Alexia'Espresso'Machine'
11'
Steaming Milk – Technique
Using a steaming thermometer is helpful when you are learning to steam milk. As you gain
more experience and become more comfortable with the process you will be able to steam
milk without the help of a thermometer. If you notice in the procedure above we mention
temperatures* and* we* also* mention* “body* temperature”* and* the* pitcher* being* “too* hot* to*
hold”*We*mention*this*because*body*temperature*is*98 .6*which*is*real*close*to*100*degrees*
and when the pitcher becomes too hot to hold the milk will be around 150 degrees. This
makes*it*very*easy*to*steam*milk*without*a*thermometer.*You*will*“stretch”*the*milk*until*the*
pitcher*becomes*body*temperature*and*then*you*sta rt*the*“texturizing”*of*the*milk*until*the*
pitcher becomes too hot to hold on the bottom and then you’re all done.
Important: When you are done steaming milk the steam mode switch should be turned off and
then raise the brew lever until you have water coming out of the group head to refill the boiler.
This is important to protect the heating element from getting exposed from a low water level in
the boiler.
Helpful Tips and Information
When turning the steam valve off, always keep the tip under the surface of the milk for
approximately 3 seconds. If you pull it out too soon, you will destroy the nice velvety
micro-foam.
After removing the steam wand from the milk, position it over the drip tray and then
open the steam valve for 1-2 seconds to clean out any trapped milk inside the tip and
then wipe it down with a damp cloth immediately or the milk will dry out on the steam
wand and will be difficult to clean.
While texturizing the milk, if you lower the tip too far into the milk you create turbulence
rather than rolling. Turbulence will not make micro-foam.
If there are a few bubbles in the milk after you have finished, wait 5-10 seconds to allow
all the remaining bubbles to surface, then simply tap the edge of the pitcher on the
counter and swirl the milk slightly and they will disappear.
Be sure to keep your steamed milk moving/swirling until you are ready to pour since
milk has a natural tendency to separate.
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