Tag: coffee

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Turkish Coffee

turkish coffee foam

Notes

Many instructions on how to make Turkish coffee use the term “boil,” however those who have properly prepared it would never use this term. Unfortunately the instructions I followed not only used the term, but had me boil the coffee 3 separate times. This caused the lovely foam to evaporate and die. YOU BASTARDS!

If someone serves you Turkish coffee without foam, throw it in their face.

Ideally, Turkish coffee will have a layer of foam on top as pictured above. If desired, sugar is added at the brewing stage as stirring the coffee would break down the foam layer. Also, Turkish coffee is to be served in demitasse cups, not mugs. I obviously had no idea what I was doing.

When it comes to Turkish coffee, if someone had said it was my ‘first rodeo’ they’d have spoken a double entendre. What I prepared was more Cowboy Coffee than actual Turkish coffee. Here is a better-researched version of of how to prepare Turkish coffee.

Equipment

  • Ibrik/Cezve (Turkish coffee pot) or a small saucepan
  • A metal spoon
  • Demitasse cups
  • Thermometer (optional)

Ingredients

Serves 2

  • 6 oz cold water
  • 1 Tbsp extra-fine (powder consistency) ground Arabic coffee
    (finest burr grinder setting, or ask for Turkish grind at your grocery store or roaster)
  • 1 tsp sugar (optional)
  • 1/8 tspn ground cardamom, or 1-2 cardamom pods (optional)

Directions

  • Add water (and sugar) to the pot and heat on medium high, but do not boil; if using sugar, the water is ready once the sugar has melted
  • Remove from heat, add coffee but do not stir– allow grounds to float on top
  • Return pan to burner set to medium-low (temperature should never exceed 158°F)
  • When the grounds sink, stir several times; eventually a foam will form on top
  • When the foam begins to rise (will look like a boil-over), remove from heat
  • After it has completely settled down, return pan to burner
  • When the foam returns, keep it foaming for as long as possible. Once a second rise/boil-over occurs, remove from heat
  • First, pour some coffee fairly quickly into demitasse cups; then do a second, slower pour, allowing an equal amount of foam to transfer to each cup. Do not stir (sugar should be added at brewing step) as this would break down the foam
  • Allow ~30 seconds for the grinds to settle before consuming