South Indian coffee is much simpler than other coffee equipment, as it comes with fewer complexities. The variants you can make are limited, as it generally works based on gravity. The tweaks can be made in ground size and coffee:water ratio. Also, it tastes better with milk (and sugar), hence is not something I usually make unless there are guests.
It is recommended to use coffee powder mixed with chicory, as it enhances the aroma. The roast is usually medium dark to dark, with chicory ratio ranging from 10% to 40%. (General rule of thumb: the more the chicory, the darker the roast should be). The apparatus is simple, with two chambers: one for coffee and water to blend, and a lower chamber to collect the decoction.
Coffee: 22-28 gm Roast: Medium to Dark Water: 100 to 120 gm Time: 15 minutes
Steps
- Add coffee powder to upper chamber and level it
- Press with filter disk
- Keep it over the lower chamber
- Add 30ml water to the coffee powder
- Wait for a minute
- Add remaining water, without disturbing the setup
- Wait 15 minutes
- Collect decoction from lower chamber
Tips
- If planning for milk coffee, add a bit of sugar (3gm) to the coffee powder. It will enhance the chicory flavour.
- Heating the upper chamber directly over the stove, especially if it's a copper filter, will enhance the flavour and clean the perforations.
- The upper filter disk regulates water flow rate, ensures even extraction, and eliminates dry spots. Hence, it's advised to use it.
- Also Read South Indian Filter with AeroPressSouth Indian Filter with AeroPress
I have tried making Coffee using South Indian Coffee Powder (Robusta+Chicory, Generally 4:1 ratio) and it's worth mentioning. It's similar to V60-style with AeroPress, with reduced the temperat...
Recommended Coffee
- Narasu's Anandam Coffee is my personal favourite, as its 70-30 coffee-chicory blend was quite popular in restaurants during my childhood days.
- Cothas Ground Coffee is also popular. Different chicory versions of this brand are available in the market.
