Kitchen equipment · Coffee machine
Filter coffee maker
An electric drip machine that heats water and drips it through ground coffee in a paper or mesh filter into a jug.
Useful to have · Electric
Photo: Hay Kranen, via Wikimedia Commons (CC-BY-4.0)
What it is
A countertop machine with a water reservoir, heater, filter basket and carafe that sits on a warming plate or is insulated. Hot water showers onto medium-ground coffee and drains through the filter. It makes several cups of clean, mild coffee at once. Manual pour-over cones work the same way by hand.
What it’s for: Brewing larger amounts of filter coffee with little effort.
How to use it
- Fill the reservoir with cold water.
- Insert a filter and add medium-ground coffee, roughly a tablespoon per cup.
- Start the machine and let it finish dripping.
- Serve promptly; coffee left on a hot plate turns bitter.
Good to know
- Tasks
- brewing filter coffee, making cold-brew style concentrate (some models), brewing coffee for iced coffee
- Materials
- plastic housing, glass carafe, thermal carafe
- Care and cleaning
- Discard grounds, wash the carafe and basket. Descale periodically by running water and vinegar or descaler through, then plain water.
- Limitations
- Milder than espresso; flavour fades if held hot.
Safety
- The warming plate stays hot after switching off.
If you don’t have one
- French press / cafetière — No paper filter; heavier body.
- Pour-over cone — Hand-poured filter coffee with a kettle.
Equipment guide
How it works: A heating element warms water and pushes it up a tube to a shower head over a filter of ground coffee; the coffee drips through by gravity into a carafe. Good machines heat water to about 92–96 °C and spread it evenly over the grounds, which is what decides extraction.
| Material | Good | Watch out |
|---|---|---|
| Glass carafe on hotplate | Cheap; see the level. | The hotplate stews coffee over time. |
| Thermal (vacuum) carafe | Keeps coffee hot without cooking it. | You cannot see the level. |
| Permanent mesh filter | No paper waste. | More oils and sediment than paper. |
- Drip filter machine
- Batch brewing.
- Manual pour-over cone
- Hand-poured with a kettle.
- South Indian coffee filter
- Two stacked stainless cylinders: a strong decoction drips slowly through a perforated base.
- Cold-brew maker
- Long, cold steep.
Buying guidance
Starting out: A drip machine with a thermal carafe that reaches proper brewing temperature.
- Brewing temperature 92–96 °C
- Capacity in cups and litres
- Thermal carafe
- Shower head that wets all grounds evenly
- Removable water tank
No brands or prices — check current reviews before buying.
Related tools
Recipes that use it
No recipe in the catalogue lists it yet.