How To Fix Under Extracted Coffee

Have you ever been so excited to sip your morning coffee only to discover that it lacks flavour and tastes salty and sour? This is because you may have \ under-extracted your coffee – which is a very simple mistake to make.

The good news is that it is possible to steer clear of disappointing coffee. The days of under-extracted and over-extracted coffee can finally be put behind you. Here are a few solutions on how to fix under extracted coffee.

What is Under-Extracted Coffee? 

Before discussing how to fix under-extracted coffee, it is critical to understand what it means. When you brew a cup of coffee, hot water draws out the acids, sugars, solids, oils, and bitter flavours.  

If your coffee was extracted perfectly, you’ll end up with a delicious cup of joe. However, if you didn't properly brew your coffee, it might taste thin, sour, and bitter.

Under extraction can result from a variety of factors, such as water temperature and quantity, coffee grind size, and brew time.

How To Fix Under-Extracted Coffee?

Try a Finer Grind

Your coffee may not be extracting much flavour because the grounds are too coarse and the water is simply slipping through the spaces. You will extract more flavour from your coffee beans if you use finer coffee grounds. If your coffee tastes overly bitter, it's too fine. If it tastes acidic, it is too coarse.

Increase Water Temperature 

If the water isn't hot enough, the desirable flavours won't be extracted properly. Use warm water, but not too hot, as this will cause the flavour to extract too quickly. In order to effectively extract the coffee's oils and flavours, we recommend brewing your coffee with water that is at least 195 degrees Fahrenheit. 

Brew Longer 

If the water passes through the coffee too quickly, you'll end up with a flavourless cup of coffee because there wasn't enough time to extract all the yummy flavours. Try brewing for a longer period of time to allow the flavours in the water to fully extract. 

However, avoid brewing for an excessively long period of time because this will result in over-extracted coffee and a bitter taste.

Fix Your Coffee-to-Water Ratio

You might be asking yourself how to fix under-extracted your coffee if the grounds were packed too closely together in one spot. The ideal coffee brewing ratio is 1 gram of coffee to 15 grams of water. If you don't use enough water, the flavours won't have time to develop.

Although you may discover that you prefer more or less coffee or water, this is usually the benchmark that most people adhere to.

You may occasionally experience under-extracted coffee, but don't worry. As long as you remember these important indicators and common brewing mistakes, you can brew a delicious cup of coffee and avoid needing to find out how to fix under-extracted coffee.