Dalgona Coffee (Whipped Coffee)

Y’all, whipped coffee is not new, even though it blew up on social media in 2020! Folks in India have been beating instant coffee, sugar, and a splash of water into a fluffy froth for generations, and the Greek frappé did the same trick back in the 1950s.

The name we use today comes from Korea, where the fluffy, caramel-colored foam reminded everyone of dalgona, a nostalgic honeycomb toffee candy sold by street vendors. Then the whole world got stuck at home, and this three-ingredient drink (hello, pantry staples-my favorite kind of simple!) turned an ordinary cup of coffee into something that felt like a little treat.

My daughter even makes this in her college dorm!

Research showed me this:

The name: Dalgona is a Korean street candy (also called ppopgi), a honeycomb toffee made from melted sugar and baking soda. The whipped coffee got its name because its flavor and caramel color reminded people of that candy.

The viral moment: In early 2020, Korean actor Jung Il-woo tried a whipped coffee at a cafe in Macau while filming a Korean TV show. He said it tasted like dalgona candy, and Korean viewers began calling it dalgona coffee and making it at home. As lockdowns spread in March 2020, it took off on TikTok and YouTube worldwide, since it needs only pantry staples.

The older roots:

• Phenti hui coffee (“beaten coffee”) has long been made in Indian homes and cafes by whisking instant coffee, sugar, and a splash of water into a froth, then stirring it into hot milk.
• The Greek frappé was reportedly invented in 1957 in Thessaloniki, when a Nescafé representative shook instant coffee, sugar, and cold water into a foam.

Dalgona Coffee (Whipped Coffee)

This is nothing short of delicious, amazing, and simple! If you love coffee, you'll love this variation of it.

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Servings: 1 cup

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 4 tbsp instant coffee
• 4 tbsp granulated sugar
• 4 tbsp hot water

Method

 

How to make it:

1. Combine the instant coffee, honey, and hot water in a bowl.
2. Whisk vigorously (by hand, or with an electric mixer/frother for speed) for 3–5 minutes, until it turns pale, thick, and fluffy — similar to soft-peak whipped cream. Judge it by it’s thickness, not how long you’ve whipped it.

How to drink it:

1. Fill a glass with milk (dairy or plant-based) and ice if you want it cold, or heat the milk if you want it warm.
2. Spoon the whipped honey-coffee mixture on top — it’ll float.
3. Stir it in before drinking, or sip through the foam and mix as you go.

Notes

A couple of notes:

Instant coffee is essential here since the whipping relies on its solubility — brewed coffee won’t whip up the same way.

You can use honey, but honey’s density can make it a little trickier to whip than sugar, so an electric frother or hand mixer helps a lot.

Maple syrup hasn’t shown great results in this recipe, but you an add some to the milk before adding the whipped topping.

Store in the fridge-will last a couple days before the foam “deflates” and turns into more of a syrup.

On safety, a mixture of instant coffee, sugar, honey, and a little water is low-risk because the sugar content is high, so it’s unlikely to spoil quickly. I’d still treat it as a day-or-two item for quality.

If you want to make it ahead, a few options:

• Store it covered in the fridge for 1 to 2 days and re-whip it with the hand mixer for a minute or two before using. It usually fluffs back up, especially if you stir in a teaspoon of fresh coffee and sugar first.
• Make a dry mix instead. Store the coffee and sugar mixed together in a jar at room temperature (it keeps for months), then whip a fresh batch with hot water whenever you want one. This is the easiest way to have it ready all week.
• Freeze the foam in portions. Spoon it into an ice cube tray, freeze, and drop a cube or two into milk. It won’t be quite as airy, but it works for iced drinks.