Hospitality - Cafe Skills
Prepare and Serve Espresso Coffee
Texturing Milk
Milk is added to espresso to make a range of other coffee drinks such as cappuccino, café latte, macchiato and flat white.
Different types of milk can behave differently. Some cafés also use café milk, which is high in protein and is produced specially for coffee making. It is the protein content in milk that gives it the body when it is steamed.
It is important to practise with different types of milk.
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 Skim milk froths more easily. But the froth also disappears more quickly because there is less fat and less weight in the milk.
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 Soy milk curdles more often than regular milk when it is added to the coffee.
Different Types of Milk
The protein in the milk is what causes it to foam. It is important to know how different types of milk will behave when using the steam wand to create froth.
• Skim milk is easier to froth as it has a higher percentage of milk protein. Reduced-fat milks create the best froth.
• Soy milk heats faster than full-cream milk but is textured in the same way. Always use a separate jug for soy milk. Remember to clean and flush the steam wand after using soy milk to prevent the flavour from transferring to other milks.
• Full-cream milk is recommended and used by Italians, however the frothing quality of the milk varies with the seasons, making it hard to obtain a consistent result.
Principles of foaming/frothing
The aim is to achieve a thick, creamy froth without large bubbles. The milk should not be allowed to boil as this will spoil the flavour of the coffee. Milk boils at 72°C. You should only heat enough milk to make the number of coffees you need. Each coffee should be made with fresh milk. Keep milk and milk jugs just above freezing temperature. Ice-cold milk allows you to steam for longer, creating foam with a smooth, velvety texture.
Process of Foaming/Throthing
1 Use a clean stainless steel jug. Fill it with one third very cold fresh milk. Old milk is harder to froth.
2 Release a small amount of steam through the wand to remove any condensed moisture.
3 Place the steam wand into the bottom of the jug. Slowly raise the wand as the milk heats and froths, keeping the spout at least 1 centimetre below the surface of the milk at all times.
4 When the milk reaches 27°C, hold the jug so that the wand is angled into the milk and the milk swirls in the jug. Continue to swirl the milk until it heats to 68°C (only just uncomfortably hot).
5 Turn off the steam before you remove the jug. Wipe the milk from the steam wand with a damp cloth.
6 Swirl the milk vigorously. If the milk is bubbly, thump the jug on the counter, then swirl the milk again. This will cause any large bubbles to burst. Swirl the milk for 20–30 seconds while
the coffee is pouring.
7 Milk can only be re-used once.