Love your Keurig Coffee Machine but don't want to use a K cup coffee pod? We hear you.
The good news is that you can use fresh coffee grounds in your Keurig, but there's a bit of a trick to it.
In this guide we'll show you how to do it quickly and easily without making a mess, and also show you all the benefits of using fresh coffee beans.
This will help you get the most from your Keurig, and stop you being reliant on expensive K cups to make great coffee on your own.
Can You Use Regular Coffee In A Keurig Machine?
Not everyone knows this, but it is possible to use regular coffee grounds in Keurig coffee makers.
K- Cups can be expensive, but they work using coffee grounds, so there's no reason you can't use your own coffee grounds instead.
However, you need to think about how you're going to use your regular coffee as you need something to put it in before it goes in the machine. There's two methods for this, you can either use old K-Cups, or you can use a K Cup reusable filter.
Before we show you how to make regular coffee in a Keurig, let's take a closer look at why you should use regular coffee ground in your Keurig.
Benefits Of Brewing Regular Coffee In Keurig Machines
Save Money
K-Cups are great. They're Keurig specific coffee pods which are designed to make an individual coffee cup for you to enjoy. They're simple, and come in loads of flavors - but they are expensive!
Regular coffee grounds are so much cheaper than K-Cups, especially if you buy in bulk, and the cost per coffee mug goes down massively.
In fact, if you drink two cups of coffee a day and switch to ground coffee instead of K-Cup pods you can save up to $900 a year.
Save The Environment
If you use a K-Cup for every individual coffee in Keurig machines results in a lot of waste. Keurig have made each pod with reusable K cup filters, but they are often only used once.
Using your own coffee grinds is much more environmentally friendly and reduces the waste.
You Can Drink Coffee Of Your Choice
You can choose from a range of K-Cup flavors, beans, and roasts. However, there's always going to be more choice if you can use your own coffee grounds.
By using your own ground coffee beans with a reusable coffee filter you can choose from any type of coffee, allowing you to truly make your drink of choice.
How To Use Ground Coffee In A Keurig?
Ok, so hopefully you're convinced and you're ready to make your own coffee using Keurig coffee makers. So how do we go about doing it?
Well, Keurig's only have a K-Cup pod holder and unlike other coffee makers they don't have a filter basket or a space for a paper filter. Therefore, you need to find a vessel to hold the coffee grinds that will fit in the pod holder.
There are two solutions to choose from:
- Use a K-Cup pod
- Use a reusable coffee filter
Here's how they work:
Use A K-Cup Pod
The quickest and easiest method is to recycle a K-Cup you've already used.
Every reusable K-Cup has a gold tone mesh filter which is used as a filter basket to let hot water pass through, but keep the grounds out of your cup. Here's how to use it:
- Take the K-Cup, rip off the cover, and dump the used coffee grounds into the garbage.
- Take a moment to clean it out to make sure the old coffee grounds do not interfere with the new cup of coffee.
- Fill this clean K-Cup with some coffee grounds. To start, fill the K-Cup up enough so that you are almost level to the top of it. After you've made a few cups of coffee you'll be able to find out exactly how much coffee you need to make a brew you like.
- Create an an aluminum foil cover for the K-Cup, this is the hardest step! Cut off a small square of foil so that it fits nicely over the K-Cup once it's filled with coffee. Make sure it's sealed.
- Place the K-Cup into the Keurig, just like you did with it originally.
- Hit the right buttons to start the brew process and then let the coffee brew until it's done.
A K-Cup have be used 2-5 times before it starts to get too warn out to use. Once the reusable K-Cup can no longer hold the grounds you'll need to throw it away and find a new one, or switch to a reusable filter.
Use A K-Cup Universal Reusable Coffee Filter
A reusable coffee filter is a more expensive solution which requires buying a specific piece of equipment, but it's much better for the environment. Plus, you don't need to keep any K-Cup pods around.
You'll need to buy a Reusable Coffee Filter, but you can get the for under $20 on Amazon. Then, follow these steps:
- Add your reusable filter to the Keurig machine.
- Spoon in coffee grounds up to the fill line (there may be 2, one for travel mugs and one for a regular cup).
- Turn on the Keurig machine, close the lid, and start the brew.
- Leave this for a few minutes, and then take your mug away and enjoy your coffee!
- Any type of coffee will be fine to use in the Reusable Coffee Filter.
You can use any ground coffee with a reusable filter, but make sure you clean it out thoroughly after every use and don't try to reuse coffee grounds!
What Type Of Ground Coffee Is Best For A Keurig?
There is no hard and fast rule about which ground coffee to use in a Keurig. It all comes down to personal preference. It's a good idea to play around with different grounds and see which you like best.
When selecting your coffee grounds you need to consider the roast of the coffee beans and the grind size.
Roast
You can use any type of coffee bean in your Keurig machine, it all comes down to which you prefer:
- Dark roast coffee: Dark roast coffee is full-bodied and has a bold flavor.
- Medium roast coffee: Medium roast coffee is well-balanced and has a milder flavor.
- Light roast coffee: Light roast coffee is light-bodied and has a delicate flavor.
Grind Size
The grind size impacts how much the hot water comes into contact with it, and therefore how much flavor can be extracted. Reusable K-Cups tend to use a coarser coffee grind, but you can use any grind size with your Keurig.
The finer the grind the more ground coffee you'll need. Start with a medium grind at first and then adjust as you decide which gives you the best flavor.
How Much Ground Coffee Should You Use With A Keurig?
Again, there's no fixed rule for this as it all comes down to personal taste.
As a general rule 1-2 tablespoons a 6oz cup of coffee is the best ratio.
However, if you want a stronger cup of coffee you can use up to 4 tablespoons of coffee grounds.
Remember, if you use a finer grind then you'll need to put more coffee into the Keurig machine to capture the flavor.
The best thing to do is experiment and brew coffee with different amounts of coffee until you find the best amount for you.
Can I Use Regular Pods With Keurig? (Do You Have To Use K-Cups?)
You will not be able to use regular pods in the Keurig.
To use a Keurig Machine you'll need to use a reusable K-Cup. If you're using your own ground coffee you'll need to either use a reusable coffee filter that fits in the machine or a reusable K-Cup.
Unfortunately, a reusable K-Cup and regular coffee pods aren't interchangeable. Keurig's only work with a reusable K-Cup, and other coffee machines won't take them. You can purchase an adapter for some Keurig machines, but you'll still have to use them separately.
The reason they can't both be used is because of their size and how they work.
A coffee pod is typically soft and individually wrapped, with its own paper filter. It holds onto the tea/coffee in the paper filter to be disposed of afterwards. The coffee is steeps in the pod rather than flowing through.
A reusable K-Cup has two needles to puncture the lid and extract the coffee. The coffee is sealed inside the plastic reusable K-Cup and extracted as it flows through, with no steeping.
If you have purchased a Keurig, you will need to use the reusable K-Cups. Those are the only type that are compatible with this machine.
Frequently Asked Keurig Questions
How much ground coffee do you use in a Keurig?
You can choose how much ground coffee to add to the Keurig based on the strength of the final product desired. 12 grams is the maximum that the K-Cups are able to hold and can make a strong cup of coffee. If you think this is too strong, then lower the amount of ground coffee you add-in.
Can instant coffee be used in a Keurig?
Yes, you can make instant coffee easily with a reusable K-Cup.
Can you use Tassimo coffee in a Keurig?
The Tassimo pods will not be able to fit in the Keurig coffee maker, just like the Keurig coffee will not fit into the Tassimo. You can use the ground Tassimo coffee in the Keurig if you use the universal reusable coffee filter, but not if you plan to use the pods.
Do reusable K-Cups fit all Keurigs?
Not all of the reusable K-Cups you choose will be compatible with each Keurig machine. For example, the Keurig 2.0 lineup will not fit in with the old My K-Cup pods. Check the Keurig that you want to use to see which K-Cups fit inside.
Conclusion
The reusable K-Cup pods will allow you to choose any type of coffee that you would like to add to your Keurig coffee maker.
You can decide to go with ground coffee from other brands, making the Keurig coffee maker a versatile option that will help you get that morning cup of joe.
