How to make delicious coffee?

Delicious coffee will help you wake up in the morning, stay alert throughout the day, and add a sense of fullness to your life. But for some reason, not everyone can brew such coffee.

The most delicious coffee is natural

Delicious coffee and instant coffee are mutually exclusive concepts. Instant coffee can only be drunk in the most extreme situations, when there is nothing else at hand. So further we will talk only about natural coffee, for the production of which high-quality coffee beans are used, roasted and ground according to all the rules. And, of course, we will talk about hand-brewed coffee: a good barista will not compete with coffee machines and coffee makers on principle.

Fresh coffee is the key to success

The type of coffee usually doesn't matter much to a non-specialist. Inexperienced coffee drinkers prefer coffee with sugar and flavored coffee: coffee with the aromas of cherry, chocolate, cinnamon, vanilla, and various nuts. Coffee lovers pay attention not only to the type, but also to the degree of roasting, fineness of grind, and density of foam. There are almost more snobs among coffee lovers than among wine lovers. But in any case, the first thing you need to do is buy good coffee beans.

When buying, make sure that the coffee you buy is not near the lamps illuminating the display case. Light and heat have a detrimental effect on the beans. You need to buy the freshest coffee you can find. If you know how to roast beans, buy green coffee to make the freshest drink every time. Store the purchased coffee in an airtight container. And do not make strategic reserves: a week's supply is enough. Give preference to 100% Arabica - Robusta has a rougher taste, is also sour and contains more caffeine.

Ground coffee immediately after grinding begins to lose its aroma and taste, so you should not grind it for future use. Put in the coffee grinder exactly as many coffee beans as you need for one or two cups. The grinding of coffee that you will brew in a Turk (cezve, and even a simple ladle) should be very fine.

Brewing coffee correctly

Once you have ground the coffee beans (and you should get almost coffee powder), start making coffee. Pour clean spring water into the Turk, add two teaspoons of ground coffee per serving, and, if desired, a spoon or two of sugar. The water should reach the very neck of the cezve. Coffee should be brewed over low heat. Ideally, hot sand should be used for this, but for the average kitchen, this is clearly too much. As for water, nothing can spoil the taste of coffee as much as chlorinated tap water. Use clean water, but not distilled, otherwise the taste of the drink will be significantly poorer.

As soon as the coffee starts to boil and the foam rises higher and higher, remove the cezve from the fire and let the coffee "calm down" a little. The foam has settled - put the cezve back on the fire. Repeat three times. After this, the coffee is ready, you can pour it into cups. 

Experiments with coffee

Many people like to add flavor to their coffee with different additives. For example, cinnamon, vanilla, cocoa, ground cloves, black pepper, and even fresh garlic are added to the Turk. Sea salt is a popular additive to coffee. Ginger root adds spiciness to coffee, and star anise adds piquancy. Very tasty coffee is obtained if you brew it with ground hazelnuts or walnuts. Instead of sugar, you can sometimes add honey to the Turk with coffee.

But, frankly speaking, real coffee does not need any flavor enhancers. In extreme cases, you can add milk or cream to it.