How to Make Espresso at Home Without a Machine?

Being a coffee freak myself, one can’t imagine a morning without an expresso shot, but what if you don’t have an espresso maker?

An espresso maker can make the best quality espresso shot with the smoothest flavor and foamy crema that is hard to replicate with an espresso machine. However, if you don’t own an espresso maker and you can’t afford to buy one, there are a few inexpensive tools that you can use and prepare espresso shots at home. Of course, it wouldn’t taste as great as an espresso shot from your local barista but it will approximate the flavor to much extent. Here are a few methods for how to make espresso at home without a machine.

How to Make Espresso at Home Without a Machine?

Portable Espresso Maker

One of the most common and best way to make yourself an espresso drink is a portable espresso maker. The portable espresso makers push water manually through the coffee to make a delicious espresso in no time. Available for about 30$-60$ on Amazon, portable espresso makers are small, portable and a practical solution if you can’t shell out a few hundred bucks to get an espresso machine.

The flavor and the crema of course are not as great as espresso from a machine would taste, but it is surprisingly decent for a 60$ machine. Also, the portable espresso makers are easy to hide into a small cabinet or store in your backpack while you travel.

How to make espresso at home without a machine using a portable espresso maker? Follow the instruction booklet that comes with the portable espresso maker and you’d have your drink ready in a jiffy. No rocket science involved!

The Moka Pot Espresso

The Moka pot is an amazing way to make a dark, rich strong coffee which is pretty close to an espresso drink. It is something more like an Americano than espresso but can easily work as a replacement if you are craving for an espresso drink. The Moka pot is a stovetop method of making strong coffee drink by forcing steam through coffee grounds and as a result you get a delicious and rich pot of coffee. Moka pot is mainly used in Europe and US and it is pretty famous.

To make a perfect and aromatic coffee drink using Moka pot, you will require to experiment a little and babysit the stove as well. Since there is no automatic technology involved here, you will need to keep checking on the coffee pot and one the required doneness is achieved, pour in a cup and enjoy your espresso at home.

French Press Espresso

A French press is the next best way to make espresso at home with a machine. It is a 20$-40$ equipment and one of our top choice for how to make espresso at home without using a machine or any espresso specific equipment. With this thing in hand, you get the best espresso flavor in comparison to Moka pot or portable espresso maker.

You may get some sediment in your cup however, the coffee drink that comes out of French press is pretty close to the flavor of an espresso drink.

Aeropress Espresso

Last but not least, you can make great espresso drink with an Aeropress. It is available for about 30$ on Amazon and it’s a great replacement for an espresso machine if you are short on budget to buy one.

It consists of a plastic cylinder that is used to make single cup of coffee. It is budget friendly, portable, compact, easy to clean and perfect if you have small kitchen space because it can be stored anywhere without occupying a lot of space.

It’s the cheapest method available, but it compromises on taste and flavor. The espresso made by Aeropress taste flat and a bit bitter in comparison to Moka Pot and other methods stated above. It should be one’s last resort if nothing else is available.

Can You Make Espresso With Regular Coffee?

Technically, you can use about any regular coffee beans in an espresso maker but the drink will come out bland, and tart. It will not be as delicious as you might expect. And for that very reason, experts recommend to use dark roasts to make better tasting delicious coffee with rich crema.

Final thoughts

Coffee is a widely consumed beverage in United States, especially when it’s about starting your day a cup of coffee is a must. Some of us prefer black and latte, while others prefer cappuccino, americano or espresso.  For the best quality, a coffee maker machine is a vital product however, not having an espresso maker doesn’t mean it’s the end of the world. We can still enjoy our favorite coffee drinks by using above mentioned easy to find simple equipment.

Let us know how do you make your morning espresso shots? Do you have an espresso maker or it’s the Moka pot? If you have something to add to our list of equipment, leave us a comment in the section below!