Name: HOW TO MAKE THE BEST DALGONA COFFEE AT HOME
Prep time: 15 min
Ingredients: 2 tbsp instant coffee granules; 2 tbsp granulated white sugar* (see the post on different sugars you can use.); 2 tbsp hot water; Hot or cold almond milk (or milk of choice to serve); Optional: ice cubes if you’re serving Dalgona Coffee frappe style

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You no longer need to go to your favourite coffee shop to treat yourself to creamy, velvety, decadent coffee. Learn how to make the best Dalgona Coffee at home. In this post I’ll be sharing some tips and tricks to help you recreate this delicious coffee drink yourself.

Dalgona coffee on a white board on a glass mug

Just in case you’ve been like me and living under a rock and haven’t heard of the latest Dalgona Coffee craze which went viral on social media, please feel free to join me in trying, testing and experimenting with this delicious decadent coffee drink which you can easily make from the comfort of your own kitchen. In this post I’ll be sharing what worked and what didn’t in making this whipped coffee sensation.

So, what is ‘Dalgona Coffee’ and where has it come from? Dalgona coffee is a beverage made by whipping equal proportions of instant coffee, sugar and hot water until it becomes creamy and then adding it to cold or hot milk. According to Wikipedia, Dalgona Coffee is based on an Indian drink known as Phenti Hui coffee. The only difference is that when making Phenti Hui, milk is poured on top of the whipped mix rather than spooning the whipped mix on top of the milk.

Its viral status on social media came as a South Korean actor who visited an eatery in Macau where he was served a similar beverage reminding him of “dalgona“, a type of Korean honeycomb toffee, and later presented on a South Korean TV show.

Being a self-confessed coffee addict, I couldn’t give Dalgona Coffee trend a miss. No way! As soon as my 11 year old daughter showed me some Dalgona Coffee videos on her TikTok, I knew I had to start playing in the kitchen. And so I did!

I’ve experimented with different types of sugar and syrup and in this post I’ll share what produced the best results, as well as step by step instructions of making fool-proof Dalgona Coffee. Hold on to your seats, self-proclaimed baristas!

WHAT INGREDIENTS WILL I NEED TO WHIP UP DALGONA COFFEE?

2tbsp instant coffee granules
Will ground coffee/espresso/brewed coffee work? No, it won’t. The coffee won’t whip up into soft creamy peaks. Stick to instant coffee granules.
2tbsp granulated white sugar* (see further in the post on different sugars you can use).
2tbsp hot water
Hot or cold almond milk (or milk of choice) to serve
Optional: ice cubes if you’re serving Dalgona Coffee frappe style

WHAT TOOLS DO I NEED TO MAKE DALGONA COFFEE?

The fastest & the best way to whipping up soft peaks which hold their shape for longer is definitely with a handheld electric whisk.
If you haven’t got an electric whisk, you can use a traditional manual whisk but it’ll take you much longer. Your arms will feel like they’ve had a good workout!
You can also use a milk frother, although I found it took me twice as long and the peaks were not holding their shape as well as they did with an electric whisk.

WHICH TYPE OF SUGAR CAN I USE TO MAKE DALGONA COFFEE?

My views below are based solely on my own experiments of tinkering with Dalgona Coffee in my kitchen. You might get slightly different results depending on which tools you’ll be using but here’s what I discovered.

Granulated white sugar or white caster sugar
From personal experience, I found that either granulated white sugar or white caster sugar produced the best results. The coffee froth was quite firm and stiff and holding its peaks for much longer. I even tried refrigerating it in the fridge for an hour and it still held its shape.

Coconut sugar
Although coconut sugar worked (and it’s a good healthier alternative to refined white sugar), I found that the coffee froth was on the ‘wet’ side and the peaks were not holding that well at all, no matter how much I whipped it. My ‘fridge test’ with coconut sugar failed miserably. Once I’ve whipped the coffee made with coconut sugar and placed it in the fridge for an hour, it turned into liquid and I had to whip it again. When photographing Dalgona Coffee made with coconut sugar (pictured below), the peaks disappeared within seconds. Although the coffee still tasted great, if you’re looking for those impressive smooth and creamy whipped peaks, I personally found that white sugar worked best for me.

Xylitol
My experience with xylitol was much similar to the one with coconut sugar. The peaks were more on the ‘runnier’ side and didn’t seem to hold their shape for very long. Personally, I found the after taste of xylitol was a little too strong for me.

Maple syrup
I loved the added taste of maple syrup in my coffee (maple syrup tastes great with anything as far as I’m concerned!) Yet again, the coffee peaks were a little too soft and more on the ‘watery’ side. If I was to do a blind taste test, this version of Dalgona Coffee with maple syrup would be the winner for me personally.

Top down view of Dalgona coffee on a white board in a glass mug

HOW TO MAKE DALGONA COFFEE AT HOME?

In a mixing bowl, combine instant coffee granules, sugar and hot water. Whisk by hand for a few seconds until the coffee granules are dissolved in the hot water.
Switching to an electric whisk, whisk the coffee mixture for 12-15 minutes (the time will vary depending on your whisk) until soft peaks form. You’ll find the coffee mixture will turn from black colour to caramel and will become lighter in colour the longer you whip it. In terms of consistency, your Dalgona coffee mixture will go through several stages. First, from watery black liquid to smooth but still quite runny dark caramel cream (when the peaks are just starting to form but they don’t hold their shape that well yet) and finally, to light caramel, smooth and velvety stiff peaks. I’ve taken some photos of whipping that famous Dalgona coffee foam to show you what it looks like.

Pour hot or cold milk (see serving ideas below) into a glass/mug and scoop the coffee whip on top. Mix with a spoon to combine.

HOW TO SERVE DALGONA COFFEE

Over iced (dairy-free) milk or any other milk of your choice.
I served mine with iced almond milk for a frappe style coffee. It was a great coffee cooler during the heat wave we were very lucky to experience in the UK last week. Admittedly, it made our Easter weekend in the lockdown much nicer, thank goodness for the garden!)

Over hot milk
Over hot milk mixed in with cacao powder for a ‘mocha’ effect. Just whisk the hot milk with cacao powder until well combined. Pour into a glass/mug and top with Dalgona coffee foam.

How to make Dalgona Coffee at home, Dalgona foam

Hand placing coffee beans on top of Dalgona coffee

Here you go my friends. I think I’ve covered all things I could think of to help you make the best Dalgona coffee at home.

In closing, I’d really love to see how your Dalgona Coffee will turn out. Drop me a comment here on the blog, tag me on Instagram Fit Foodie Nutter or Pinterest.

Dalgona coffee on a white board on a glass mug, coffee granules on the side

FANCY SOME COOKIES TO GO WITH YOUR COFFEE?

Try some of the readers’ favourite cookie recipes below:

Stay safe and healthy.

See you next week.

Healthfully yours,

Tania x