Hi everyone, welcome to potluck food talks. Today we're going to talk about coffee. Where are your saturn coffee Phil? Are you drinking coffee right now? I just made myself a hot cup of joe and yeah I'm enjoying my, I think it's my third cup of coffee this morning. What's your method of choice to make coffee? Oh well, so I at home, I transitioned in the last year to making filter coffee. I mean filter coffee, it's not really filter coffee but it's like immersion brewed coffee.
So like I used to only ever drink sort of like espresso and kind of flat weiss and that sort of stuff. But since I started doing like intermittent fasting, I don't want to drink any milk coffee before like lunch, but black coffee was always really, really gross. It was always really bad. So I kind of like started looking into how to make like nice delicious black coffee. So I started experimenting with like pour over chemics sort of stuff and now I'm a huge fan of the AeroPress.
Once you get into like how to brew exactly, AeroPress makes really, really good coffee. What's AeroPress exactly? Is that the one with the paper filter? So an AeroPress is a device, it's basically like a big syringe. So it's got a tube, it's got a plunger with a rubber seal and it's got a filter on the bottom. You put a paper filter in just like you would in a filter thing. And so it's you put the coffee in, you brew, you put the plunger in so it creates a vacuum, right?
So the coffee doesn't drip out and you brew it and when you're done brewing, you press the plunger down and it presses the water through the grounds. So it extracts a lot of flavor if done correctly. It's a very simple device, it's super cheap and it produces really, really good coffee, especially if you like, if you tinker around a little bit. And people have gone like really nuts with this AeroPress. Such a simple device. It's invented by this inventor called Adler.
He invented like a really aerodynamic frisbee in like the 70s or 80s, which was like a best seller and like it was like it held the world record as like the object that was thrown the furthest by humans for like a really long time. I think it was like 200 meters or something, which is, you know, quite a far distance for something to get thrown at, I think.
And then yeah, he was like upset with his coffee maker at home because he couldn't get like a single cup of coffee that was like decent unless you have like an espresso machine, which are super expensive and they take like half an hour to heat up and all that sort of stuff. So it's like a AeroPress thing and now it's like it has a cult following. Oh, nice.
Well, my experience with coffee, like growing up in Venezuela, well, at least in my place, the most common thing was like an American way of brewing, you know, like this paper filter or whatever filter you pour hot water and that's it. Also the most common, the other most common method is, I don't know the name of this, is this Italian, you know which one I mean, Italian press maybe? The Mocopos. The Mocopos, exactly. This one with the octagon shape. The metal one that you put.
Exactly. Yes, Mocopos. Well, the guy, the guy, the designer, the designer, that device when he died, he got his ashes into a replica of that thing, you know, and he's buried in it. Wow, that's cool. That's a power move. Yeah, yeah, that's super cool. Hey, why not? Why not? It's iconic, you know, it's super iconic. Yeah, I mean, like, and it's super common for Venezuelans to say, you know, I want my typical Venezuelan jar.
Like, a lot of people really think that's from there because everybody use it. It's super, super common, you know, and you'll find it in any supermarket anywhere.
So which tells us, and this was something I was surprised the influence that Italians have had in Venezuela because it's something, the first time I visited Italy, I went to Toscani and I was really, when I saw the coffee shops and other things like, you know, churches and public places and public architecture, I was like, ah, here's where a lot of our things come from, you know, that like, it was really like, and many things that are
really copied or probably done by Italian architects at some point, you know, like, which was interesting. And also that time in Italy was the first time I tried my coffee with brown sugar, you know, like it's something like, because everybody was doing it like that there. And I was like, okay, this is interesting. And now every time I put sugar, when I do, it's so much better with brown sugar. Like, it really adds some depth to the flavor. It's true. Yeah, it is nice.
I mean, for example, somebody, I don't really ever put sugar in my coffee unless I drink like a really like foamy big, you know, like a latte girl cappuccino at a cafe, sprinkle some sugar on top. But apart from that, I don't really put sugar in my coffee. Then I moved to Bolivia and Bolivians, well, Bolivians, they produce one of the best coffees in the world, but like the most common way of consuming for most people is instant coffee, coffee and instant coffee, you know, being powder or syrup.
Syrup? Yeah, you know, like a thick paste that is also like a concentrated coffee, strong as hell, you know, like, oh, I've never seen that before. Yeah, but like I work like in places that they really cared about coffee, they had like baristas and everything. And the most common technique there was the French press. And this is one of the latest methods I learned. I was already, you know, like in my mid 20s, the first time I saw French press and I was like, oh, what is that?
And it's a complete different way of doing it because the coffee gets really light, you know, like almost like a tea. But at the same time, the caffeine content is higher because the thing is there the whole time. It's not, you know, like filtered, which is also interesting. But I have to say, like, maybe it's a placebo effect. For me to get like, you know, to feel like a caffeine rush. It's an espresso.
When I have an espresso, I feel like wake up right away, you know, like I'm ready to fight or whatever. Yeah, I feel like I don't really get that anymore. To be honest with you, I sometimes I feel like I am now that I started brewing, like I started really paying attention to how much coffee to how much water at what temperature for how long I get coffee that's like and then I drink black coffee, that's really delicious. I get this like a like this coffee caffeine effect.
But before that, I was like, you know, because I had a really bad coffee habit, you know, growing up in parentheses in kitchens, you know, from like 15 years old. I mean, I grew up in Spain, so I grew up around coffee also. And you drink coffee as a teenager. But yeah, like then going into kitchens and starting your morning with, you know, just like I don't I would drink like 10 espressos a day, you know? Yeah, like I have the problem because I had like an espresso machine and do that.
That shit is like crack cocaine. You know, you have one and you want the next one and the next one. And I've seen also coffee snops being like, oh, the espresso machine is not the real thing. And I'm like, yes, it is. Like the coffee you can brew there is really good coffee. You know, like it's delicious. It depends on the one you choose, of course. But I think it's a good product, especially nowadays.
It's like I just like a couple of weeks ago, I tried like the newest like luxury pot that they have, like the premium ones that's not on the market yet. And it was really tasty, you know, really, really tasty. And I think those machines are really great. And I totally agree with you that I wouldn't get one because I would just be drinking espresso after espresso after espresso. The only thing that really bothers me about them is the sustainability aspect. True. Yeah, absolutely.
I had to get rid of the machine because I would drink, you know, five espressos before going to work, you know, like first thing in the morning. And at some point, like I don't tolerate coffee anymore as much like my stomach hurts, especially milk coffee. Like it's something like, I mean, if I do it once in a while, it's fine. But if I do it like continuously, like my stomach aches and it's not that good.
Yeah. I forget to like when I started now, like drinking like black coffee and then I had this like commitment of wanting to have a good black coffee. And what is a good black coffee for me is like something that's, like you said, kind of light, but still like full of aroma. I don't want like a thick black, bitter water. I love that. Yeah. Like an espresso, like oil. Yeah. No, no, but that's different. That's different.
And espresso is concentrated and thick and delicious, you know, but like a black coffee is like a lot of the black coffee here also in Germany. Ah, you mean like, like the Italian pot, for instance, like that kind of coffee, like a thick Americano, but thick, something like that. Exactly. Like an Americano. Yeah. That's what I mean. When I say black coffee, that's what I mean with black coffee.
For me, espresso is something else, but like a filter coffee, you know, often you get this like black water that's bitter and burned. Yeah. Burnt coffee is so awful. Coffee in here, in North Spain is so common. Like the coffee culture here likes it, like over roasted. And it's like, man, what are you doing with the coffee? You know, like. Yeah, no, absolutely. And this is so crazy.
And like, I started trying to drink less coffee because I would drink like six, seven cups of coffee a day easily, especially when I'm working. And so now what I started to do is that I grind the beans myself, right? Which already makes a huge difference and it also makes it like a little ritual. So you're a coffee hipster basically. That's what you were trying to say. I'm now a coffee hipster officially. Yeah, exactly.
Okay. So like, and also it makes a little ritual also because I started weighing out. Like before I would just take a couple of spoonfuls of coffee, pour hot water on it and not really give a shit. And then like filter at some point. But now I weigh out the beans. I grind them. I've got like a little Hario hand grinder. So it makes it like a little ritual, but also it makes the whole experience nicer because you grind the coffee, you smell the coffee. It's like super nice, you know?
And then I put my brewing device on a scale and I weigh out the amount of water that I put in and I start a timer. And I know exactly at what time I filter it. And it makes a huge difference. And like, once you've got that figured out, like now you get a, like I get a coffee that's like clear, clean, roasty, caramelly, but you also get fruit notes like plums or blueberries. You know, it's like super nice. And you kind of forget how nice coffee can be.
You know, like something that really got me into thinking was an Anthony Bourdain episode. I don't remember where it was somewhere in the Caribbean and he was having a cup of coffee and he said a sentence that really stuck to me. He said, he said like, oh yeah, there's a bloodbath behind every cup of coffee. And I was like, what does he mean by that? It's such a short and profound sentence and there's such a big history behind it. So I dig into the coffee history.
And of course, you know, like coffee started in Ethiopia, like around the 11th century. And nowadays it's fair to say that, have you ever thought about it? It's the drug of choice of humans. It's the second most traded good after oil, you know, oil and then coffee, which is crazy. It's probably the most traded food and drink product in the world, you know, like, and it's because it makes you awake. And that's basically it. And it's, there is no stigma behind it.
Like you, for instance, with coconut leaves that could do the same, but it's also the main ingredient for cocaine, you know, like, and that's a problem with that one. And I always like to look into like, you know, like legends and stories of the origin of things and apparently an Ethiopian legend said that there was like a shepherd with his goats and he was like in a forest and he found out that the goats after eating a specific berry, they wouldn't sleep.
So that's the, you know, the myth of the origin of coffee. And it got into, I don't know why, but I always thought it came from America, but no, actually it was brought to America by the discoverers. But it's also fair to think that because Brazil is the third largest producer, no, produces the third of all the coffee in the world, a third. That's crazy. A third, really?
Yeah. Wow. So, and I know also Vietnam, I think Vietnam is the second largest producers, which is also something that you wouldn't expect, you know, like the Columbia has probably the highest reputation in terms of quality. Yes. You will find amazing coffee all over like, you know, Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia, Venezuela, all these countries. Yeah. Africa. Yeah. Africa. I mean, all of the tropic, the whole tropic ring, also Hawaii.
And it's interesting because there are so many, I remember having coffees in Bolivia that, that would have like lemony notes, you know, like acidic or this kind of thing. It's like a, like a complete world and many things regarding tastings and this kind of things were invented by, by coffee tasters, you know, like wheels of flavors and all these kinds of things. Because it's such a big industry. So there's, there's budget for research and all these kinds of things.
So it's a whole world, I think. Yeah. Yeah, absolutely. It's crazy. I mean, coffee is like, I was thinking about it the other day. I don't think there's a single day where I don't drink a coffee, you know, I really don't think so. And it's like, it's crazy because we talk about coffee, like we, we talk about other stuff, but it's like, I think all like 90% minimum of the people that I know, they drink coffee pretty much every day of their life. It's nuts. I think like the scale is just crazy.
Have you been to, there are like this crazy coffee houses in Japan. Did you ever went there? Yeah, I, I used to, I mean, I don't know what you mean with crazy coffee houses, but like so many things in Japan, you know, people like specialize in, in, in shit. I used to go to, Kisaten is the name of traditional Japanese coffee houses. Kisaten. With, with two F. Oh yeah. No, I haven't been to one of those. I used to go to Omotesando coffee a lot, but it's more like a, like a hipster place.
It's very, it's like franchise now around the world. They make these like square little canelés and it's very beautiful. Like at Omotesando, like near Omotesando station, you used to like walk into the back streets and kind of like go, like it was like a residential area. And then you would kind of turn into this like little garden and you would step up a step into like a traditional house. And then it would be like a coffee shop inside.
It's like, you know, just like a square counter and just like a guy in a white apron, just making coffee. You know, I love that place. There are also so many customs and rituals around coffee or I'm having coffee. I read this one that I really liked. There's this custom in Naples is called so peso and is a, that you pay a coffee for the next person to come. Oh yeah, that's nice. So if you're lucky, you get into a coffee house and this coffee was already paid.
So you get like a coffee from someone else. That's really nice. Okay. But let me get this straight. And you're the person who just takes the coffee and fucks off, right? Cause normally what you call this is a paid forward chain. Yeah. You're in Naples. You don't fuck around with this kind of things. You know, like you, you might wake up with the fishes, you know, if you, you break these customs. Hey, this is like, Oh, that's nice. I'm going to pay for the other coffee. You pay my coffee.
I pay your coffee. What about cooking? Have you ever cooked with coffee? Yeah, of course. I mean, obvious answer to your MSU. I mean, to your MSU without coffee is, uh, you know, unthinkable. Afogado two of my favorite desserts by far. Um, there's a, um, Katie used to make a really nice recipe of lamb braised in coffee, which was really unusual, but really, really tasty. And you get this like dark, thick sort of coffee infused gravy with it. So delicious. I think it was at her dad's recipe.
It's really nice. Dude, there is a dish from Massimo Alasmo from the calendar. It's a espresso risotto with capers. That sounds really interesting. Yeah. I've seen that one. Yeah. I have never tasted, but that really makes me curious to, it's like a classic, no, it's like a really classic dish. Yeah. It's one of his signature dishes. Yeah. But I've also seen like, yeah, coffee sauces like for lamb or duck or these kinds of things is relatively common.
Actually I used to make, um, I use, it's not quite the same, but I used to make a condiment for roasted duck, which was like, um, cocoa nibs and sort of like shaved dark chocolate and like, you know, like these sorts of flavors, they go really, really well with that sort of meat.
You know, for me, a quick sauce with duck, which is amazing and super easy to do is if you're making like a duck breast, you know, you have all the fat of the dog and you just throw chocolate pellets to it and it multiply the whole thing. So you have like a chocolate fat with chocolate with duck fat and yeah, you can add coffee to that for sure or whatever.
Yeah. I was just going to say like deglaze the pan with a, with an espresso and like a little bit of like whatever, you know, that's actually a really cool idea. Yeah. It's common in some, some stews in Catalonia, for instance, to, to add a little bit of chocolate, let's say to a goulash, something like that. Yeah. Like a tablespoon just to fit in it to, to a multiple. Like mole also, you know, mole. Well, well that's, that's, there is more than a teaspoon or a tablespoon.
There's so much stuff in mole, you know. Oh man, a good mole is delicious. So fuck this Mexican food. That's it for this week's episode of potluck food talks. If you like what we're doing, make sure to subscribe to the podcast so you never miss an episode. You can also find us on Instagram and Tik Tok as potluck food talks. The show airs every Monday.