Coffee makers are great at making coffee. But can you make hot chocolate in a coffee maker? The answer may surprise you.
Hot chocolate can be the perfect drink for a cold day. It’s a great feeling to be curled up next to the fire with your steaming hot mug of cocoa as the embers crackle and the snow falls outside.
And as you marvel at the beautiful winter scene unfolding before your eyes, your gaze slowly shifts to your coffee maker. Suddenly you think to yourself, “I wonder if I could use that to make hot chocolate.”
I know, right? We’ve all been there before.
After all, it seems plausible. Cocoa powder is sort of like coffee grounds. Why wouldn’t this work?
The good news is, you’d be right. You can use your coffee maker to make hot chocolate. You just need to follow a few simple steps.
Jump to:
- Equipment and ingredients
- How to make hot chocolate in a coffee maker
- Can you put milk in a coffee maker?
- Can you make hot chocolate in an espresso maker?
- Can you make hot chocolate using a capsule coffee machine?
- Other ways to make hot chocolate
- Frequently asked questions
- More coffee-related answers
- How to Make Hot Chocolate in a Coffee Maker
Equipment and ingredients
If you’re up for seeing if your coffee machine can also make hot chocolate, you only need 3 things:
- Coffee maker
- Water
- Packets of hot chocolate mix
Note: Don’t substitute milk for water. More on this below.
How to make hot chocolate in a coffee maker
Using your drip coffee maker to make delicious hot chocolate is actually pretty straightforward. Here’s the easiest way using a simple 5-step method. It’ll leave you with a delicious, cozy cup of hot cocoa.
Step 1 – Fill your coffee maker’s water tank with 2-4 cups of cold water, depending on how much hot chocolate you want to make.
Step 2 – Start the coffee maker as you normally would so it will begin to heat up the water.
Step 3 – Once the water is fully heated and has filled the coffee carafe, add your packets (or scoops) of hot chocolate powder. Use about 1 pack or scoop per 1 1/2 cups of water.
Step 4 – Stir until smooth and creamy and the powder has dissolved.
Step 5 – Serve in a mug and enjoy.
Optional: Add toppings such as mini marshmallows (um, yes), whipped cream, chocolate chips, or chocolate syrup if you like it extra chocolatey.
Can you put milk in a coffee maker?
While milk can give hot chocolate a richer body and smoother texture, you should not use your coffee maker to heat up milk. It can get stuck to various parts of the coffee machine and be difficult to clean off. That can then affect future cups of coffee you make.
So unless you look forward to giving your coffee maker a deep clean after your hot chocolate is done, it’s best to avoid the milk.
Can you make hot chocolate in an espresso maker?
Yes, you can. You have a couple of options if you want to make hot chocolate with your espresso maker.
Brewing with ground cocoa
For this method, start by replacing the coffee grounds in your espresso machine with ground cocoa, then run the machine as normal. This will result in a shot of hot chocolate, so it’s still essentially a concentrated form of hot chocolate.
Next, steam or froth your milk.
Then mix the hot, frothy milk with the chocolate from the expresso machine in your favorite cup. Finally, add sweetener to taste.
Use cocoa powder or packets
This method uses the espresso coffee maker to steam the milk but not to produce the hot chocolate itself.
Start by adding about 2/3 cup of milk to a milk jug. Then add a packet of cocoa powder to the jug and mix well.
Next, use the espresso machine steam wand to heat up the hot chocolate mixture. For best results, you could also use a milk frother to make it extra pillowy and creamy.
Serve in a mug and enjoy your delicious cup of hot chocolate.
Can you make hot chocolate using a capsule coffee machine?
Again, you’re in luck. If your capsule coffee machine has hot chocolate pods, simply pop one in and brew with water as you normally would into a coffee cup.
First, fill the water reservoir with enough water and run the coffee maker as normal.
If your pod machine produces a shot-sized amount of concentrated hot chocolate, run that cycle with the right amount of water first.
Next, pour warm milk over the hot chocolate shot until you have your desired amount of cocoa mix, and stir.
Add your favorite toppings.
Other ways to make hot chocolate
Of course, if you’re still wary of the coffee maker method, you can always make hot cocoa using other methods.
An easy way is to heat up water or milk in a mug in the microwave for 90 seconds to 2 minutes, then add your hot chocolate mix sachets and stir. This works well, but can be messy if the milk overflows the mug while in the microwave.
You could also heat water or milk on the stovetop until it reaches a low boil. Then pour it into a mug and add your cocoa powder. As with the microwave method, there is the risk of spillage. And hot milk can be difficult to clean off of a stovetop.
The major advantage of using the coffee maker method is the reduced risk of spillage and quicker clean up time. You really just need to rinse out the carafe when you’re done, as you would when making a normal batch of coffee. That’s it!
Frequently asked questions
You should not use instant coffee in a coffee maker. Unlike coffee grounds, instant coffee fully dissolves quickly in hot water and can gum up your coffee maker. The best way to make instant coffee is to simply add hot water.
You can, but it’s not a good idea. You could just add loose-leaf tea leaves to the coffee filter area, fill the water reservoir, and brew as you would for coffee. This will result in hot tea, but it will likely be weak as the tea will not have sufficient steeping time. Plus, unless you thoroughly clean your coffee maker first, you’ll likely end up with a bitter, coffee-like taste to your tea.
Not exactly. Espresso is an intense, rich form of coffee produced using high pressure. A regular drip coffee machine doesn’t create that pressure, but you can still make rich coffee. For every 2 ounces of water in your coffee maker’s water reservoir, add a tablespoon of medium-fine grind coffee to your filter area. Boil the water on the stove. Then slowly pour over the ground coffee so it falls into an espresso cup underneath. Adjust the water-to-coffee ratio to your taste.
More coffee-related answers
Get more answers to your coffee-related questions with these posts!
How to Make Hot Chocolate in a Coffee Maker
Equipment
- 1 Coffee maker
Ingredients
- 1 packet Hot chocolate powder (about 1/4 cup of cocoa powder)
- 2 cups Water
Instructions
- Fill your coffee maker's water tank with 2 of water.
- Start the coffee maker as you normally would so it will begin to heat up the water.
- Once the water is fully heated and has filled the coffee carafe, add your packet of hot cocoa powder.
- Stir until smooth and creamy and the powder has dissolved.
- Serve in a mug and enjoy.
- Optional: Add toppings such as whipped cream (um, yes) or marshmallows.
Notes
Nutrition information is a general estimate. Actual nutrition details may vary depending on the exact foods & brands you use to make this recipe. It does not take into account any substitutions, toppings, or optional ingredients.
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