One of the most popular drinks in the Mediterranean region is Turkish coffee. The brewing process uses a cezve or ibrik, small-sized cups. There’s a big chance you can make this at home, In this article, we will show you how to make Turkish coffee at home either boiling or iced coffee.
For coffee enthusiasts, coffee is not just a hot brew to kick start the day, it’s an emotion, a feeling that only coffee lovers can understand. Coffee making is an art, and a tradition passed down from generation to generation.
Talking about coffee tradition, how can you not discuss Turkish coffee? If you love bold, strong, and boiled coffee, try Turkish coffee. It is prepared in a special pot called Cezve with a particular process of making and traditional serving style.
If you want to learn how to make Turkish coffee at home, we’re here with some tips and tricks to help you enjoy Turkish traditional coffee. To learn, how to make traditional Turkish coffee, you must have some ingredients and equipment. So, let’s jump on to the coffee-making tutorial without wasting much time!
Finding stores that serve authentic traditional Turkish coffee is hectic, and even if you are successful in searching such a store, their high prices will surely bother you. Isn’t it exciting to learn how to make Turkish coffee at home? This way, you can enjoy your loved beverage without paying high charges. Before jumping into the process, let’s learn more about this coffee and what makes it unique.
What is Turkish coffee, and why it is unique?
Turkish coffee is all about the traditional brewing process using a cezve or ibrik, a small-size coffee pot, made-up of brass or copper with a long handle and a unique pouring lip specifically designed for Turkish coffee.
The modern Cezve is made up of ceramic, aluminium, and stainless steel. The process of cooking Turkish coffee is what makes it unique. Its process involves slowly heating the cezve with coffee and water. people try many variations for making this coffee, but make sure that your coffee must boil enough to get foam without using milk.
The Turkish coffee is served unfiltered in small servings so that you can sit, relax and enjoy your cup. You need to wait until the coffee grounds settle down at the bottom of the cup before drinking.
Interestingly, the grounds which settle at the bottom of the cup are said to be the fortune teller in turkey. The astrologers there often use the remaining coffee grounds in your cup to tell what is coming up in your near future.
Interest facts about the Turkish coffee history
- Taking about the history of Turkish coffee is one of the oldest methods of making coffee.
- It’s been the famous Turkish hot beverage since the 1540s and was invented by Yemen Ozdemir Pasha (Governor of turkey). He brought the coffee beans to the sultan where the staff grounded them and made the drink.
- After this successful invention, Turkish coffee became a signature drink for high-status people.
- The Kahveci Usta were professional coffee makers, and later they opened their coffee shops and made Turkish coffee a drink for everyone.
- Later in 1656, these coffee shops were forcibly closed because they became a place of meetings against politics. Then, people brewed their coffee at home to show defiance.
- Interestingly, It hold great importance in Turkish culture and tradition. For example: At Turkish weddings, the new bride brew coffee or her mother-in-law to prove her qualities to the in-law’s family. If she fails to get the proper foam on the coffee, she is said to be a shame for the family.
How to make Turkish coffee at home?
Making Turkish coffee at home might be intimidating at the beginning due to the efforts and time it takes, but once you learn how to make traditional Turkish coffee, you will love to make it daily. With a little bit of patience and practice, you can make this coffee in a regular pot.
Also Read: 25 Best Hot Drinks at Starbucks
What ingredients do you need?
- Finely grounded coffee
- Water
- Sugar
- Spices
- Cezve
Process of making Turkish coffee at home
Follow the process below for learning how to make traditional Turkish coffee:
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If your coffee beans are not finely grounded, then, grind them very finely
Have you ever seen how finely grounded coffee beans are used for making espresso? You need to grind the coffee beans more finely than the espresso for making Turkish coffee. Also, You can grind them using the grinder and then use mortar and pestle for making them finer.
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Add water to Cezve
You can use a small cup for measuring the water. The ideal measurement is 4 oz for a cup of Turkish coffee.
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Add sugar
Add the sugar in the amount you prefer and dissolve it properly.
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Put the Cezve on heat
Traditionally, they would put cezve on an open fire stove, etc., but The modern cezve is induction cooktop friendly. You can simply put them on an induction cooktop at slow heat. Bring the water to a boil.
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Add Coffee beans
After boiling the water properly, it’s time to add your finely grounded coffee bean, ideally 1 tablespoon per cup. However, you can increase or decrease the coffee beans as per your taste.
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Add spices (Optional)
If you like spices in your coffee, you can add cinnamon, anise, clove, nutmeg, etc in a very little amount, like a pinch per cup. You can skip this step if you want your coffee without spices.
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Boil again
As boiling is the main element of Turkish coffee, you need to boil it again and remove it immediately after boiling it. Now skim the foam and discard.
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Mix the coffee
You might notice the clumps in the coffee, mix the coffee well to break them, and again boil it. But this time, don’t discard the foam. Let it sit on the surface.
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Let the coffee rest
Give your coffee 4 minutes of rest time to enable the spices to get infused into the coffee.
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Put it on heat again
Again heat your coffee but make sure to control the heat and don’t let the coffee overboil.
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Stir the coffee
Make sure to stir only the surface of the coffee, don’t stir the bottom. Let the sediments rest at the bottom, otherwise, they will again recombine with the coffee. Stir until the surface of the coffee is glossy with black or brown foam.
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Serve the delicious beverage in small cups
Traditionally, people use demitasse, but you can also serve the coffee in small cups. If you are serving more than 1 person, make sure they put an equal amount of foam in all the cups. For this, you can spoon out the foam and put it into the cup before pouring the coffee.
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Let the coffee sit
Let the coffee rest for 1 minute in your cup before drinking it. As the coffee is unfiltered, you must finish it within 10 minutes to avoid overstepping.
Now, the question arises, if you don’t have a Cezve, can you make Turkish coffee in a regular pot? So, The good news for coffeeholic is that you can make Turkish coffee in a regular pot. You need to use a saucepan instead of Cezve and follow the same products mentioned above.
Turkish coffee recipe variations
The method we discussed above for how to make Turkish coffee, is a traditional way. But, many people like to try some variations in their Turkish coffee. Let’s learn more about recipe variations.
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Boils
As we learned how to make traditional Turkish coffee, there are 2-3 boils required. But many people prefer only 1 boil, as more boils will result in stronger coffee. So, the people who love it light, boil it less. It is recommended to stick to a maximum of 3 boils otherwise the coffee can be harsh and bitter.
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Adding milk and sugar
Traditional Turkish coffee is free from milk and sugar, but there is no hard and fast rule about them. Try some coffee without them, and add if you feel like it. Some people prefer only sugar in their Turkish coffee.
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Spices
As discussed above, adding spices is purely your choice. If you don’t want spices in your coffee, skip them. Many people love the light flavor of spices in their coffee and add a pinch. Adding cardamom and clove will make your Turkish coffee unique. But, make sure to use a very small amount of spices in your coffee.
Health benefits of Turkish coffee
Turkish coffee is not only famous for its taste and uniqueness but it is also used worldwide for its health benefits. Now that you have learned how to make traditional Turkish coffee, let’s know more about its health benefits.
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High antioxidants
Turkish coffee contains a high amount of antioxidants, making it extremely healthy providing a cure for many serious diseases. It contains many beneficial components like chlorogenic acids to prevent diabetes, inflammation, and blood pressure.
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Increases athletic performance
Turkish coffee contains a high dose of caffeine that benefits athletes in particular. According to a study, it is noted that the athletes who consumed Turkish coffee can perform better in their sports including reaction time and energy level.
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Beneficial compounds
As discussed above, Turkish coffee is unfiltered, it contains many beneficial components like diterpenoids which helps in reducing inflammation, fighting infection, and enhancing heart health.
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Enhance Mental health
Turkish coffee helps you to fight against mental declines like Alzheimer’s disease and many other neurological conditions. It also reduces the risk of strokes, Parkinson’s disease, and dementia.
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Prevent many diseases
It helps you to keep your heart healthy and liver on track. According to the experts, drinking 3 cups of Turkish coffee a day can help you reduce 15% of the heart disease risk. It also cures depression, liver cancer, and liver cirrhosis.
What are the beans used for Turkish coffee?
Interestingly, there are no special Turkish coffee beans used for making the coffee. The brewing method of this coffee makes it unique, not the beans.
Os, you can use any type of coffee beans you want from the best speciality coffee roasters. It’s recommended to use great quality coffee beans to get the maximum taste. You can Google search for the best quality coffee in your area and buy the best one.
Also Read: What is Blonde Espresso? A Different Cup Of Joe
The majority of traditional Turkish coffee makers use Arabica varieties of coffee beans as they are the best for brewing, While, many people prefer Robusta and the blend of both. In short, it’s all up to you which coffee beans you like, just make sure to grind them as finely as possible.
Takeaways
Many coffee lovers ask “can you make turkish coffee in a regular pot?”. So, the answer is yes, you can. We believe that Turkish coffee is worth trying as it is extremely delicious and the fact that it takes time and effort and you get to sit patiently and enjoy every sip.
It is an art and tradition that enable you to slow down and appreciate every drop of the coffee. You can also have fun with fortune telling using the residue in your cup. Take leftover coffee grounds on your saucer and figure out what they meant or just make your own interesting story.
FAQs
Q1. How to make Turkish coffee in a French press?
Ans. Turkish coffee and the French press are two different methods of brewing coffee. You cannot make Turkish coffee in a French press.
Q2. Do I need a special cezve to make Turkish coffee?
Ans. The traditional Turkish coffee is made using Cezve but you can also make it using any saucepan with the same traditional procedure. Nowadays, you can also get the induction cooktop-friendly cezve on market.
Q3. Turkish coffee and espresso are the same?
Ans. No, both are different coffee types. The brewing method for espresso is very much different from Turkish coffee. Turkish coffee is brewed using Cezve while espresso is brewed using different equipment.
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