How to Use an AeroPress: Our Simple At-Home Recipe

I can still remember a few years ago when I ordered my first-ever cup of pour over coffee. It was at Ritual Coffee Roasters in San Francisco’s Hayes Valley — somewhere around 2011/2012 — and I was instantly charmed by their shipping container location and pseudo picnic area vibes, not to mention their equally adorable ice cream shop neighbor.

I ordered the “angel” blend from Central America and was quickly corrected to call it “An-hell” with the proper Spanish pronunciation. *D’oh. What snobs. * 🙄🙄🙄

Even though that barista made me feel as small as a coffee bean, what she eventually served me ultimately inspired a newfound quest to drink as much pour over coffee as possible, everywhere, as often as my levels of caffeine shakes would allow. And that quest continues somewhat even now, but honestly, there’s a new brew method that I’ve come to love even more. Step aside long wait times, Kalita Wave, and Chemex. It’s time for the AeroPress coffee maker chapter.

What is an AeroPress?

An AeroPress is a little like a French press, but it uses air pressure to brew a single cup of coffee quickly. Coffee grounds and hot water mix together inside a plastic chamber, creating a full-immersion brew before you press the coffee through a filter and into your mug.

When you push the plunger down, the pressure forces the brewed coffee through a micro-filter, trapping most of the grit and oils along the way. The result is a smooth, clean cup that can have some of the body of a French press with clarity more akin to a pour-over.

What you need to make AeroPress coffee

You don’t need a complicated setup to make good AeroPress coffee. Here’s what we’d recommend having on hand.

The AeroPress brewer

For this recipe, we’re using the original AeroPress because it’s the brewer we use most often. We love it because it’s affordable, compact, and combines immersion, aeration, and pressure in one little brewer. The original AeroPress can make up to three espresso-style shots or roughly one 10-ounce cup of coffee.

Read more: Which AeroPress? Original vs. AeroPress Go vs. AeroPress Go Plus

Paper filter or metal filter?

This one comes down to what you like in your coffee. For this recipe, we’re using the paper filter because it’s the easiest place for a beginner to start.

Why a scale helps

A coffee scale takes the guesswork out of brewing. Instead of relying on scoops or spoonfuls, you can measure exactly how much coffee and water you’re using and repeat the same recipe every morning. Coffee beans vary in density, so volume isn’t always an accurate way to measure coffee. Measuring with a coffee scale works around this.

Our go-to AeroPress coffee recipe

• 15 grams of beans on a coffee scale
• Grind with your coffee grinder (We use size 14 on the Baratza Encore)
• Fill water to the top using your electric kettle, like the Bonavita or the Fellow Stagg EKG
• Wait 1-2 minutes
• Press, toss the puck and enjoy your day 💅

Read more: AeroPress vs. French press »

How to brew AeroPress coffee, step by step

1. Turn on your electric kettle

Let it start warming up the water as you grind your beans and get your AeroPress all set up.

2. Weigh your beans

We use a digital coffee scale to measure out 15 grams of coffee beans (typically from our favorite local roasters in Northwest Indiana or our Trade Subscription).

3. Grind ‘em up

I’ve talked at length before about the benefits of using fresh ground coffee, so hopefully your kitchen is stocked with a grinder you love. I’m really happy with the Hario Manual Burr Coffee Grinder I picked up a few weeks ago, but when we’re home, I set my Baratza Encore to ~14 grind size.

Your AeroPress coffee grind should be a little more coarse than table salt, but not nearly as coarse as a French press and not nearly as fine as espresso. A nice middle ground.

4. Set up your AeroPress

I typically use the inverted method when brewing AeroPress at home because I don’t like the water dripping into my coffee mug before I tell it to.

You will put the thinner plunger piece into the wider base piece and evenly press the plunger until it’s ~½ inch below the edge. Flip the elongated piece so that the plunger is upside down and sitting on top of the countertop.

5. Add the coffee and the water

Pour your freshly ground coffee into the base (so it lays on top of the plunger) and add your hot water. The amount of water you use can vary based on your taste/strength preferences (I always fill to the top!).

6. Give it a quick stir

You don’t want any rogue coffee grinds missing out on this party, do you? 😝 You can let the coffee beans sit for anywhere from one minute to two minutes. I wouldn’t recommend going over 120 seconds though.

7. Add the paper filter to the filter cap and seal it tight

Some low-key coffee snobs that I know might highly recommend that you wet the paper first. I don’t feel like this makes a big enough difference in this home brewing method.

8. Flip ‘er over on top of your coffee mug

If your coffee mug rim isn’t large enough to accommodate the hexagonal shape, use the funnel. Push the plunger slowly down the cylinder and watch the coffee drip-drip-drip into your mug. MMMMMMM. Almost there.

9. Add the fixins & make it YOURS

Cream, sugar, milk, agave? MINT? Go wild. Or drink it black (like I do). The AeroPress coffee flavors are crisp and clean (thanks to the filter and freshly ground beans), giving you a smooth, simple cup of coffee in five minutes or less.

Pure. Magic.

What coffee-to-water ratio should you use for AeroPress?

We use a 1:15 coffee-to-water ratio as our starting point for AeroPress: 15 grams of coffee to about 225 grams of water. But don’t treat 1:15 like a rule. Sometimes we brew a more concentrated cup and add water to taste after the fact (especially when we’re going rogue making coffee while camping).

What grind size is best for AeroPress coffee?

Start with a medium-fine grind — finer than we’d typically use for pour over, but considerably coarser than espresso. On our Baratza Encore (our at-home coffee grinder of choice), we usually start around 14. Grinder settings aren’t universal, though, so pay more attention to how your coffee tastes than the number on somebody else’s grinder.

What water temperature should you use for AeroPress?

Don’t even think that hard about this. Just use boiling water.

If you start to get extra nerdy and tinker with your personal recipe, you can start dialing it back. Several experts recommend going as low as 185°F, but we haven’t found this makes a noticeable enough difference to tweak our standard electric gooseneck coffee kettle settings.

How long should you brew AeroPress coffee?

For our standard recipe, we let the coffee steep for about 1-2 minutes and then spend roughly 10 seconds pressing. That puts the total brew time at up to 2½ minutes-ish. (We don’t think that hard about this, either. Remember, we’re *low-key* snobs).

How to make your AeroPress coffee taste better

If your AeroPress coffee doesn’t taste quite right, change one thing at a time. Otherwise, you’ll never know what actually fixed it.

We’d start with grind size. If the coffee tastes sour, sharp, or watery, grind a little finer. If it tastes bitter, harsh, or dry, grind a little coarser.

After that, play with your coffee-to-water ratio. More coffee or less water will produce a stronger cup; less coffee or more water will make it lighter.

You can also experiment with steep time, water temperature, different filters, and agitation, but we wouldn’t start tweaking everything at once. AeroPress recipes can get hilariously complicated for a brewer that was designed to make coffee easy.

Start with our basic recipe, taste the result, change one variable, and brew it again. That’s a much easier way to figure out what you actually like.

Does the AeroPress model change the recipe?

Not much — at least among the smaller AeroPress models.

We own and use the AeroPress Original, AeroPress Go, and AeroPress Go Plus, and you can use essentially the same basic recipe with all three. The Go models change the overall package and portability more than they change how the coffee itself brews.

The AeroPress XL is the exception. It has roughly twice the brewing capacity of the Original, so it makes more sense if you want to brew a larger serving. You can scale your coffee and water up while keeping roughly the same ratio, although you may need to adjust your grind or brew time as you dial in the larger batch.

For a normal single cup, though, we wouldn’t overthink which AeroPress you own. Start with the same ratio, grind, and steep time and adjust based on how the coffee tastes.

Do you need expensive gear to make good AeroPress coffee?

Nope. That’s part of what makes the AeroPress so great. You need the brewer, coffee, water, a way to heat the water, and a mug. Other equipment like a scale and grinder will give you more control, but you don’t need a $500 coffee setup to make an excellent cup.

You’ll also need the following to make low key-snobby AeroPress coffee. 😉

• Filters. They make special paper ones specific for the AeroPress. If you hate waste, consider buying a metal reusable one, like the Fellow Prismo.
• A coffee grinder. Our favorite.
• Tasty beans. You can even make black coffee taste good with the right beans — and our Trade subscription helped us zero-in on our fave.

If you want to spoil yourself and/or have a friend in your life who’s also an AeroPress-nut, score them this fun Bamboo Caddy to keep all of those AeroPress parts neat and organized. 😄

Read more: Is It Cheaper to Make Coffee at Home? We Did the Math

AeroPress coffee FAQs

What is the best coffee-to-water ratio for AeroPress?

A good starting AeroPress ratio is 1:15, or one gram of coffee for every 15 grams of water. For our recipe, that’s 15 grams of coffee to 225 grams of water.

What grind size should you use for AeroPress?

Start with a medium-fine grind. It should be a little finer than what you’d use for a typical pour over, but nowhere near as fine as espresso.

Should you use the inverted AeroPress method?

You can, but we don’t recommend starting there as a beginner.

How long should AeroPress coffee steep?

Up to a two-minute steep, followed by about 10 seconds of pressing.

Do you need a scale for AeroPress?

Technically, no. You can use the included scoop and eyeball your water. But if you want consistent coffee, we’d absolutely recommend a scale.

Can you make AeroPress coffee without a kettle?

Yes, you can make AeroPress coffee without a kettle by boiling on the stovetop or in the microwave, but make sure to check the temperature before using. 

Is AeroPress coffee stronger than drip coffee?

Yes, AeroPress coffee is generally more concentrated than standard drip coffee due to the full immersion brewing method.

What makes AeroPress coffee great

My AeroPress coffee review can be boiled down to six things I love:

• It’s quick and easy once you learn how to brew AeroPress coffee
• You can make a single serving of coffee
• It’s not messy
• You can take it just about anywhere
• It’s affordable
• I think the founder is cool
  

1. It’s quick to brew

I differ from David in the fact that I don’t always have the time to make a ritual out of brewing a slow drip coffee. When my alarm goes off between 5-5:30am (like most days), I’m not trying to give up a few minutes of precious sleep to be able to stand patiently next to a dripper while it slowwwwly does it’s thing. So the quick and easy brew time gives the AeroPress coffee maker big points for me.

2. It doesn’t make too much coffee

David laughs at me because I generally struggle to finish an entire cup of coffee (I always lose interest in hot beverages before they’re consumed completely). To that end, I like that the AeroPress coffee maker brews a single serving of coffee that runs about 8-10oz in size—juuuust right. The cup is fresh til the last drop and I’m not left with extra stagnant, stale coffee, like when you brew in the French press or a bigger coffee pot.

3. Clean up is a breeze

Dealing with entire filters full of ground coffee is a thing of the past. The AeroPress is a cinch to clean up, and dare I say even fun? I kind of love those little coffee hockey pucks that I’m left with.

4. Portability, baby!

Since traveling is one of my all-time favorite past times and I spend a ton of time on the road, I also love that the AeroPress is a highly portable coffee maker. It’s so small and sturdy that I’m never worried about it cracking in my backpack or getting smashed inside my gear. It’s great for camping (we took it on a backcountry hut trip in the Colorado State Forest in January—so awesome) and is a fun party trick when you’re staying at friends’ houses (Hi Katie & Brian 👋). We even have one in the cupboards at the GoAbroad offices where I work. (It was my #1 mission to rid the office of Folgers + drip when I started).

5. It won’t break the bank

The cost of an AeroPress on Amazon is less than $30 and is available for Prime. Granted, you’ll need a few potential other tools to get the best coffee out of your AeroPress coffee maker (like a solid burr grinder and an electric gooseneck kettle — here’s our review of our favorite kettle), but for the most part, you’re good to go with the single package.

6. The founder also makes toys

Lastly, and this isn’t that important, but I still think it is fun… I love the story of the founder of the AeroPress. He’s a kind older gentleman who lives in California and the inventor of both a home brewing coffee method AND a flying disc, called the Aerobee. He’s like a genius wizard scientist who can make a disc go crazy-long distances and make a coffee inside a vacuum. How funny is that?

What comes in an AeroPress kit?

When you buy an AeroPress online from Amazon, you get more than just a single piece of equipment—you get a whole kit of parts, each with their own unique role in bringing you the best cup of home brewed coffee possible. ☺️

You get…

1. A scoop. For beans Einstein. 🤣
2. A plunger & base. You can tell which is the plunger by it’s little rubber guy on the end, and the fact that it’s smaller than the base. The base has a neat hexagonal shape + a spot for you to twist on the filter cap.
3. A filter cap. This is what strains the coffee from the vacuum into your favorite coffee mug.
4. A stir paddle. Helpful for making sure all of the ground coffee is moving about in the hot water, or for agitating the coffee prior to extracting.
5. A funnel. Sometimes you want to brew your coffee straight into your portable coffee mug—this can help.
6. A filter holder. Sadly, the filter holder doesn’t usually come with filters unless you buy it special that way.

Get your own AeroPress to brew at home

Join us in the AeroPress coffee fan club!! Amazon is by far the easiest spot to pick yours up, but you can also find generic versions at stores like WalMart, or maybe even your local roaster.

So, how do you use the AeroPress? Let us know in the comments.