How to Make Vietnamese
coffee at home

The taste of Vietnamese coffee cannot be described in one sentence. It's a cross between bitterness and sweetness, between rudeness and tenderness. It is rich, strong and sweet. That's because Vietnam traditionally roasts Robusta and Arabica coffee beans to a dark French degree. When roasting, aromatic oils are often added. After these actions, the grains acquire a rich and spicy aroma.

The method of preparing such coffee involves brewing with phin - a traditional Vietnamese coffee maker. A ground mixture is poured into it, and then it is dug through small holes at the bottom of the teapot. This method of brewing makes the drink strong; so Vietnamese coffee fully reveals itself.

To give new flavors the Vietnamese often use condensed milk and sweet additives. In hot weather they prefer to add ice and cool down.

So how do you make Vietnamese coffee? Let's discuss it in this article.

It is very important when creating such drinks to choose suitable varieties and suitable roasting. As I wrote above - for the uniquness of taste it is worth using Arabica and Robusta dark roasted.

In other words, you can try Mr. Viet products! All grains before getting into the package are carefully collected from the fields and fried by the French method.

Since Vietnam is the capital of Robusta, the Vietnamese often drink coffee from its blends with Arabica. Arabica gives the drink a pleasant aroma, and Robusta makes it acidic and invigorating.

For phin medium grinding is ideal. It is dense enough to brew: hot water is saturated and a fragrant drink will drip into the cup.

The Vietnamese love sweetness! Here, people love bright and unusual tastes. Why coffee with condensed milk? Because milk in Vietnam is simply not produced, so here to give sweetness to the drink people add the usual condensed milk. The fact is that during the Soviet humanitarian aid in the 1950s this sweet was supplied to the country in large quantities. Thus, in a special way, this interesting tradition was formed.

To brew such coffee - you need to put 3-4 teaspoons of condensed milk on the bottom of the cup. If you are worried that the drink will turn out to be too sweet - not at all. Condensed milk will only complement the strength of the mixture of Robusta and Arabica; it will give the drink the necessary harmony.

If you are not a fan of condensed milk - you can always try to replace it, for example, with lactose-free, alternative or ordinary milk. But keep in mind that the consistency will be completely different: the coffee will not be as thick and viscous as it is loved in Vietnam.

Cold coffee drinks are obviously loved by many people in Vietnam. The climate here is hot, so one of the national traditions of the Vietnamese is to enjoy them in the middle of one of the sunny days.

A lot of ice is usually added to cold coffee. On average, it is about 3 or 4 large ice cubes. Ice greatly affects the perception of the drink.

Cold temperature lind of "converts" the oils and acids that are contained in the coffee bean. Such a drink does not have a rich taste, but it retains its aroma longer.

Therefore, after you have added ice cubes, you need to wait until your coffee reaches the desired cooling. It will not be as invigorating as the classic black coffee. That's the beauty and advantage of it: it's great for refreshing and cooling down in the middle of the day.

To make Vietnamese coffee, it is very important not to bring water to a boil. The ideal water temperature should be an average of 94 degrees. Thus, the mixture of Robusta and Arabica will reveal all its blend: you will feel the tenderness of aroma oils in combination with a pleasant sourness in the aftertaste.

An equally important point is the proportions. An average of 2-3 teaspoons of ground coffee are poured into the phin. It will have enough density to create the perfect Vietnamese black coffee.

Before you press the coffee tab with a press , you must first moisten it a little with hot water. Thus, the press will compress it better and more tightly and the coffee beans will be evenly distributed along the bottom of the fin.

Brewing with phin is simple and doesn't require much effort. In order to make such drinks, it will take no more than 5-10 minutes. A kind of coffee making ceremony will set you up for "coffee drinking": the very process of adding ingredients and waiting for the result brings great pleasure. Try new things and experiment!