Using K-cups without the machine

[jgm]

Our office coffee is about like that of most offices - not good, and the longer it sits on the burner, the worse it gets.

I just need a cup or two in the morning; I don't drink coffee all day long. I don't want to bring in my own coffee maker, and I don't have room for one in my office, anyway.

I saw a box of the K-cups on the grocery shelf the other day and it occurred to me that it MIGHT be possible to simply dump the contents of one into a cup, add hot water, and have a pretty good cup of coffee.

Obviously, one would have to try it to know for sure; but my question is: Is there something about the machine's brewing process that . . .how do I want to put it. . .means that the whole is greater than the sum of the parts? Or would it be a reasonable assumption that simply combining the contents of the K-cup and nearly-boiling water in a mug, would produce about as good a cup of coffee as the machine itself?

[Marlene]

Our office coffee is about like that of most offices - not good, and the longer it sits on the burner, the worse it gets.

I just need a cup or two in the morning; I don't drink coffee all day long. I don't want to bring in my own coffee maker, and I don't have room for one in my office, anyway.

I saw a box of the K-cups on the grocery shelf the other day and it occurred to me that it MIGHT be possible to simply dump the contents of one into a cup, add hot water, and have a pretty good cup of coffee.

Obviously, one would have to try it to know for sure; but my question is: Is there something about the machine's brewing process that . . .how do I want to put it. . .means that the whole is greater than the sum of the parts? Or would it be a reasonable assumption that simply combining the contents of the K-cup and nearly-boiling water in a mug, would produce about as good a cup of coffee as the machine itself?

Good question, but I don't think the K cups are "instant" coffee, but what do I know. I love my Keurig machine, and I just noticed single serve Keurig's at the kitchen store the other day. (just in case you change your mind on bringing in a machine).

[Jacquester]

get a Melitta 1 cup it works like a charm

[mgaretz]

Our office coffee is about like that of most offices - not good, and the longer it sits on the burner, the worse it gets.

I just need a cup or two in the morning; I don't drink coffee all day long. I don't want to bring in my own coffee maker, and I don't have room for one in my office, anyway.

I saw a box of the K-cups on the grocery shelf the other day and it occurred to me that it MIGHT be possible to simply dump the contents of one into a cup, add hot water, and have a pretty good cup of coffee.

Obviously, one would have to try it to know for sure; but my question is: Is there something about the machine's brewing process that . . .how do I want to put it. . .means that the whole is greater than the sum of the parts? Or would it be a reasonable assumption that simply combining the contents of the K-cup and nearly-boiling water in a mug, would produce about as good a cup of coffee as the machine itself?

The K-Cups are not instant coffee. There are other single cup "pods" that are made more like tea bags that might do what you want.

[jgm]

I appreciate the information. I think someone at one time had described the cups as "instant coffee". . .but after looking on the Keurig website, it's obvious it's a whole different kind of thing, including a filter.

I may get a Keurig after the prices come down more. I've sampled coffee from them, and thought it was very good. I'll just have to be on the lookout for some really good sales.

Thanks for the info!

[prasantrin]

If you have a little room to spare, you could get a 1-cup cone filter or an all-in-one type. I use a cone filter at work, or I use the completely disposable type which would take even less room.

[eldereno]

What about something like a Vietnamese single coffee filter that you just put over your coffee cup?

[jgm]

I actually have a combination French press and mug that I got at Starbuck's that I'll probably use. That will necessitate dealing with bringing ground coffee every couple of days, which I'm not crazy about. I'm discombobulated enough without having to have my coffee, and therefore the quality of my day, depend on whether I remembered to bring freshly-ground beans.

Who knows. Maybe Santa will bring me a Keurig.

[mgaretz]

I appreciate the information. I think someone at one time had described the cups as "instant coffee". . .but after looking on the Keurig website, it's obvious it's a whole different kind of thing, including a filter.

I may get a Keurig after the prices come down more. I've sampled coffee from them, and thought it was very good. I'll just have to be on the lookout for some really good sales.

Thanks for the info!

Costco has a pretty nice deal on Keurig right now, probably more than you need for the office since it's one of the larger models. The upside is you'll have to fill it with water less often and it has a wide range of cup sizes it works with. Downside is the initial investment ($140 locally here in N. Cal) but it includes a lot of coffee and the cup that let's you fill your own - I use it with tea and it works great.

[prasantrin]

If you make coffee at home in the morning (I can't tell from your initial post if you do or not--I suspect not, but just in case. . . ), you could just put some in a thermos (real one, not just a thermal coffee mug) and bring that. It won't degrade in quality as quickly as the stuff on your burner at work.

[Cim Ryan]

Just cut open the thing and dump the contents into a press.

I strongly recommend the AeroPress; it's incredibly easy to clean.

[KarenDW]

I actually have a combination French press and mug that I got at Starbuck's that I'll probably use. That will necessitate dealing with bringing ground coffee every couple of days, which I'm not crazy about. I'm discombobulated enough without having to have my coffee, and therefore the quality of my day, depend on whether I remembered to bring freshly-ground beans.

Who knows. Maybe Santa will bring me a Keurig.

Even one- or two-week old ground coffee will taste better than bad office coffee

You could even portion the coffee into baggies on the weekend, and then pack into your bag for Monday.

I vote for the Aeropress.

[baroness]

Pardon these questions from a tea-only drinker:

Are these 'K-cups' recyclable?

What is their environmental impact, with all the packaging?

[jgm]

Our local trash hauler (which also handles our recycling on a different day from our trash pickup day) will accept any type of plastic or metal container.

Edited to add: One of the reasons I'm especially interested in the Keurig, is that I work in a very small office, and we don't have a garbage disposal. So if I do any of my own coffee brewing, I'm looking for SIMPLE. If I use a brewing method that doesn't use a filter (such as that French press I mentioned), then I have to figure out how to deal with disposal of the grounds...which would probably involve bringing a small rubber spatula so that I can get them all out of the cup. If I use a method with a filter, then I have to either store the filter, grounds, and brewing apparatus, or bring stuff from home each day.

That's why I'm trying to simplify. My unofficial title at work is "Den Mother", so I end up with all of the stray office stuff - you name it; lost & found, stray sheets of bubble wrap just-in-case-we-might-need-it, keys to this and that, etc. My co-workers are functionally handicapped: they bring spent printer cartridges to me instead of taking them to the box in the copy room. . .(I could go on and on). . .the point is, I have a small space and lots of objects to deal with it. Streamlining is good.

Edited October 28, 2009 by jgm (log)

[Cim Ryan]

The Aeropress stores in less space than the Keurig, but it has more pieces.

Watch this to see how easy it is to clean:

[GlorifiedRice]

According to thuis page

http://www.cnet.com/how-to/how-to-make-keurig-coffee-when-youre-out-of-k-cups/

There are indeed some KCups that are INSTANT COFFEE and others that are grinds