Last Updated on April 25, 2022 by Ellen Christian
Have you been wondering if it’s possible to get your coffee with less waste without sacrificing taste? Check out these tips and find out what I did!
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I’m trying to watch my caffeine intake, but I still look forward to every cup I have. As much as I love my coffee, I’ve been making some changes after realizing the waste my habit was producing.
Get Your Coffee With Less Waste
For years, I’ve had a succession of coffee makers that use those single serving plastic cups. You know the type. You add one plastic cup filled with grounds to the coffee maker and in less than a minute, you have one cup of coffee.
I believe I’ve owned about six of them over the past 6 or so years. As much as I love the convenience of coffee in less than a minute, all of those plastic cups mounted up in the landfill. Here are the steps I’ve taken recently to get my coffee with less waste.
Recyclable and Reusable Cups
The first thing I did was to start getting my coffee in recyclable cups. They work the same as other brands, but you can recycle the plastic when the cup is used.
You can find these cups at a site called Maud’s (save $7 here). Then, I started using a reusable cup with my own coffee.
We enjoyed this but no matter how careful we were, there were always grounds in the cup. Then, one day I woke up, and my coffee maker was dead. I decided it was time for a change.
A French Press
I’d always heard about French Press coffee but had never tried it. I had received a French Press that I never took out of the box and decided it was time to use it. I enjoyed the French Press coffee and was quite surprised that it made a much nicer tasting cup of coffee than my previous coffee maker.
My only problem is that it was too much effort for one cup of coffee and not large enough for several when we entertained. For someone who makes coffee in the morning for themselves and one other person, it would be a great choice.
Ceramic Pour Over
My next attempt was using a ceramic pour-over I got from Giftagram for free. They have lots of cute gift ideas, and I had a credit to the site to use. Get a $15 credit by signing up with my code EL218003.
Basically, it’s a ceramic top that sits over your coffee cup. You add a paper filter and the coffee and pour the water over it slowly. By far, this is the most delicious coffee I’ve had out of all of the methods I’ve tried so far.
Of course, you still have the paper filter to toss or recycle. Or, you can get a cloth coffee filter and simply launder it. As much as I love my pour over, it’s not big enough to make coffee for 5 people in the morning.
Bodum Pour Over
My next experiment was with a Bodum Pour Over. This is similar to my ceramic pour-over except it comes with a carafe on the bottom and can make about 4 cups of coffee at one time.
Plus, it comes with a reusable filter that can simply be rinsed out and reused. This has the same delicious taste as my ceramic pour over without a paper filter and with the ability to make as much coffee as I want. It’s as close to a zero waste coffee maker as I could find.
In the end, I use a combination of the last three methods to make coffee depending on who I’m brewing it for. I do have one recommendation if you go with a ceramic pour-over.
Because it sits on top of your coffee cup, it’s difficult to tell how much coffee is in your cup. I overfilled my cup several times and made a huge mess.
To avoid this, I found a great clear glass mug with a lid from Blue Bottle Coffee. It’s so much easier to make now. Plus, because it has a top, I can take it with me and avoid having to get a to-go cup of coffee from a coffee shop.
Recently we made a homemade coffee milkshake using ice cream we made ourselves. Check out this ice cream maker with no rocksalt we used.
What other kinds of non electric coffee pots have you used to get your coffee with less waste?
Check out the pros and cons of decaf coffee.
Ellen is a busy mom of a 24-year-old son and 29-year-old daughter. She owns six blogs and is addicted to social media. She believes that it doesn’t have to be difficult to lead a healthy life. She shares simple healthy living tips to show busy women how to lead fulfilling lives. If you’d like to work together, email info@confessionsofanover-workedmom.com to chat.
I admit, I am a bit of a coffee snob LOL I have a kettle, drip and a few French presses ~ perfect for camping! Can never go anywhere without one.
You can never have too many ways to make coffee!
The French Press sounds nice but it probably doesn’t make enough coffee to fill my big mug in the mornings either. The one cup Keurig I have pretty much sits on the shelf, a waste of money, it doesn’t make enough coffee at one go altho I do have the reusable filter. My Mr. Coffee makes 10 cups of coffee supposedly but it only fills my mug 2 1/2 times. I usually mix the leftover coffee with milk & sweetener, freeze it, & have fake coffee ice cream later. Thanks for sharing about all the different coffee makes you’ve tried, when mine bites the dust I’ll try something new!
Sounds like a great plan, Margaret!
I always remember my mom using a Melitta pour-over coffee maker. It tasted very good. I shy away from this style because I’m a clutz and fear burning myself with the hot water.
So far, I’m doing OK with it!