Dalgona coffee is whipped coffee made with instant coffee and sugar and served over cold milk. It’s named after a Korean sponge sugar candy.
While we are staying home, this dalgona coffee has taken over the internet. I’m sure you’ve seen it all over your feeds on social media. Intrigued by the name of the coffee, dalgona, which is a nostalgic candy to Koreans, I tried it one day. I drink my coffee black, but this adorable, photogenic frothy coffee over icy cold milk stole my heart. I know I’ll be making this quite often as the weather gets warmer.
What is dalgona coffee?
Dalgona coffee is whipped coffee made by whipping instant coffee with sugar and hot water and served over cold milk.
In January 2020, this whipped coffee appeared on a Korean TV show called Pyunstorang (신상출시 편스토랑) in which actor Jung Il-Woo traveled to Macau and tried the drink at an eatery. He loved it, suggesting it tasted like dalgona, Korean spongy sugar candy.
The show featured the Macau restaurant owner whipping instant coffee, sugar and hot water by hand with a spoon. The actor narrated that the owner whipped 400 times to get it creamy and frothy. Everyone in the show was fascinated by the instant coffee being transformed into something totally unimaginable. They all said it looked just like dalgona candy.
It truly is interesting how the whipped coffee and dalgona candy have similarities in taste and appearance when the only thing common is sugar. Read more about it on my dalgona candy post.
In Korea, there are cafes that serve dalgona coffee, and they often serve it with pieces of dalgona candy.
How to make whipped coffee
It’s really easy! All you need are instant coffee, sugar and hot water (1:1:1 ratio) as well as your choice of milk. I used two tablespoons each for this recipe, and was able to make two small servings, but if you want strong coffee, it can be one serving.
To whip it, you can do what the Macau restaurant owner did – mix it by hand with a spoon or a whisk 400 times, but it’ll certainly be an arm exercise! His whipped coffee was not very thick. This trendy thick version was created by Koreans who recreated it at home and shared on social media.
I used my hand-held milk frother. It took about 6 minutes, but worked nicely!
Then, I tried it with my electric hand mixer. The whipped coffee turned out much thicker in less time (3 to 4 minutes) than my hand-held milk frother. This is my pick!
The stand mixer works well too, but it takes long because of the small amounts of coffee and sugar, the whisk attachment doesn’t reach the ingredients very well. It will be a good option when you double this recipe or more.
Once the whipped coffee is nicely frothy, fill a glass 2/3 to 3/4 of the way up with cold milk. Add some ice cubes if desired. Top it with the whipped coffee, and stir it into the milk to drink. Enjoy!
Whipped coffee lasts fluffy for 3 to 4 days in the refrigerator. Refrigerate in an airtight container if you want to make a big batch for more dalgona coffee later.
If you tried this dalgona coffee recipe, please rate the recipe and let me know how it turned out for you in the comment section below. Stay in touch by following me on YouTube, Pinterest, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
Equipment
- A whisk or an electric hand mixer
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons instant coffee
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 2 tablespoons hot water
- 1 cup milk
Instructions
- Add the coffee, sugar and hot water to a large bowl.
- Whip it with a hand mixer until the mix turns to light caramel color and frothy, about 3 to 4 minutes. Start at a low speed and increase to a higher speed after the coffee and sugar are dissolved. Scrape down the sides with a rubber spatula once or twice during whipping. Or, whisk it vigorously by hand with a whisk (or spoon). This will take much longer, depending on how thick you want your whipped coffee to be.
- Fill up a cup with about a 2/3 to 3/4 way up with milk along with some ice cubes, if desired, and top it with the whipped coffee. A rubber spatula works great to scrape it off from the bowl. You can use warm milk if you want.
Thank you for sharing this! Can I ask which instant coffee brand you use? I’ve been using Folgers based on some others’ recommendations and it just does not taste good (I promise, I’m not a coffee snob either!😆)! Thanks again!
I use a Korean brand called Maxim I bought at a Korean market. It seems like a lot of people are also using Nescafe.
I only have a hand whisk 😭 when I was a kid I’d do this in a cup with a spoon, it was a single serving and just a small amount, the froth stayed at the bottom so it wasn’t as cool-looking as this method.
I wonder if it can be done with an immersion blender? I’m not sure I have the stamina to whisk 400 times 😅
Glad that people whipped coffee is becoming more popular! I think partly because it is easy for people to make at home during quarantine.
I had good results similar to an electric mixer by spinning a hand whisk quickly between both hands, in a smaller glass bowl.