Q&A for How to Make Coffee With a Coffee Press

Yes, if you chill the entire French press container with ice and then pour it over ice. Still, you're better off choosing cold brew if you're in the mood for chilled coffee.

Yes, you can. Once the water reaches a boil, remove it from the heat and wait about 30 seconds before pouring onto the coffee. This will lower the temperature from boiling to around 200° F, which is ideal for brewing.

Since cocoa powder dissolves completely in hot water, there's no reason to use a press to make hot cocoa. A press is used to steep coffee, tea leaves or chicory, then filter the grinds out so you can drink the result without grit.

You can, but you may not want to steep as long since it's usually a finer grind than you would use for a press. You'll need to experiment to get the richness you want without getting to bitter. Most French press filters will capture the grinds of store-bought ground coffee, so there's no worry about having grinds floating around in your cup.

Not at all. It's a slow brew, so more flavor comes out in the final product. You can also use this to cold brew your coffee.

Yes, you can. It's the same steps as making coffee. The longer you let it steep, the stronger the tea will be.

No. The capsule is specifically designed for a particular machine. It is a modern twist on getting a moderately-okay taste without the (slight) fuss detailed in the article.

Regular coffee powder is not meant for a press. You can buy course ground coffee that's ground specifically for a French press though. Most people will tell you that beans are best because the coffee goes stale so quickly after grinding, but there is the option of buying course ground coffee powder if you don't want to deal with grinding the beans yourself.

The glass portion of the press is often called the carafe or pot.

For one cup of coffee, you should use around 1-2 tablespoons of ground coffee depending on how strong you like your coffee to be.

The French word for coffee press is cafetière.

Technically, you can; however, the coffee ground for peculators is significantly finer than that for French press. This means the press will be harder to press, and you will probably end up with more fine grounds and "sludge" in the bottom of your mug. I highly recommend grinding your own beans, for this reason, and because you will get a much fresher cup of coffee.

Buy a small silicon spatula or wooden spoon so you don't scrape the heat resistant glass. Look in a store that sells kitchen appliances and gadgets, or take a look in the Dollar Store, or Chinatown stores for the wooden cooking spoons in a variety pack of different sizes. You may also use a clean, doctor's tongue depressor to stir your grounds, and then use the same one to remove the grounds after pressing. (Coffee grounds are eco-friendly, so don't throw them out, put them in your garden or biodegradable collected garbage bin.)

You could, but you would have to be more careful to keep the press clean between uses. I would also look into espresso machines and (the cheaper option) Bialetti moka pots, for a stronger coffee that you can add more milk to without compromising flavor.

No. Coffee presses are not designed to withstand direct heat. Also, the coffee continues slowly brewing once it has been pressed, since the press does not entirely separate the grounds from the water - this would be exacerbated by heat and result in coffee that is much too strong and bitter for even the strongest palates.