Turkish coffee

Name: Turkish coffee
Prep time: 2 min
Cook time: 4 min
Total time: 7 min
Ingredients: 14 g finely ground coffee; 140 ml water, cold; 2 tsp sugar (optional); 1 cardamom, lightly crushed (optional)

Vegetarian

Türk kahvesi

Very finely ground coffee simmered slowly with water (and sugar, if wanted) in a small pot until a thick foam rises, then poured unfiltered into small cups.

Turkish coffee is a Turkish hot drink from Türkiye, ready in about 7 minutes and made with finely ground coffee. It serves 2 and is rated easy to cook.

Start cooking

Aerial shot of Turkish coffee in a cup with saucer, surrounded by coffee beans. — Photo: Hatice Esma DEMİREL / Pexels · Pexels License

Prep: 2 min
Cook: 4 min
Rest: 1 min
Total: 7 min
Serves: 2
Level: Easy
Calories: 7

Ingredients

2 cups

14 g Finely ground coffee (opens in a new tab)About 2 heaped tsp per cup, ground powder-fine. Most of the grounds settle and are not drunk.
140 ml Water (opens in a new tab), coldMeasure with the coffee cups you will serve in.
2 tsp (8.5 g) Sugar (opens in a new tab) (optional)Sade (none), az şekerli (a little) or orta (medium) — add before heating.
1 (0 g) Cardamom (opens in a new tab), lightly crushed (optional)Common in Arab-style coffee.

Equipment

Cezve / ibrik (opens in a new tab)

Method

1
Step 1
Put the cold water, coffee and sugar (opens in a new tab) (if using) in a cezve or very small saucepan and stir well until the coffee is fully wet.
- 1 min
- Cezve / ibrik (opens in a new tab)
2
Step 2
Heat slowly without stirring. As soon as a thick foam rises to the rim, spoon a little foam into each cup.
- 3 min
- low heat
Low heat is the secret to a good foam (köpük).
3
Step 3
Return the pot to the heat until the coffee rises once more, then pour it gently into the cups. Let the grounds settle for a minute before drinking.
- 1 min
- low heat

About this dish

Origin: Türkiye · Well documentedUnfiltered coffee brewed in this way is also traditional across the Balkans, the Caucasus and the Arab world.Also popular in Greece, Armenia, LebanonMore food from Türkiye
Dish: Breakfast · Snack · Hot drinks
Cooking method: Simmered
Taste: bitter, rich, aromatic / warmly spiced
Diet: Vegan · No gluten ingredients · Dairy-free · No nut ingredients · Low-carb
All labels
Vegan · Plant-based · Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Lacto-vegetarian · Ovo-vegetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · No gluten ingredients · Dairy-free · Egg-free · No nut ingredients · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free · Low-carb · Low-fat · Low-sodium · DASH-style
Without the optional extras: Whole-food focused, Paleo-style, No added sugarWorked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for: Everyday
Cook more with: Finely ground coffee
Techniques: Simmering

Allergens

None of the 14 major allergens appear in the listed ingredients.

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

7 kcal per serving

Estimated

1 serving ≈ 72 g · recipe makes 2

Where the energy comes from

Protein 12%
Carbohydrate 88%
Fat 0%

Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
Nutrient	Per serving	Per 100 g*
Energy	7 kcal	10 kcal
Protein	0.2 g	0.3 g
Carbohydrate	1.5 g	2.1 g
Net carbohydrate	1.5 g	2.1 g
Sugars	0 g	0 g
Added sugars	0 g	0 g
Fibre	0 g	0 g
Fat	0 g	0 g
Saturated fat	0 g	0 g
Trans fat	0 g	0 g
Cholesterol	0 mg	0 mg
Sodium	2 mg	3 mg
Salt equivalent	0 g	0 g

Vitamins & minerals per serving

Potassium: 71 mg
Calcium: 10 mg
Iron: 0.1 mg
Magnesium: 8 mg
Vitamin A (RAE): 0 µg
Vitamin C: 0 mg
Vitamin D: 0 µg
Vitamin B12: 0 µg
Folate (DFE): 0 µg

How these numbers were made

Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
*Per 100 g of combined raw ingredients; the cooked dish may weigh more or less.
Optional ingredients are not included: sugar, cardamom.
Finely ground coffee: Instant coffee powder used as a stand-in for the soluble part of roasted ground coffee; list the grams actually consumed with consumedGrams.
“—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Tips

Use cold water and the finest (powder) grind; coarser coffee won't foam or settle.

Common mistakes

Letting it boil hard destroys the foam and makes the coffee taste burnt.
Stirring once it is on the heat breaks up the foam.

Serve with

Always served with a glass of water, and often with a piece of Turkish delight.

Storage

Drink at once. Keep ground coffee in an airtight container away from light and use within 2 weeks.

History

Turkish coffee culture and tradition was inscribed on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2013.

Confidence: Well documented

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added 26 Oct 2026 · Updated 8 Nov 2026

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

Customise in Sip & BlendCompare with

Grouped by each ingredient’s role in the dish. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

The spice and seasoning backbone

Spices, masalas & pastes

Cardamom, lightly crushed (optional)1 piece · 0.2 g

Used in step 1

Less sweet, dairy-free, caffeine-free or for more people — the original stays as it is.

Customise in Sip & Blend

Reviews & corrections

Reviews come from signed-in cooks and appear after a moderator checks them. We never show made-up ratings.

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