Dalgona coffee — perhaps the most popular coffee of 2020
We recently wrote about fashionable cold brew and Vietnamese coffee, but there is another drink we cannot overlook: dalgona coffee. This Korean-style coffee has taken Instagram and TikTok by storm. We are not surprised: it looks attractive and tastes delicious.
What is dalgona coffee?
The intriguing name hides just four ingredients: instant coffee, milk, water and sugar, products most of us already have in the kitchen. It is wonderfully easy to prepare, so anyone can enjoy its appearance and flavour at home.
Dalgona coffee owes its popularity to South Koreans who, during the coronavirus lockdowns in 2020, began making this impressive drink and sharing recipes on social media. The spark was an appearance by a local film star on a South Korean food programme. Tasting the drink, he compared it to dalgona, a Korean toffee-like sweet. That is where it all began.
By January 2021, Instagram alone had more than 500,000 photos tagged #dalgonacoffee, showing our appetite for new ways to prepare coffee specialities.
How do you make dalgona coffee?
No advanced skills or professional equipment are required. You need:
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 2 tablespoons instant coffee
- 2 tablespoons hot water
- Half a glass of dairy or plant-based milk
The key is the 1:1:1 ratio of the first three ingredients. You may increase or reduce the quantities, but keep that ratio. Otherwise, the volume and stability of the foam can change.
Method
- Put the coffee, sugar and water in a bowl.
- Beat with a blender or mixer until stiff foam forms. Make sure the coffee dissolves completely: lumps are not welcome.
- Once the mixture is thick and fluffy, spoon it onto chilled milk in a glass.
Can you believe your dalgona coffee is ready? If you wish, finish with chocolate shavings, cocoa, cinnamon, cardamom or a drizzle of flavoured syrup.
More than proportions matter
Ingredient choice is another important part of the recipe. Start with instant coffee, which dissolves and combines properly with the other ingredients.
Ordinary white sugar works perfectly, and cane sugar can also be used without spoiling the foam. We do not recommend replacing it with stevia or erythritol, because the texture may change.
For the milk, choose dairy or a plant-based alternative: that decision is entirely yours.
What is dalgona coffee's secret?
Its appeal lies in its silky texture, distinctive flavour and remarkable simplicity. Unlike latte macchiato or cappuccino, the velvety foam is made by whipping coffee with sugar and water, not milk alone. The finished drink is especially striking: it looks rather like an upside-down latte.
Our method is just one of many. Under #dalgonacoffee on Instagram, people around the world share increasingly inventive variations.
Dalgona is worth trying for lovers of both coffee drinks and desserts. Anyone curating an Instagram feed will appreciate its barista-made appearance too.
Try the recipe, take a photograph, share it on social media, and then enjoy tasting it!