As more and more people rely on coffee to start their day, the debate on which type of coffee is better continues to heat up. While some prefer regular forms of coffee such as Cappuccino and Americano, others are opting for options such as Turkish coffee.
Turkish coffee is not constrained to Turkey, but it refers to the type of coffee brewed in some parts of the Middle East and Europe, predominantly Turkey, Iran, and Greece.
Turkish coffee is much stronger than regular coffee as it contains more caffeine, and it’s not filtered at all, unlike regular coffee.
The stronger nature of Turkish coffee has made it so popular globally. Its caffeine enrichment ensures you stay up and have enough energy to work throughout the day.
Origin Of Turkish Coffee
Turkish coffee was first discovered during the 16th century in the Ottoman empire’s region of Yemen. The governor of Yemen brought it to the Sultan, who instantly liked it. Thus it was initially served as a royalty drink. Later on, it was mass consumed by the entire population and became a part of Turkish culture.
The brewing process for Turkish was continuously refined throughout history. Initially, mortars were used to grind the coffee finely. Later on, professionals called “Kahveci Usta” came up with improvements in brewing techniques and grinding methods for Turkish coffee.
What Makes It Different?
What exactly makes Turkish coffee so different from regular coffee? The differences lie in almost everything, from ingredients to the brewing technique itself.
Since espresso shots are the core ingredient for most popular coffee types, we will be using expressos as a reference for comparison. We have discussed some of the most prominent differences below:
1. Caffeine Content
The caffeine extracted for regular coffee is significantly less than that for Turkish coffee. This is because Turkish coffee beans are boiled for much longer than regular coffee beans.
This process results in a more significant amount of caffeine extracted per coffee bean. Turkish coffee contains 60mg of caffeine compared to the 40mg in espresso.
2. Brewing Method
Extraction is a critical difference between Turkish coffee and regular coffee. To make Turkish coffee, finely grounded coffee beans are mixed with water and sweetened with sugar to your liking.
The solution is poured into a cezve and put on heat in the next step. A cezve is a special type of pot used for brewing Turkish coffee. Before the pot boils, you will notice a frothy foam on top. This is your queue to take the pot off the stove and pour it unfiltered.
However, some people prefer to give the pot several boils for a frontier foam. More foam means a better cup of coffee.
On the other hand, there’s not as much to do when it comes to regular coffee. Most of the magic is done by the espresso machine itself. This is one of the reasons why regular coffee takes almost 30-40 seconds to brew compared to 3-5 minutes for Turkish coffee.
3. Coffee beans
Turkish coffee is always made from Arabica beans. Arabica beans contain almost twice as much sugar as other coffee beans. It originates from Ethiopia.
Robusta beans are commonly used for other forms of regular coffee. While they belong to the same family, robusta beans are considered to have a less refined taste. However, they are more commonly used due to their ability to produce better crema.
4. Grind Size
Turkish coffee uses an excellent grind, almost dust-like appearance. The roasting may vary, but the grind size simply can not. This fine grind size is responsible for the flavor and aroma of Turkish coffee and why it takes remarkably less time to brew than it should.
On the other hand, regular coffee has a more coarse grind than Turkish coffee.
5. Taste
For a lot of people, this is probably the most crucial difference! Turkish coffee has a very strong taste due to the higher boiling time and has no trace of acidity at all. It also has a very distinct texture to it due to being unfiltered.
On the contrary, you can taste traces of acidity in regular coffee, and it has no texture either.
Which Is Better: Turkish Coffee Or Regular Coffee?
There’s no accurate comparison here. It all depends on what you prefer.
If you are someone who prefers a strong cup of coffee with a distinct flavor, Turkish coffee might be your thing. Otherwise, you might be a regular coffee person.
Fortune Telling With Turkish Coffee
There’s an interesting story of fortune-telling that comes with Turkish coffee. You need a Turkish local or a person experienced with reading fortunes from the coffee cup to understand your fortune.
Once you’re done with your coffee, you put your cup upside down on the coffee saucer. The coffee beans dry up and leave a pattern after a while.
Experts can then see through the patterns and tell you about your fortune. It’s pretty exciting and you should definitely try it when you’re in Turkey!
Takeaway
Turkish coffee is an exciting experience for first-time drinkers to everyday coffee consumers. You should try it at least once to experience its unique flavor and aroma.
In comparison to regular coffee, it has a stronger, richer flavor. So if you are looking for a stronger replacement for your everyday cup of coffee, Turkish coffee is the way to go.
Is Turkish coffee better for your health?
Turkish coffee does not provide any extra medical benefits that regular coffee does not. However, like regular coffee, we advise you to consume a moderate amount as unreasonable amounts can injure your health.
Why didn’t my coffee produce any foam?
If your coffee did not produce a generous layer of foam, something went wrong in the brewing process—possible reasons for using stale coffee, improper grinding of coffee beans, and not heating water correctly.
References
https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-difference-between-espresso-and-Turkish-coffee
https://foodcrumbles.com/turkish-coffee/#:~:text=Turkish%20coffee%20starts%20distinguishing%20itself,area%20of%20the%20coffee%20particles.
