Yes, You Can Actually Make A Cup Of Joe Without A Coffee Maker

Coffee must be one of the major food groups, because I can't start my day without it. Chances are, neither can you. But what happens if you're without your trusty coffee machine? Maybe you're camping, or there's a blackout. Perhaps your fancy Breville just died on you. It turns out that making coffee without the machine is pretty simple.

Coffee can be made via saucepan, bowl, or pour-over methods — and each one actually approximates other popular ways to make the good stuff. In each method, you'll be infusing water with ground coffee beans — it's the same basic process as a coffee machine.

To make coffee without a machine you'll need a heat-resistant brewing container of some sort, coffee grounds, and a way to boil water. You'll want a mug, too, and the whole thing will be easier if you have a clean cloth or a paper coffee filter to strain your brew.

Let's say you want to make a cup of coffee at home. If you have access to a stove (perhaps a gas range if the power's out), put your desired ratio of coffee grounds to water in a saucepan. Get the mixture to a rolling boil, stirring occasionally, then remove it from the heat and let it sit. How long you let it sit really depends on how strong you want your coffee to be, but just a few minutes will do.

Now your coffee's ready, but the trick here is to pour it into your mug without catching any of the grounds (which should have sunk to the bottom of the pan by now). This is where a coffee filter or sieve can come in handy, but if you lack these you can try using a ladle or just carefully pouring the coffee directly from the pan.

This method is very similar to Turkish coffee — which is differentiated by the regional origin of the beans and their very fine grind. It's also made in a special pot called a cezve. You can also make cowboy coffee on the campfire the same way, but there are lots of ways to make coffee in the great outdoors.

A French press coffee maker works by brewing hot water and ground beans in a carafe, similar to the stovetop saucepan method. But instead of using a paper filter to separate the grounds from your delicious brew, a plunger with a mesh strainer is submerged into the mixture to press all that liquid out.

You can do the same thing with a deep bowl and a spoon. Scoop in your grounds, pour boiling water over top, let sit to brew, and, when you're ready, use a spoon to hold the soaked grounds at the bottom while you transfer your coffee to a mug.

The even simpler pour-over method just requires a filter (any clean cotton cloth will do) and a mug or jar. Hold or clip your filter over the mouth of your container and scoop a tablespoon or two of grounds into the cloth or paper. Then gently pour your water over the grounds, going slowly to really extract all that flavor.

Of course, the same rules apply here as when making coffee with a machine: the best cups of coffee use fresh grounds, filtered water, and carefully regulated heat.