Turkish coffee (Turkish: Türk kahvesi) is a style of coffee prepared in a pot called a cezve using very finely ground coffee beans without filtering. The drink appears under different names across the Middle East, the Balkans, and the Caucasus.
Preparation Turkish coffee as a beverage is very finely ground coffee brewed in water by bringing just to the boil. Any coffee beans may be used—there are no preferred "Turkish coffee beans". Arabica varieties are considered best, but robusta or a blend is also used. The very fine grind extracts intensely, so that the degree of roast has a big impact; beans are best roasted medium or medium-dark; light and dark roasts do not give best results. The fine grind also means that the coffee grounds will go stale soon after grinding. The coffee grounds are left in the coffee when served. The coffee may be ground at home in a manual grinder made for the very fine grind (electric home grinders are not suitable), ground to order by coffee merchants in most parts of the world, or bought ready-ground—but less fresh—from many shops.
Coffee and water, with added sugar if desired, is brought just to the boil in a special pot called cezve in Turkey, and often called ibrik elsewhere. As soon as the mixture begins to froth it is taken off the heat; sometimes a little of the coffee, with the desired froth, is then distributed among the cups. The coffee is typically briefly brought to the boil twice more to increase the desired froth, and is then served. The coffee is traditionally served in a small porcelain cup called a kahve fincanı 'coffee cup'. The amount of sugar is specified when ordering the coffee. It may be unsweetened (Turkish: sade kahve), with little or moderate sugar (Turkish: az şekerli kahve, orta şekerli kahve or orta kahve), or sweet (Turkish: çok şekerli kahve). Coffee is often served with something small and sweet to eat, such as Turkish delight. It is sometimes flavoured with cardamom, mastic, salep, or ambergris. Much of the finely powdered coffee is in suspension, and goes into the cup when served; some sinks to the bottom, but much remains in suspension and is drunk with the coffee.
According to connoisseurs In a paper for the 2013 Oxford Food Symposium, Tan and Bursa identified the features of the art or craft of making and serving Turkish coffee in the traditional way:
Roasting. Green coffee beans, ideally the best Arabica beans, are medium-roasted in small quantities over steady heat in a shallow, wrought-iron roasting pan. It is crucial to stop at the right moment, then transfer the beans to the next stage: Cooling. The beans are allowed to cool and absorb excess oil in a wooden box. The kind of wood is claimed to affect the taste, walnut being the best. Pounding or grinding. The beans must be reduced into a very fine powder; the fineness is crucial to the success of Turkish coffee as it affects the foam and mouth feel. According to one source, the particle size should be 75–125 microns. Strict connoisseurs insist that the beans must be hand-pounded in a mortar, although it is difficult to achieve uniform fineness this way. Consequently, it has become more usual to grind them in a brass or copper mill, though it does make for drier particles. Brewing. It is essential to use a proper cezve. This vessel is a flask made of thick forged copper, wider at the base than at the neck. (Cezve are available in various sizes for different numbers of cups.) Cold water, several teaspoons of ground coffee (at least 7 grams per person) and sugar if desired are put in the cezve, and it is heated. The tapering shape of the vessel encourages the formation of foam and retains the volatile aromas. The coffee is heated until it just comes to the boil. "This stage requires close monitoring and delicate timing since a good Turkish coffee has the thickest possible layer of froth at the top". Some consider that the copper of the cezve improves the taste. Serving. The cezve has a lip to facilitate pouring. While the cup design might not affect the taste of the coffee, connoisseurs say that it makes a difference: the best cups are made of porcelain with a thin rim, which affects mouth-feel. A long cultural tradition emphasises the pleasure of being served coffee in beautiful cups, which are family heirlooms. The beverage is served together with a glass of water, which should be sipped first to cleanse the mouth. Other cultural traditions affect the guest's appreciation of the beverage and the conviviality of the occasion, including story-telling, fortune-telling, and so forth. While some of these stages may be curtailed in modern coffee drinking, for example the coffee might be purchased already roasted and ground, the rituals and paraphernalia (which e.g. create the anticipatory smell of the roasting beans) do act on the imagination and have a psychological effect.
History
… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.
