Moka Pot Cleaning The Easy Way. Plus, 4 Top Tips Inside

Do you know how to do Moka pot cleaning the right way? 

Everyone loves a great cup of coffee made with a Moka pot, but no one (at least the people that I know) likes cleaning the Moka pot. Although it’s dead boring, it will make a whole lote of difference to the taste of your coffee and the lifespan of your Moka pot. Stick around, in this article I go over all the areas that need to be cleaned up properly. 

Let’s jump into it.

How a Moka pot works

Before we dive into cleaning, it’s wise to go over how a Moka pot works, so you’ll get a better understanding of why cleaning is vital. 

A Moka pot is a simple-to-use gadget and pretty affordable; you can get a decent one for around 10 bucks. It’s pretty handy to have one at home as you can brew aromatic espresso within minutes.

It’s comprised of 3 main components:

• The upper chamber 
• The lower chamber 
• The coffee funnel

The lower chamber is where you pour water,  the coffee funnel is where you add the coffee grounds and the upper chamber is where the coffee comes out. When you start brewing pressure is built up because of the heat in the lower chamber which forces the water to move up and through the coffee funnel this way the hot water extracts aromas and flavours from the coffee grounds and turns it into coffee which starts flowing out from the tower on the upper chamber. 

How to clean a Moka pot

Let’s go over all the steps needed for cleaning your Moka pot the right way.

Disassembling your Moka pot

Start with disassembling your Moka pot and place all the components in your sink. You’ll be able to disassemble your Moka pot by turning anticlockwise in the middle. Once you open it you can take the coffee funnel out and get rid of the coffee grounds (or you can even use them as a fertiliser for your lawn).

Wash the parts and rinse them well 

This is the fun part. 

Use washing-up liquid and a sponge to wash all the surfaces and remove the coffee residue. It’s wise not to use the hard surface of the sponge as you might cause your Moka pot to lose its shiny colour. Then rinse all the parts and put them on the side on a cloth to dry out.

What about putting the in the dishwasher? 

In general, this isn’t a great idea, as Moka pots are made of aluminium which oxidises easily when exposed to water for a while and as a result it loses its colour and turns darker. 

Dry all the parts properly

This is another key step of the process.

Use a kitchen roll to dry all the surfaces and put them back on the cloth upside down for some time. It’s important to do this step cause as I said it might oxidise. After you leave them like that for some time and you’re sure they’re dry, put them all together and you’re good to go.

How to clean the outside of your Moka pot

If you want to make your Moka pot look brand new this step is vital.

Mix equal parts of hot water and white vinegar (or a 2:1 ratio), dip a dry cloth into the blend and go over the surface of the pot twice. Don’t forget to dry the surface by using kitchen roll.

How to descale a Moka pot 

Descaling your Moka pot is as important as cleaning it. Water minerals build up on the inside of your Moka pot and cause your pot to malfunction. As you might have guessed it’s key to descaling your pot once every 2-3 months (depending on how much coffee you brew per day and what kinda water you use for brewing).

 Let’s have a chat about the steps you need to follow to descale it the right way. 

Start with creating a mix of water and vinegar

You can either go with equal parts or a hot water/vinegar ratio of 2:1. Use preferably distilled water and white vinegar to get better results. Use a container and mix these two components.

Fill up the lower chamber with enough of the mix that covers the valve this time.

Assemble the pot and get it ready for brewing

All you need to do is assemble the pot as if you were to brew coffee and let it sit for 2-3 hours (without turning the stove on).

In this case, you won’t need to use coffee grounds; just add the mix to the lower chamber and you’re good to go.

Time to brew

Once the time has passed, you can put it on the smallest stove of your oven and turn it on for a few minutes. You’ll soon see the mix of water and vinegar coming out to form the tower on the upper tower. Once the mix stops flowing it means all of it has moved into the upper chamber. This way all the hard water minerals will be removed from the inside of your pot.

Get rid of the mix

Once the process is done, disassemble your Moka pot, throw away the mix, rinse it and use  kitchen roll to dry it properly. Use a dry cloth to put underneath and let all the parts dry out properly before putting them back together. 

4 Tips on how to keep your Moka pot in top condition

Let’s go over 4 tips and tricks that will help you keep your Moka pot in great condition:

• Clean your Moka pot right after brewing: It’s important to clean it after brewing and not putting it off for later as your next brew won’t be that great and the coffee will be bitter
• DON’T tamp the coffee grounds: unlike what you do with an espresso machine, you don’t need to tamp the coffee grounds cause you block the water moving through the coffee funnel and extracting the aromas and flavours.
• Make sure the valve ISN’T clogged:  this could cause malfunction as pressure built up in the lower chamber won’t come out and you’ll end up with coffee that tastes burnt.
• DON’T put more water than’s needed: it’s wise to add enough water right below the valve, otherwise, your Moka pot won’t brew coffee or it’s going to be a very little amount of coffee.

Let’s wrap it up

So, do you know now how to do Moka pot cleaning the right way? Once you master this boring part you’ll be able to brew excellent coffee with your Moka and treat your friends and your family.

FAQ

Let’s go over some burning questions. 

Are you supposed to clean a Moka pot?

Yes, of course, as I said at the beginning of this article it’s vital to clean your Moka pot after each brewing and at least descaling it every 2-3 months to keep it in excellent condition and extent its lifespan. 

Why not wash Moka pot with soap?

You can use washing-up liquid every now and again but keep in mind that if yous use yoo much your next coffee might taste like soap. Make sure you rinse and dry your Moka pot properly to avoid that.

Can I use baking soda to clean Moka pot?

You can, in fact, baking soda is a great alternative to vinegar. So in case you don’t have vinegar at home and you have baking soda you can mix it with hot water (distilled preferably) to descale your Moka pot.