James Hoffmann's French Press Recipe

Conceived by James Hoffmann, this French press recipe delivers consistently clean, and sediment-free coffee.

Although this is one of the longest coffee recipes – and involves a few fiddly steps – the results are worth the effort. This method is ideal if you have time to spare, so if you’re in a hurry, it’s probably not the one for you.

For best results use freshly roasted, high-quality beans – they’ll make all the difference.

Recipe Overview

Coffee
  • 30g
  • Medium Coarse grind
  • Medium roast
Water
  • 500g
  • 100°C / 212°F
Equipment
  • French Press / Cafetière
  • Scales
  • Kettle
  • 2 Tablespoons

Preparation

  • Place the brewer on the scales.
  • Add the ground coffee to the French Press and tare your scales.

Timer for James Hoffmann's French Press

Time
00:00
Remaining
09:30
01:0002:0003:0004:0005:0006:0007:0008:0009:00
00:10
Pour 500g of water.
03:50
Wait for 230 seconds

Steps

  1. 1. Pour

    Pour 500g of water for 10 seconds

  2. 2. Wait

    Wait for 230 seconds

  3. 3. Stir

    Stir in the crust on the top of the coffee with a spoon.

  4. 4. Stir

    With two spoons, scoop out the grounds and foam sitting on top of the mixture.

  5. 5. Wait

    Wait at least 5 minutes until all the grounds sink to the bottom of the brewer. You can leave it for up to 8 minutes if you need to.

  6. 6. Plunge

    Place the plunger but do not plunge all the way! Place it so that it sits just above the surface of the coffee.