Why is salt added to coffee?
To reduce the bitterness characteristic of espresso, residents of European countries add granulated sugar, milk, cream, and syrups. But people who lived in these territories much earlier brewed a tonic drink with the addition of aromatic spices and herbs.
Salt is added to coffee not only to give it an unusual aftertaste. The body of people living in hot climates (Africa, Middle East, Asia) regularly becomes dehydrated. Adding spices helps retain liquid.
Thus, salty seasonings regulate the water-salt balance. In addition, they, unlike granulated sugar, do not provoke the appearance of caries.
When an unattractive groom comes to marry a Turkish girl, she can refuse him by pouring salt into a hot drink.
This spice has a softening effect on water. After dissolving it in boiling water, you can feel a pleasant unusual smell. But the main thing is not to overdo it: if you put too much salt in your coffee, it will spoil its taste. A small pinch will be enough.
Why salt drinks?
There are several reasons why different peoples prefer salty drinks to sweet ones. This is mainly due to the peculiarities of the geographical location of the states, climatic and natural conditions.
- This is interesting: What do they drink coffee with in different countries?
In hot countries with a lack of clean drinking water, it is important to protect the body from fluid loss. Sodium chloride, a source of electrolytes, does this job well. Salted drinks retain moisture in the body and compensate for the loss of minerals, saving from dehydration. To preserve fluid in the cells of the body's tissues, residents of Central Asia (Kalmykia, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia and others) drink salted tea, and in Turkey, Iran, and Ethiopia they prefer to salt their coffee.
Few countries in Asia and Africa can boast of good quality drinking water: in most regions it is very hard. Excessive mineralization degrades the taste of even the best coffee. A small amount of salt softens the water, making it more suitable for preparing a demanding drink. Europeans soften coffee bitterness and astringency by adding sugar. Asians and Africans also add salt to their coffee to neutralize excess bitterness. This is especially effective if the drink contains robusta grains. According to fans of the recipe, the salty taste helps to better reveal the aroma of the drink.
- Don't miss: What is Robusta in natural coffee?
The Asian recipe was taken note by sailors. The coffee-salt drink helped fight motion sickness, and it was called “sea coffee.”
Basic brewing rules
Each country approaches coffee ceremonies differently. For example, in Ethiopia, a tonic drink is usually served in 2 cups.
Salted coffee is usually not filtered. This makes it easier to prepare. In order for the grounds to completely settle to the bottom of the mug, the finished espresso must be infused for 1-2 minutes.
Adding a few drops of cool water to your coffee will help speed up the settling process.
To maximize the flavor palette of this non-standard drink, it is recommended:
- Use only high-grade grains.
- Grind the coffee beans very finely.
- Use a ceramic Turk during cooking.
- Do not add large amounts of seasonings to a hot drink.
- Pour salt into the Turk before putting it on the stove.
According to the traditional recipe, this espresso is served with a glass of water.
Famous recipes
Various versions of the drink contain cream, alcohol, milk and other spices.
Classic recipe
The Turk needs to be warmed up, add 2 teaspoons of coffee and a pinch of salt. The contents are filled with cold water (150 ml) and brought to a boil over low heat. The finished coffee is cooled and prepared again until it begins to boil. The process is repeated about 3 times.
Served hot; no need to infuse coffee with salt. Traditionally, the drink is served with dried fruits and oriental sweets. The basic preparation method uses only two ingredients: coffee and salt. Adding sugar is not recommended.
Ethiopian coffee with salt
According to the African recipe, you need to prepare your favorite drink in a Turk. Proportion – 4 teaspoons of coffee per 200 ml of water. The drink is poured into 2 cups, one 150 ml, the other 50 ml. Place ½ teaspoon of salt in the latter, and beat the liquid in a blender.
Two cups are served together, the guest decides how much concentrate and salt to add to the classic black coffee.
Coffee with salt and cream
The recipe is especially popular among the fairer sex. First, mix 3 teaspoons of cream and 1 teaspoon of sugar. It is also recommended to add a little vanilla sugar.
The mixture is placed in a saucepan or small saucepan and placed on low heat. You should use natural and full-fat cream, and cane sugar, but you can also use regular sugar. When the mass thickens, it must be removed from the heat.
A Turk contains 2 teaspoons of coffee and a pinch of salt. The drink is boiled until foamy, cooled for several minutes and filtered. Already in cups, the coffee is mixed with the creamy mixture to taste. The drink is ready to drink.
Classic recipe
This is a simple option for brewing a tonic drink. You will need 3 components:
- ground coffee (preferably Arabica);
- mineral water;
- salt.
The classic version of brewing coffee in a Turk involves adding salt immediately along with the ground beans. To ensure the rich taste of the finished product, you need to remove the container from the stove 3 times after a lush brown foam forms on its top.
While cooking, you will feel a sour-bitter smell spreading throughout the house. After the drink has infused, you can drink it. It is not advisable to add salt to cooled espresso, as this will spoil its taste.
Coffee with pepper is not only tasty, but also healthy
Coffee with pepper is a drink with a very long history. Ancient people valued not only its aroma and taste, but also its medicinal properties: pepper is known as an antimicrobial agent, and combination with coffee enhances the power of its effect on the human body.
When preparing this treat, the ancient Arabs also added other spices, which added new accents to the taste and aromatic “sound” of the drink. Many recipes have survived to this day, so you can find detailed recommendations on how to make coffee with pepper and cinnamon, coffee with pepper and salt, and even coffee with red pepper and honey. This drink effectively warms, gives energy and vigor, and also has a positive effect on digestion, thinking and emotional background.
Creamy coffee with salt
You need to take heavy cream, ground Arabica beans, purified water and salt.
Coffee and spices should be poured into the Turk. Fill the mixture with water. Stir it to avoid burning. When foam forms on the top of the container, remove it from the stove.
Meanwhile, work on the dairy component. Pour the cream into a saucepan and heat. They go well with salt; the use of these 2 ingredients allows you to give the drink interesting flavor notes.
Connect both pieces. Stir well. The drink is drunk hot.
What salt is needed for coffee?
The most suitable salt is food grade salt with medium-sized grains. It is better to give preference to non-iodized ones, so as not to exceed the iodine requirement for a person. Medium grinding helps control the dosage and not spoil the drink with an excessive dose. It only makes sense to add spice when brewing coffee using a Turkish coffee pot (cezve). In addition, the grinding of the grains should be as fine as possible. All other methods of preparation or grinding will not give the desired effect and the taste of the coffee drink is unlikely to please a gourmet. But only a few people can drink instant coffee with salt.
The optimal dosage is one pinch of salt per 250 ml of water (finished product). If you are in doubt about the size of a pinch, focus on the dosage - “at the tip of a knife.” The spice is added to the Turk (it is better to use a ceramic one) before putting it on the fire.
If you want to add an unusual taste, you can replace regular salt with pink or French flower salt.
Original recipe with pepper
This coffee should be brewed using classic culinary seasonings - salt and black pepper. For 1 standard size mug there are 2-3 peas.
Cooking method:
- Brew traditional espresso using any method. According to the classic recipe, they use Turk for this.
- Spices must be placed in a container before putting it on the fire. In 30 seconds of cooking, the liquid will absorb their taste and aromatic characteristics.
- The finished drink is not filtered, but infused for 1-2 minutes. During this time, the grounds will completely settle to the bottom of the cup, so there is no need to worry that they will spoil the impression of the ceremony.
Coffee with pepper has a very concentrated taste. A pinch of granulated sugar will help soften it a little.
How much does a cup of coffee cost?
In Moscow, a 30 ml cup of espresso coffee costs on average about 80 rubles, which is much more expensive than the same coffee in Paris, London, and New York. Coffee shop owners explain this difference by the high cost of delivering quality coffee beans.
The net profit in coffee shops from a cup of espresso is at least 300%. In some places the profit reaches 1000%.
You can try to explain the high prices:
- grain delivery range,
- lack of competition,
- a small number of coffee shops (in Paris, for example, there are about 100 coffee shops per 100,000 inhabitants. In Moscow there are about 500 of them for all residents).
If you like to drink coffee with tender marshmallows, then the article 5 delicious recipes for coffee with marshmallows will be interesting for you.
Cooking with cinnamon
Salty espresso with spicy notes has a rich aroma, taste and pleasant consistency. To cook it you will need the following components:
- cinnamon;
- ground Arabica;
- a pinch of salt;
- mineral water.
To obtain a product with a lasting aroma, a cinnamon stick should be placed in a Turk along with ground coffee and salt. Reduce the heat once the Turmer has formed a creamy brown foam. Do not bring the drink to a boil, as this will spoil its taste. You need to drink it hot.
Cooking features
The variety of salted coffee recipes is impressive. For example, in Ethiopia, guests are served two cups at once. One of them contains a strong drink with a lot of salt, the other contains no additives. It is believed that it is easier to achieve the desired taste by gradually adding salted coffee to regular coffee than by adding crystals. Moreover, it is customary to ask the guest which drink he prefers: with sugar or salt.
Coffee with salt, as a rule, is not filtered. The grounds remain in the cup and gradually settle to the bottom. A couple of drops of cold water helps speed up the process.
Basic Rules
For those who have decided to make coffee with salt for the first time in order to discover the taste of their favorite drink in a new way, simple recommendations will help.
- You should give preference to finely ground coffee;
- It is best to choose a copper, brass or ceramic Turk;
- no additives will correct poor quality coffee beans;
- The drink is traditionally served with a glass of water.
Benefits and harms
Espresso with the addition of classic culinary seasoning has not only an unusual taste, but also a beneficial effect on the body. If you consume it in moderation, you will be able to normalize your metabolism.
And the combination of salt and caffeine is an excellent immunostimulating medicine. If you regularly drink such a cocktail, the body's resistance to pathogenic viruses and bacteria will increase significantly.
Doctors recommend drinking salted coffee when you have a cold or cough, as it helps remove pathogenic microflora from the throat mucosa.
Consuming it is useful for food poisoning, as caffeine normalizes the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract.
But consuming too much salty espresso will lead to adverse health effects. Do not forget that salt retains water in the body, which can lead to edema.
A cocktail made from ground Arabica beans and traditional culinary spices is definitely worth a try. This will allow you to discover new taste horizons.
Benefit
Consuming caffeine in large quantities can cause mineral deficiency in the body. 3-4 cups of strong espresso per day washes out up to 1,200 mg of sodium, with a daily value of 1,500 mg. Thus, to compensate for the lack of this substance, you need to introduce more salty foods into your diet. The benefit of coffee with salt is to replenish the lack of sodium in the cells, especially if you drink more than 4 cups a day.
How does Salt deal with bitterness?
It all starts in the language. The surface of the tongue is lined with thousands of taste buds, each of which can identify the 5 basic tastes - sweet, salty, bitter, sour and umami. Food on the tongue causes a chemical reaction that is then transmitted to the brain. That's how you define taste.
Research shows that salt helps enhance similar tastes: sweet, salty and sour. Bitterness, on the other hand, works differently. Salt, for reasons not demystified, overrides this response in the taste pathways, thereby masking the bitter sensation.
How to prepare the drink correctly?
You can add salt only when cooking ground grains - then it will allow the taste and aroma of the main ingredient to reveal themselves. If you add the powder to the soluble granules, the drink will turn out to be bitter and salty.
The classic recipe includes the following components:
- ground coffee beans – 2–2.5 teaspoons;
- regular table or sea salt, medium grind - ¼ teaspoon;
- cold water – 0.25 liters.
Pour the main ingredients into the Turk. If desired, you can add 1 teaspoon of granulated sugar. Shake the container to mix the ingredients. Pour in cold water and place the Turk on low heat.
Boil the drink until a fluffy foam appears on top. But don't bring it to a boil. Turn off the heat and let the mixture sit for 10 minutes. Repeat heating three times if you want a richer taste. Serve salted coffee with 200 ml of cool water.
To cook ground grains, it is recommended to use a copper, ceramic or brass pot.
