Traditional Turkish Coffee

You may have enjoyed various types of coffees in many different places from around the world, however the Turkish Coffee would be unforgettable and unique.

The traditional Turkish Coffee has been recognized as a symbol of hospitality and friendship, coffee being offered to visitors as a welcoming gesture. The Turkish Coffee's importance in social occasions was also an important factor in its history, with coffee being served during holidays and engagement ceremonies.

That rich cultural background prompted UNESCO to inscribe the Turkish Coffee Culture and Tradition in the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2013.

The method of brewing Turkish coffee has remained almost unchanged. In many respects, Turkish coffee has to be regarded different from the rest of coffees and it would be unfair to say that merely because of its preparation or brewing.

As the Turkish proverb says "when a cup of coffee is offered its memory would be cherished for forty years".

The place of coffee in the culture of Turkey could also be decoded from the terms created after coffee in Turkish language: kahverengi (coffee-coloured) means brown and kahvaltı (having something before drinking the first coffee of the day) means breakfast.

Turkish coffee, is the only coffee prepared without draining because the ground sinks to the bottom of the cup.And it is very healthy since the ground is not consumed. Turkish coffee, cooked with the world’s oldest cooking method, remains warm longer due to its foam. And because it is served in small cups with thin edges, it takes time to cool.

How to Cook Turkish Coffee

Turkish coffee is prepared in a cezve, a special small pot with a long handle that is traditionally made of copper. For one cup of Turkish coffee, combine one cup of water (the size of the coffee cup) and two full teaspoons of coffee. Since sugar is never added after the coffee is cooked you have to add sugar into the cezve (two sugar cubes for very sweet, one for medium sweetness, and none for the ones that like it bitter). Once the coffee comes to a boil, let the foam rise and take it off the heat right before it’s about to spill, and this will guarantee that your coffee will have lots of foam. Traditionally, Turkish coffee without foam is simply unacceptable. Serving the coffee with a glass of water (and something sweet, preferably Turkish Delight) is also part of the ritual.

There are so many benefits of Turkish coffee to our health.

Turkish coffee balances the level of cholesterol in the blood. It increases the effectiveness of the painkillers, helping the pain to pass through more quickly. It helps prevent a majority of heart diseases help prevent and it is also very effective on the digestive system. It is especially useful for correcting bowel movements. It softens when contacted with the skin (by massage etc.) and is good for skin problems. Due to the antioxidant it provides great benefits in preventing serious diseases such as cancer. It also an effect on increasing attention and clearing the mind. It is also known that is good for headaches and bone pain.