Turkish coffee

[alacarte]

I recently had Turkish coffee, capping off an excellent meal at a Turkish restaurant.

What makes "Turkish" coffee different from a regular cup o' joe, or even espresso?

Is this something I can make for myself?

[Carolyn Tillie]

Shawn and I make it at home quite often -- what is *special* about it (as far as I know) is that it is specially ground, extra fine - almost powdery. We buy it at Middle Eastern stores.

Then there is the *special* brewer. Amazon has one available here. I bought one eBay that looks more authentic.

Lastly, there is the brewing. I've always used one heaping teaspoon of coffee to about 4 oz. of water. You have to slowly bring it to a boil. Then let it calm down. And boil it again. And let it settle. And boil it a third time.

That is the real trick: Three Boils. Occasionally, I will add a cardomom seed and/or sugar, depending. I've been told it needs to be really sweet to be authentic, but when Musa served us some at the World of Flavors conference last year, it was not sweet.

Terribly addictive stuff!

[carswell]

It's not filtered for one thing and is simmered for another. Also, the beans are ground extremely fine, finer even than espresso. A hand mill is traditional but electric blade-type grinders will do the job. Sugar and flavourings (e.g. cardamom) are added at the same time as the ground coffee. The coffee is brewed in and served from an ibrik. The actual brewing procedure is simple.

Edited September 8, 2004 by carswell (log)

[Carolyn Tillie]

IBRIK! That's the bloody thing's name...

Thanks! It was driving me nuts, trying to remember....

[alacarte]

Thanks so much for all the information! I learn something new every day.

What is the reason behind boiling it three times? Does each boil make it richer or darker or stronger?

[Carolyn Tillie]

Does each boil make it richer or darker or stronger?

←

Yes, yes, and yes.

Also (and this is the Religious Historian in me), Three is a Magickal Number...