Cuisine Corner: Dalgona Coffee aka Frothy Coffee

You can recreate the latest coffee trend, Dalgona Coffee or Frothy Coffee, at home in a few easy steps. All you need is instant coffee, sugar, water, your milk preference, a mixer (or a whisk/fork if you are looking for an arm workout) and a glass. Popular in South Korea, Dalgona Coffee gets its name from Dalgona, a Korean candy, due to their similar color.

After seeing multiple Dalgona Coffees on Instagram, I decided to try my hand at making this delicious looking drink. I happened to have several different types of instant coffee at home and wanted to see if regular instant coffee is a must for this drink to work. I decided to test several instant coffees and a hot chocolate mix. For these tests, I used Café Bustelo Espresso Instant Coffee, Maxim White Gold, Maxim Mocha Gold Mild, French Café Arabica Gold Label and Nestlé Abuelita Mexican Style Instant Hot Chocolate Mix. To mix my Dalgona Coffee, I opted for the easier blender method.  

Test One

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons Café Bustelo Espresso Instant Coffee
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 2 tablespoons water
• Milk preference (I used Coconut Dream Coconut Drink and 2% milk in separate glasses)

Directions:

• Add 2 tablespoons Café Bustelo Espresso Instant Coffee, 2 tablespoons white sugar and 2 tablespoons water to mixer bowl
• Mix ingredients in mixer for about 4 minutes on high (8 minutes if using a stand mixer) until peaks form. Your mixture should have a light caramel color
• Pour milk preference into glass
• Top milk with coffee mixture

Test Two

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons Maxim White Gold
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 2 tablespoons water
• Milk preference (I used Coconut Dream Coconut Drink)

Directions:

• Add 2 tablespoons Maxim White Gold, 2 tablespoons white sugar and 2 tablespoons water to mixer bowl
• Mix ingredients on high until frothy. Mixture will be a light caramel color
• Pour milk preference into glass
• Top milk with coffee mixture

 

Test Three

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons Maxim Mocha Gold Mild
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 2 tablespoons water
• Milk preference (I used 2% milk)

Directions:

• Add 2 tablespoons Maxim Mocha Gold Mild, 2 tablespoons white sugar and 2 tablespoons water to mixer bowl
• Mix all ingredients in mixer on high until well blended
• Pour milk preference into glass
• Top milk with coffee mixture

Test Four

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons French Café Arabica Gold Label
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 2 tablespoons water
• Milk preference (I used Coconut Dream Coconut Drink)  

Directions:

• Add 2 tablespoons French Café Arabica Gold Label, 2 tablespoons white sugar 2 tablespoons water to mixer bowl
• Mix ingredients in mixer on high until well blended
• Pour milk preference into glass
• Top milk with coffee mixture

Test Five

Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons Nestlé Abuelita Mexican Style Instant Hot Chocolate Mix
• 3 tablespoons white sugar
• 3 tablespoons water
• Milk preference (I used 2% milk)

Directions:

• Add 3 tablespoons Nestlé Abuelita Mexican Style Instant Hot Chocolate Mix, 3 tablespoons white sugar and 3 tablespoons water to mixer bowl
• Mix ingredients in mixer on high until frothy
• Pour milk preference into glass
• Top with chocolate mix

Overall Thoughts:

If you want the Dalgona Coffee you have been seeing on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube – stick with the regular instant coffee mix. It took less time to mix this combination to a frothy texture. While it was fun experimenting with different instant drinks, the first test worked best to recreate this coffee trend. I did not notice a difference in the mixtures when using different milk options and liked both 2% milk and the Coconut Dream Coconut Drink. Overall this is a fun way to enjoy a caffeinated beverage!

For other recipes you can try at home, visit our Cuisine Corner page or the library’s YouTube channel, where you will find videos from our Cuisine Corner series.

You can checkout cookbooks via Overdrive and Hoopla—two of the library’s digital lending platforms. To register, you will need your library card number and PIN.

You can also find a range of food/cooking TV series and documentaries on Kanopy. 

Resources:
https://sea.mashable.com/culture/9702/5-more-dalgona-recipes-to-try-now-that-everyones-making-dalgona-coffee
https://www.gmanetwork.com/entertainment/celebritylife/food/60170/this-frothy-coffee-is-the-latest-food-trend-in-south-korea/story