A Delicious Arm Workout: Dalgona Coffee
Being cooped up at home has brought the creative side out of everyone, and the latest craze sweeping social media is the Dalgona Coffee fad. Wanting to know what all the hype was about, I laced up my apron for you guys again and tried my hand at making this Instagram-worthy treat.
Where Did It Come From?
Whipped coffee has actually been around for a while; it originated in Southeast Asia but was popularized when actor Jung Ilwoo appeared on a television show called Stars' Top Recipe at Fun-Staurant. He decided to nickname the drink “Dalgona Coffee” because it reminded him of the popular Korean street food. After the drink appeared on the show, videos began to appear on YouTube under the hashtag #DalgonaCoffeeChallenge where people tried their hand at making the drink. Soon after, it made its way to TikTok and went viral all over the world.
How Do I Make It?
Great question! The recipe is actually super simple! To make it, you will need four ingredients and a few utensils you already have in the kitchen.
Ingredients and Tools
Instant Coffee: It HAS to be instant coffee. Regular ground coffee won’t work when trying to create the fluffy whip. I used the brand Kanu which is a popular brand here in South Korea.
Sugar: Any sugar will work! Pick your favorite type. When I made it, I used regular white sugar.
Water: It is best made with hot, near-boiling water, but you can also make it with cold water, though it will be a bit more difficult.
Milk: This is what you’ll serve the delicious foam over. You can serve it hot or cold.
Bowl: A large bowl is important! You need space to get air into the mixture.
Whisk: Okay, this is optional as you can use a fork. However, a whisk made it a lot easier to get a fluff.
Tablespoon measuring spoon: This is super important as it helps keep the ratio exact.
The Fun Part
Once you gather everything you need, the real work starts. The process is really simple, as you only need to combine two tablespoons of instant coffee, hot water, and sugar together in a bowl. Then, whisk like your life depends on it. An important tip is to whisk in all different directions not just in a big circle. In Korea, they say it takes a minimum of 4,000 whisks, I gave up on counting after one hundred, so do not feel like you need to count. I will show you some pictures so you can see what it looks like each step of the way.
The first sign that things are happening is when the mixture begins to look like A1 sauce.
After some more whisking and a short arm break, it began to look and feel like the consistency of peanut butter.
Almost there! The mixture looks like hummus now, but it’s acting like whipped cream. You’ll know you have hit the right consistency if you are able to make “stiff peaks” in the bowl. Once you have reached this point it’s time to serve it up.
Spoon the mixture over either hot or cold milk and you are done. Now, remember to take your Instagram picture. It is best enjoyed after you stir the foam into the milk or you’ll end up with just a mouthful of coffee foam and no milk. The simply sweet taste is indeed reminiscent of the traditional Korean street food. Is it delicious? Yes! Is it worth the arm workout? That is for you to decide.
Have you tried to make this delicious drink? Tag us in your picture on Instagram or Twitter or both!