CoffeeForums Coffee Facts

Q: Anyone got any good tips for frothing milk with one of those steamer nozzles on a coffee machine? I`ve just started a new job in a coffee shop and can`t make a good Cappuccino.

A: First of all, make sure you use cold milk (if you're refrothing warm milk, add an ice cube or two). Secondly, semi-skimmed is the best milk to use. Dip the nozzle in the milk (jug no more than 1/2 full) so that it is at an angle and only just under the surface of the milk. Turn on the steam and gently let the milk begin to spin and bubble (if it spits milk at you, the nozzle isn't in far enough). Move the jug up and down gently to create more froth. Finally, stick the nozzle right in to heat the milk at the bottom. All you need is practice. The true test of a good froth is being able to make a snowman on the top of the coffee. The steam going through the nozzle will put all the bubbles in the milk for you! You're not really working in a coffee shop are you? This is the first thing they would show you how to do! Oh, I was in the same situation as you were a month ago. Make sure the nozzle is clean, and dried milk is not blocking the little holes. Stick the wand into the milk and turn the knob completely. Make sure the end of the wand hits the bottom of the milk pitcher, and drop it just a little. Keep the wand at the side of the pitcher to gauge the height of the noozle. Keep your hand at the bottom of the pitcher to figure out the temp. Don't do it directly, or you'll get burned, just lightly. Place it there. When it starts warming, drop it again just a bit, so it's steaming/heating/foaming different part of the milk. Slowly lower the pitcher as you go. The sound of the steaming changes if you listen carefully near the end. At that point, you should be near the top and foaming the top portion of the milk. Make sure the milk you're foaming doesn't start bubbling violently, because that means you just lost all your good foam. I still have problems making Cappuccinos, even now, because the machine is rather faulty. Everyone else complains about it too. Every once in a while, it'll turn out a decent Cappuccino though, so I wish you luck in your job, and I do hope you have a better machine than I do.