While it may be a no-brainer for some, when using batch brew methods, especially like an Indian filter pot or stovetop to brew coffee, you have to always brew at it's stated capacity. Why? Read on.
For most batch brew coffee makers like the Indian Filter Pot & Stovetops (although not technically considered a batch brew method), to work optimally, it is essential to brew the batch (quantity) it is meant to. Even if you're making coffee just for yourself, you need to brew the amount your filter pot or stovetop is meant to brew.
STATED CAPACITY - CUP SIZE vs GMS OF COFFEE?
While both Stovetops and Indian Filter Pots generally use a number to indicate the number of cups it's supposed to brew, where most people go wrong is they think they can brew 'up to the said amount'. For example, one might think a 6 cup stovetop/mokapot can brew up to 6 cups. Moreover cup size is a very ambiguous measure of how much coffee a coffee maker can brew.
On a stovetop, that means while you CAN under-fill the filter basket (read uneven & poor extraction), the basket size limits overfill. An Indian filter pot has no such indicator, all you can vary is the coffee to water ratio. Overfilling leads to coffee grounds left incompletely utilised and under filling produces a weak brew.
To address the 'cup size' ambiguity, we have started highlighting the brewing capacity in terms of gms of coffee for the filter pots we stock. We also have a recommended recipe that works well with our blends. But feel free to make adjustments for different coffees or based on your taste preferences!
The '2 cup' stainless steel Indian filter pot we currently stock is meant to brew 20-22g of coffee at a time with about 5 times water.
The handmade brass filter we stock brews 30-33g of coffee at a time.
Also if you brew different coffees & styles using an Indian Filter Pot, for each coffee & grind size, you may need to adjust the coffee to water ratio to get the taste and strength you're happy with.
Did that help? Happy Brewing ✌🏽
P.S. if you're wondering how much a Bialetti 6 cup stovetop brews, we like to use ~30g for our coffee blends.