A coffee maker is considered a beneficial kitchenware appliance that helps to brew coffee automatically. Some people think that instead of water, using milk seems normal and quicker to make coffee with coffee makers.
Can you put milk in a coffee maker? Experts recommend that you should not put milk in a coffee maker because it will likely cause more harm than good.
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Can You Put Milk In A Coffee Maker: 4 Reasons Why You Shouldn’t Do It
Replacing water with milk because you want to save time, but actually, it does not. Believe it or not? We will list down 4 main reasons why people advise you not to do that.
1. Affect the taste of coffee
You may think that it is more convenient to put milk directly into the coffee maker than heat up milk in another pot.
Generally, boiled milk can have a slight difference in flavor because the sugar will react with proteins. The changes in its taste might be not much to notice if using in cooking.
However, if you put that milk in coffee, you’ll most likely end up with lousy coffee since milk tastes a bit weird when you overheat it.
2. Reduce nutrients in milk
We all know that milk contains high calcium levels, vitamin B, and many vital nutrients for our health. But boiling milk or heating up too much (similar to put milk in a coffee maker) may cause the reduction of vitamins.
Many surveys have shown that heat can make a direct impact on vitamin B. For example, in some studies, boiling milk can reduce vitamin B by about 25%, or others said that percentage could be more. It happens the same with the calcium content. So when you try to boil or overheat the milk, it can also lessen calcium in it.
Therefore, brewing coffee with a machine, you may use water rather than milk. You can put milk in coffee after that to preserve its nutrients.
3. Develop bacteria inside your coffee maker
Bacteria development is the most crucial reason why you should not use milk instead of water in the machine.
Firstly, let’s find out the water flow inside a coffee maker:
- You put water into your coffee maker.
- Water flows from the reservoir of coffee makers and into a tube through a hole.
- The water will flow through a one-way valve and into an aluminum tube found in the coffee maker heating element.
- Then, it partially goes up through a white tube.
Unless you entirely disengage the machine’s parts, there will always be milk residue despite cleaning it many times. And this is an ideal condition for mold growing on everything where the milk has flowed through or touched.
As you see, if you use milk to replace water, harmful bacteria will quickly develop inside the coffee maker. It directly has terrible effects on your health. When mold is still in the machine, and you use it to make your coffee.
Related post: How To Clean Coffee Maker Without Vinegar
4. Clog your coffee maker
Clogging the machine problem comes from developing bacteria inside your coffee maker. Why does milk curdle? The basic answer is proteins in milk. When proteins build up and coagulate after directly putting milk inside a coffee maker, this causes a destructive result on your machine. So your coffee can have the mold taste, or the coffee maker will break down.
Proteins are not present in water. So you had better use water in your coffee maker.
How To Put Milk In A Coffee Maker Correctly (Professional Tips)
Instead of making coffee by putting milk directly into a coffee maker, you should use water as usual, then add milk to your drink afterward.
The following guide and steps will help you to heat the milk up in the right way and reduce all risks mentioned above:
- Use a saucepan to place the milk in and put it on your stove.
- Turn the heat to medium level, keep your eyes on the milk to make sure it won’t rise or boil over.
- Remember to stir it or shake the saucepan slowly while it starts bubbling up. Doing that will help you to hold nutrients (vitamins, proteins, carb fat) in milk together.
- Maximum time to boil milk: 3 minutes.
Refer to this video to learn more about milk boiling:
FAQs
How to clean milk out of coffee makers?
For those who used to put milk in their machine to make coffee, here is a tip for cleaning it efficiently:
- Make a mixture of half water and half vinegar.
- Put it into the coffee makers; the acidity may help you break down the milk residue and clear the machine.
Can I put milk in my espresso machine?
It is the same situation with the coffee makers. So the answer is “No.”
Furthermore, espresso machines make coffee with water at temperatures of 200°F. But the temperature for milk to curdle is 180°F. That is why putting milk into your device can lead to damage.
Why do people add milk to coffee?
In our modern era, adding milk to coffee is a widespread habit. Because original coffee is bitter, not everyone can enjoy it. So adding milk becomes a fantastic way to reduce the bitterness of coffee and enhance texture.
Milk is composed of fat, proteins, and vitamins. Fat from milk will change the coffee texture to be thicker and smoother when done well.
Conclusion
To sum up, although it seems convenient to put milk in a coffee maker instead of water, you had better not do that.
For those who put milk in a coffee maker even once, please disengage its parts to wash it thoroughly. Because this will not only reduce risks for your machine but also be good for your health. For sure, it can be a crucial tip for you: Only use water to brew coffee with your machine.
