers came out where you only had to run coffee through the beans once it was the equivalent to sliced bread in the coffee world.

The not heating long enough could also be the reason for the milk not being frothy. In addition to using really cold milk, part of using a frother with one of those nozzle attachments is that you have to keep the nozzle at the bottom to heat all of the milk first, before frothing. The combo of starting out with really cold milk and then heating it does something to help make the foam. So maybe, your frothing section didn't have enough time to froth fully.

As for expresso brands, I don't know. I'm not usually into expressoes as they are too bitter for my tastes. But the fancy caterer I used to work for had some fabulous, fresh ground, French roast that they used that was to die for. It was the only expresso I really like.