How to Perk Coffee

Add water and coffee as normal. Automatic electric percolators operate according to the same physical principals as stove top percolators, but they generally require less work and supervision on your part.^[10] To begin, add your water and coffee as you normally would. Decide how much coffee you want, then add this amount of water to the bottom chamber. Remove the basket from the upper chamber and add your coffee grounds.

• The ratios for the amount of grounds you should use for your water is the same for electric percolators as it is for stove top percolators — use 1 tablespoon per cup of water for strong coffee and 1 teaspoon for weak coffee.

Close the lid and plug your percolator in. Once your percolator is assembled and full of coffee and water, your work is basically done.^[11] Connect the percolator's plug to a nearby outlet. Most percolators will begin to heat automatically, but if yours has an "on" button, you may need to hit this at this point. Your percolator's internal heating element should activate and begin to heat the water in the bottom chamber, causing it to cycle up the tube, through the coffee grounds, and back down into the reservoir as it would in a standard percolator.

Wait about seven to ten minutes for the coffee to brew. All you need to do now is wait. Most electric percolators take about as long to finish brewing as stove top percolators — usually about seven to ten minutes. Many electric percolators will have an internal sensor that prevent them from heating the coffee past its optimal temperature, but if yours doesn't, you may need to watch the percolator as it brews. Otherwise, assuming there are no small children or pets in the area who may burn themselves on the hot machine, simply set a timer and let your percolator do the rest.

• Remember that if you ever see steam coming out of the percolator, it's brewing too hot. If you see this with an electric percolator, unplug immediately and allow it to cool for a minute or two before re-connecting it.

Unplug immediately and remove grounds after percolating. When your timer goes off (or, if you have a percolator with an automatic timer, it shuts off automatically), unplug your percolator. Carefully open the lid and remove the upper basket containing the soaked coffee grounds. Discard these as you wish.

• At this point, you're done! Serve your coffee and enjoy!

Choose a smooth, low-acidity coffee. As noted above, coffee that's brewed in a percolator can tend towards being somewhat strong, bitter, and "muddy". This is because, unlike many other brewing methods, percolating involves continuously recirculating water through the coffee grounds, rather than simply allowing it to drain through once. However, with a few simple tricks, it's possible to make coffee in a percolator that's not over-strong. For instance, starting with a coffee roast that's classified as being light, smooth, low-caffeine, and minimally acidic can help reduce the bitterness of percolated coffee. Though percolating will usually make your coffee stronger than it would otherwise be, starting with "mild" ingredients helps minimize this effect.

• If you're looking for weaker coffee, try buying a roast labelled "mild" or "smooth" from your favorite coffee brand (like Folgers, etc.) or opt for a "dark" roast — though these can be bitter, they have lower caffeine content and acidity than light roasts. If you have the money to spend, you might also want to try a mild specialty roast, like Oromo Yirgacheffe Ground Fair trade Coffee. Also, don't forget that you also always have the option to brew decaf!

Use a coarse grind.^[12] When it comes to coffee grounds, in general, the finer the beans are ground, the more quickly they'll transfer their flavor to the water and the stronger coffee they'll produce. Because of this, when you use a percolator to make coffee, you'll usually want to use a coarse grind. Coarse-ground beans will interact with the water less quickly, resulting in a final pot that's not quite as strong as it would otherwise be.

• If you have your own coffee grinder, try using its "coarse" setting. Otherwise, if you buy your coffee pre-ground, look for a "coarse" label on the packaging.

Keep water temperature between 195 - 200^o F (90.6 - 93.3^o C).^[13] When percolating, temperature is key — too cold and the water won't travel up the central tube, but too hot and you risk having an over-done cup of coffee that unappealingly strong. For optimal brewing, you'll usually want to keep your water between 195 - 200^o F for the duration of the percolating process. This is just below the point that water begins to steam and boil (212^o F (100^o C)), but not so cold that the brewing process will be needlessly prolonged.

• Try using a kitchen thermometer to check the temperature of your water as your coffee percolates. For an accurate reading, try not to touch the thermometer to the hot metal sides of the pot — instead, carefully submerge it in the liquid.

Allow to settle after brewing to eliminate cloudiness. Percolated coffee has a reputation for being somewhat cloudy or "muddy". Luckily, in most cases, this is easy to fix. Simply allow your coffee to sit for a few minutes after percolating. This gives the particles and sediment suspended in the water time to settle, resulting in a clearer cup of coffee.

• Note that doing this can produce a "puddle" of sediment at the bottom of your cup when you're done drinking. You may want to avoid drinking this, as some coffee drinkers find this to be bitter and unappetizing.