How to make cappuccino with an espresso machine?

A cappuccino is known as an Italian drink, but this drink is originally from Vienna. 

In the capital of Austria, people managed to come up with this unique combination of coffee and different parts of milk foam. 

By the way, the cappuccino is originally a ‘descendant’ of the Kapuziner Kaffee; a type of coffee from Austria that also uses coffee and (hot) milk.

Over the years, cappuccino has become one of the most popular coffee specialities.

This is due to the delicious taste, but also to the fact that you can influence the taste of the cappuccino relatively easily. 

How do you do that? 

You can read the answer in this article.

In this article, I will discuss in detail how to make a cappuccino with an espresso machine. 

I discuss which ingredients you need, which steps you need to take and what else you need to take into account.

What is a cappuccino exactly?

Before we discuss exactly how to make a cappuccino, we would like to discuss what a cappuccino is exactly. A cappuccino is a coffee speciality with three equal parts:

• Milk froth
• Milk
• Espresso

I have put these three parts in the order above as it is also present in the cup. An amount of espresso can be found at the bottom of the coffee cup. 

A certain amount of milk is added to this espresso, after which that layer of milk is covered with a layer of milk foam.

If you are going to make a cappuccino yourself, you can choose to supplement the top layer of milk foam with, for example, cinnamon or cocoa powder. 

This brings even more flavour but is actually never done by professional baristas.

The experts are convinced that this addition causes the milk foam to disappear faster.

All in all, a cappuccino is, therefore, a composition consisting of milk foam, milk and espresso. 

If you want to make your own cappuccino at home, you must have coffee beans and milk anyway. 

I will go into more on that below + which supplies you need to buy.

What do you need to make a cappuccino?

Are you an avid cappuccino lover? 

Do you enjoy the ultimate combination of milk, milk foam and espresso? 

Then it would be great if you could make your own cappuccino at home. 

Well, I can tell you; that in itself is not too difficult.

You just have to know what you are doing and you have to use the right ingredients. 

Which ingredients am I talking about? 

Well, you need the following to make a delicious cappuccino anyway:

 

• 25 to 35 ml espresso
• 100 ml of steamed milk
• Milk froth

How did you get this espresso? 

That is entirely your own choice. You can opt for delicious coffee beans, but you can also opt for ground coffee, for example. 

In any case, it is desirable that the taste of the coffee is relatively strong. 

How strong you will eventually make the espresso also depends on your own preferences.

As for creating the milk froth; you have several options for that. 

You can use a milk frother for this, you can use a stainless steel jug in combination with a steam pipe, but you can also create the milk froth yourself using a pan. 

You can read how to do this exactly in the remainder of this article.

A high-quality espresso machine is recommended anyway for making a delicious cappuccino. 

Such a machine is able to deliver the most delicious espresso, enjoying a rich body and full aromas.

In order to make optimal use of an espresso machine, it is recommended to use the tastiest espresso beans. 

These espresso beans naturally have many aromas and are relatively strong. 

Partly for this reason, the espresso beans are very suitable for making a delicious cappuccino.

Are you still looking for a milk frother, an espresso machine or the tastiest beans for the espresso machine? 

Then you are at the right place at CoffeeSamurai.com

In our article ‘ best espresso machines ‘ we have listed the best machines, while in our article ‘How do I choose the right coffee beans‘ you will find more information about the best types of coffee beans.

Would you like to use a milk frother? Consult our article ‘Guide to milk frothing ‘!

How do you make a cappuccino with an espresso machine?

You can read above which ingredients you should get home anyway. 

Did you get the espresso beans and the milk? 

Do you also have an espresso machine and – if necessary – a milk frother?

Then you can start making a delicious cappuccino. How best to do this? 

Follow the step-by-step plan below.

Here is my favourite espresso machines, in case you are looking for one 🙂

Step 1:

First, make the right preparations. 

Clean the steam pipe of your espresso machine, fill the espresso machine with enough water and preheat the coffee glass or coffee cups.

Step 2:

First of all, let your espresso machine do the work; select the correct settings and then press the ‘Espresso’ button. 

Your espresso machine will now brew a delicious espresso for you.

Step 3:

Now put about 60 ml of cold milk in a stainless steel container and let the steam escape from the steam wand for about 2 seconds.

Step 4:

Now put the steam wand in the jug with milk and immerse it almost completely. 

Now turn on the steam wand and wait a while.

Step 5:

Do you find that the thicker foam starts to be? 

Then you can lower the container slightly. 

If you are experienced with this, you can also rotate the container during preparation.

Step 6:

Is steam coming from the stainless steel container? 

Then it is important to turn off the steam wand and remove the stainless steel container.

Tip:

Measure the temperature of the milk foam with a thermometer. 

Is this temperature between 60 and 65 degrees? 

Then you are in the right place; around that temperature, milk has the best taste.

Step 7:

Set the container down and let it tap a few times on the table/counter.

This removes the – unnecessary – bubbles from the milk foam.

Step 8:

Now pour a little bit of milk into the cup. 

Top it all off by putting the milk foam in the cup. 

If you do this correctly, all three parts will have the same amount/thickness.

Step 9:

Serve the delicious cappuccino. 

If you really want to do this well, you can put a glass of ice-cold water next to it. Ice cold water and a delicious cappuccino are a perfect mix.

Does your espresso machine not have a steam wand? 

Then you still have two other options for creating the milk foam. You can use a milk frother for this, among other things. 

How can you best use such a milk frother?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qgEPeSq-aGM

Another option is to put a pan of milk on the stove.

Let this milk heat up to about 60 to 65 degrees and in the meantime beat the milk with a whisk.

By doing this on the stove, you can create a delicious foam layer.

If desired, you can also use an electric mixer/whisk for this.

What makes a good cappuccino so ‘good’?

A cappuccino that is described as ‘delicious’ meets the following ‘requirements’:

• The three parts are completely the same; the espresso layer, the amount of milk and the milk foam layer.
• The milk foam layer has been heated to the correct temperature (60 to 65 degrees).
• The tastiest espresso beans are used for the espresso.
• Make sure you serve the cappuccino in the correct glasses or cups.
• Always use cold milk to create the milk foam layer. As a result, it takes longer for the milk to reach the desired temperature, so you also have longer to create a delicious and full milk foam layer.

 

To end this article in a dignified way, we would like to give you one more useful tip. 

If you are going to make a cappuccino yourself, you may be concerned that the layer with milk and the espresso is not properly ‘mixed’ together.

You can prevent this by adding a small amount of the froth layer to the milk.

This makes the milk just a little thicker so that the milk is better absorbed by the espresso.

 

Would you like to learn the right way how to make a cappuccino? 

You can follow the step-by-step plan above, but you can also watch the video below as a supplement. 

This video from Roasty Coffee, explains how to make a cappuccino with an espresso machine:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DX8R-ea5kpw

I hope you enjoyed this article and will share it with a friend or on your social media.

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