Espresso Recipes - basic

Some basic espresso recipes to get you started.

Ristretto

1:1 extraction ratio

very strong, thick, concentrated but usually sour and bitter.

use a darker roast to decrease sourness.

Dial in really fine coffee to reduce flow.

You could run it for a full 25-30 secs or 

dial coarser and cut the shot early at 15-20sec.

typical volume: 25ml

These are good with milk based drinks like caps and lattes.

Good with cortados

Normale.

Typically a single shot (1 ounce or 30ml) or a double shot (2 ounces or 60ml). 

The amount of ground coffee used and the extraction time also 

play a role in defining a "normal" shot. 

A standard double shot typically uses around 18 grams of coffee and is

 extracted in approximately 25-30 seconds, yielding about 36m.

Single Shot: Usually contains 7-9 grams of ground coffee and produces 

about 1 ounce (30ml) of espresso. 

So in summary, its a 1:2  or 1:3 ratio

Traditionally about 30secs on a 9bar machine.

balanced taste.

Lungo - Americano - long black

A longer shot, using more water, resulting in a larger volume.
You could use a coarser grind and less coffee to increase the flow. 

(added advantage of less chanelling). eg: 15g in , 60g out.

While a standard espresso typically uses a 1:2 coffee-to-water ratio

 (e.g., 18g of coffee to 36ml of water), a lungo uses a higher ratio, such as 1:3 or 1:4.5. 

Taste:

The longer extraction time and increased water result in a more diluted, 

less concentrated, and milder-flavored espresso. 

A lungo shot typically yields a larger volume of coffee compared to a standard espresso, 

often about the same size as a double espresso. 

Some sources suggest that a lungo can be more bitter due to the longer extraction, 

but this can vary depending on the coffee beans and brewing method

Americanos and Long Blacks are usually made by pulling the standard espresso 

into a glass of water or adding water to a already pulled espresso.

Alonge

An Allongé (or Allonge) coffee shot is a longer, more diluted espresso shot, 

often considered a variation of a Lungo.

 It's made by extracting a larger volume of espresso (at least double the amount of a standard shot) through a coarser grind and a higher water flow rate than traditional espresso. 

This results in a larger, less concentrated drink with a unique flavor profile, 

often described as fruity and juicy. 

A coarser grind is used to allow for a faster water flow rate, which is necessary for the longer extraction time and larger volume.

Technically it has a 1:5 ratio at a 4.5ml/s flow rate.

This is difficult to achieve with a standard 9 bar espresso machine.

This specific technique, popularized by Scott Rao, involves a fast flow rate (around 4-5 ml/s) at espresso pressure (8-9.5 bar), aiming for a 5:1 or even 6:1 ratio in 30-60 seconds.

Rao recommends using a washed, light roast, fruit-forward Ethiopian coffee for the best results. 

Spro-over.

A "spro-over" or "sprover" is a coffee brewing method that uses an espresso machine to create a drink similar to a pour-over, but with the characteristics of espresso. 

Its a bridge between espresso and pourover thus the name.

It involves using a coarser grind than traditional espresso, lower pressure 

(sometimes around 1 bar or less.), and a longer brew time (60s to 90s) in the attempt to 

extract a more flavorful, highly extracted and textured coffee.

The ratio of coffee grounds to the final beverage is higher, resulting in a more concentrated and flavorful cup, sometimes described as stronger than a pourover.

Use a coarser grind than you would for espresso, but finer than for a standard pour-over. 

Tamping is not always necessary, but if you do, do it lightly

Turbo (cafe crema)

This is a high yield shot.

Sometimes described as filter coffee from an espresso machine.

It involves using a coarser grind, lower pressure, and a long extraction time

 to achieve a faster and potentially more vibrant espresso extraction.

It aims for a 1:10 ratio of coffee grounds to espresso

 output, often with a target of 45s to 1 min for the extraction.