Tukish Coffee

[rp2813]

Hey everybody, I've been inspired by L's posting on favorite adult beverages.

I've been wanting for years to try my hand at Turkish coffee and recently found a cheap "barik" (I think that's what they're called) to use for preparing it. I found a recipe on line that's easy to follow and didn't realize how easy it is to make this stuff. In a few minutes' time I'm enjoying coffee I can really sink my teeth into.

Is anybody else into Turkish coffee? I'm sure I have a lot to learn on proper technique but am happy with my results so far.

Ralph

 

[toggleswitch]

FOAM party! It's all about the foam.

The Greeks call it a "Briki", the Turks call it an "Ibrik" and so on......

Trditionally brass with a long thin handle

This is probalby THE most ancient method of making coffee.

My ethnic group is way into it, but alas I like the American version better. The Greeks now have our type of coffee but they call it French coffee. Go figure!

 

[toggleswitch]

Sold in this country as "butter warmers". Made by Kinox. *UGH*

 

[toggleswitch]

*LOL* Shhhhhhhh it's Turkish coffee, but don't tell them.....

My family allows the foam to rise not once, not twice, but thrice.

The sugar level is adjusted to the taste of the recipient which being brewed.

Sweet
Medium and
"Blech." (just a bit).

 

[toggleswitch]

*while* being brewed that is.

These pots don't always work well so well on glass-ceramic nor on hobs.

Frequently people have one-burner propane (butane?) camp stoves such as the one pictured with which to make their "devil's brew".

 

[toggleswitch]

I see many roads in your flitzan..........I see rings, I see

Perhaps the best fun with this is to have the fortune-teller (you know,the Aunt Clara type) in the family read your cup. (Called a "FLITJAN"=> Turkish, "FLITZANI" =>Greek)

Dont stir up the mud too much as your drink, Leave a little liquid in the the cup. Shake gently turn over. Let dry.

 

[jasonl]

MMMmmmmm

I'm going to have to try that one day.

 

[rp2813]

Yeah, I was out with my sister who lives in the Eagle Rock area of LA and she took me to this wild new supermarket called "Super King," whose target customer is more eastern European/eastern Mediterranean crescent. Ridiculously low prices on good produce and what a selection of Russian vodkas! Along the front wall across from the check stands are hundreds of hookas on display for sale. Meat and cheese counters fully staffed where you can find ANYthing and cheap.

So I spotted the copper/brass ibriks and saw they were only $5, probably not very high quality but hey, I'm a beginner. Then I noticed a very American looking one, spun stainless with black handle, also just $5. They had enamel ones in various colors and those were non-stick. I figured that was a little too modern. I'm happy with my stainless one. The copper one looked like it would be much harder to clean.

 

[sudsmaster]

Greek coffee

A friend of mine got married in a Greek church, where the reception was also held. In addition to the usual dolmas and baclava, we were treated to genuine Greek coffee prepared and served at our tables by wizened little old Greek ladies. Stronger than espresso, as I recall. I think it may be an acquired taste.

In the 90's I went through a period of preparing my own espresso-based lattes at home every morning. That was back when I had flex time and could show up at work at 11 am and work however long it took to get the job done. After a while I started feeling like "Tweek" on Southpark so I gave up the espresso (plus it was a lot of bother, really). Now I just use a tall 4 cup Melitta drip machine ("Brew for Two" or some such name) to brew directly into a Zojirushi stainless vacuum carafe. Coffee stays hot for hours, without the taste going off much. Recently acquired a La Pavoni burr grinder that actually can time the grind for 1-12 cups - perfect for a 4 cup coffee maker.

 

[toggleswitch]

Here's a little story. Was helping a friend set up the kitchen of his new home after he had just moved in
They wanted coffee. No pecolator or coffee-maker in sight. the group was perplexed as to how to do this.
I made American coffee, using Turkish technique in a regular sauce-pan (without the sugar) and used a strainer to remove the grounds.
I got an A+ for effort and an A for taste. *LOL*

 

[toggleswitch]

Ok last post.

Where is this person located? What brand and how old is that cooker/stove and how is it that is has such wide coils?

I'm guessing UK in that the grill (broiler) compartment is on top, just below the cooking surface. Enquiring minds want to know!

P.S. Did anyone notice that Euro cooker with a HOB and a GAS BUNER? COOL that would be fortune here, if you could even find it............

 

[toggleswitch]

Loumidis brand coffee.

and just for a little eye-candy.

Turkish coffee is always served with a tall glass of water, as coffee is a dehydrator / diuretic.

 

[rp2813]

That "Bravo" ibrik looks just like the one I bought. The recipe I found on line advises to let the foam rise 3 times, and the author said he even goes for a 4th. I find that by the 3rd time, it doesn't seem to want to foam as much. I might be letting it rise too much the 1st and 2nd times. I'm using a burner on my gas stove but it takes a little positioning work so the ibrik doesn't tilt. The single bunson burner type thing has crossed my mind but I don't want to get carried away with this ritual.

The most time-consuming part is grinding the beans. I have a hand-crank burr grinder that reduces things to a nice powder but it takes forever to render a couple of scoops worth of beans.

Suds, where'd you get your La Pavoni? This sounds like exactly what I need.

 

[bobbyderegis]

You must have foam on the coffee or no one will want to marry you! Toggles, you forgot the best part of the Turkish coffee story!
Bobby in Boston

 

[sudsmaster]

Ralph,

I got the La Pavoni at the Hayward Costco Business Center.

It works great for drip, probably would work great for espresso grind too. However the instructions warn that if you do the very fine Turkish grind on a regular basis, you should clean the burrs after every grind. Fortunately, the burrs are relatively easily accessible on this unit. Looks like just a few passes with a stiff brush would do it. And I imagine most burr grinders should have their burrs cleaned after doing the finest grind.

 

[rp2813]

Rich,

Interesting you should mention the need to clean the burrs. I found myself cleaning the burrs on mine after the first batch I ground up for Turkish. I need all the help I can get with this hand cranker I'm currently using!

 

[sudsmaster]

Ralph,

I shouldn't have tried to repeat the owner's manual (really an owner's page) by memory.

Here is what it says:

"The PA-BURR is not designed to grind very fine coffee and it may not be suitable with some piston Style Espresso Machines."

"Please not some roasters produce a very oily beans [sp] that can jam and clog almost any grinder. [True] If you prefer to use dark oily beans you must remove the burrs and clena them iwth a brush and soft cloth daily. Oily roasts can cause coffee grinds to stick to the sides of the chamber and the oil to coast the burrs, daily maintenance is essential for proper operation."

"The grind selector ... contains a numbered progression of 19 grind settings... Genearlly the finer 1-5 rangce is used for electric Percolator, and electric pump style, espresso machines. The 6-12 range is used for a manual press pot/French Press and electric Auto-Drip brewers that use a cone style coffee basket [Melitta type filters]. The coarser 13-19 range is used for Auto-Drip brewers that use a flat coffee basket as well as stove top espersso makers, also kown as Moka pots..."

The only thing I would add that for American percolators, I would use the coarser settings. I think the reference to percolators in the fine grind section is about percolator style espresso machines, not American style peroclators (which must be pretty rare in Italy). Apparently this grinder is of an Italian design but of course it's made in China.

 

[rp2813]

Hmmmmm. . . thanks Rich. Maybe I need to keep looking for a grinder that will deliver a more powdery result. I am actually surprised my hand grinder does such a good job in this regard, but yes, the beans I'm using are on the oily side so cleaning the burrs will be in order before or after each use. Anything that will help to cut the grinding time!

I've seen on line that the type of hand grinders recommended for Turkish are the tall narrow brass variety that I've seen used primarily as pepper grinders. I don't know if they'd grind beans any quicker than the one I'm currently using and they don't appear to be burr grinders either.

For now I'm chalking up the grinding ritual to being a part of the overall process that I need to embrace, a necessary evil associated with the delicious end result.