How to Make Coffee

1.     Pour filtered or bottled water into the reservoir. 

How much water you usedepends on how many servings of coffee you want to make. In general, you willneed 6 ounces (180 mL) of water for each serving of coffee. You can measure thewater using the carafe, or you can use a measuring cup. Use filtered or bottled water; avoid tap,distilled, or softened water.

If your brewer has serving lines, refer to those instead. Some brewerscall for extra water to make up for water loss due to evaporation.

2. Inserta paper filter into the holder, if needed. Open up the filter compartment and take a look inside. Some coffeemakers have a mesh filter basket, which can take the place of a paper filter.If your coffee maker does not have a filter basket, insert a paper filter now.

There are different types of paper filters for coffee makers. Some areshaped like cups while others look like envelops. Choose the one that's rightfor your coffee maker.

If your coffee maker has a mesh filter basket, you don't need an extrafilter. The mesh will filter out the coffee grounds.

3 Add the coffeegrounds into the filter. Again,how much coffee you add depends on how many servings you plan to make. In mostcases, you will need 1 tablespoon (7 g) of ground coffee for each serving. Ifyou prefer stronger coffee, use 2 tablespoons (14 g) instead.^[2]

Whether you use fine, medium, or coarse grounds is up to you.

For even better tasting coffee, grind up whole coffee beans, and usethose instead.

4 Brew the coffee. Slide the filter back into place orclose the lid (depending on your machine's design). Turn on the coffee makerand wait for it to finish brewing. How long this takes depends on how muchwater you put into the reservoir. In most cases, this will take about 5minutes.

Listen for the dripping noise from your coffee maker. Once it stopsdripping, your coffee has finished brewing.

5 Turn off thecoffee maker and remove the filter. Some coffee makers automatically switch off while others do not. Ifyour coffee maker is not an automatic one, you'll need to turn it off yourselfonce it stops dripping. Once the coffee maker has been turned off, pull out thefilter and discard the grounds.

Be careful when opening the coffee maker. Sometimes, it will release hotsteam, which can burn you. Don't lean right over it.

6 Remove the pot andserve the coffee. Youcan serve the coffee as-is, of you can sweeten it with milk, creamer, orhalf-and-half. For even sweeter coffee, add some sugar, maple syrup, or othersweetener. Enjoy the coffee immediately.

If you are vegan or lactose-intolerant, try a non-dairy milk, such as soy,almond, or coconut.

Be aware that flavored creamers and some non-dairy milk already comesweetened, so you won't need the extra sugar.

Don't let the coffee sit too long. Not only will it grow cold, but it willalso taste stale.