Dalgona Coffee: Is This Where I Hitch a Ride On the Bandwagon?

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If you've been wondering why TikTok seems more palatable these days, it's because droves of now jobless millennials have overrun the micro content platform. Faced with quarantine and nothing better to do, what was once the digital denizen of lipsyncing teenagers and the cosplay community, has now been overrun by the Myspace generation, looking for a new outlet while we await the end of the world.

That might explain why the latest hot thing to come out of TikTok isn't a new dance craze, but something far more domestic and mundane: a very fluffy coffee. While the name Dalgona refers to a type of Korean honeycomb toffee, its origins are actually derived from "beaten coffee" commonly drank in South Asia. I remember my cousin Marium beating up her coffees in the middle of study breaks or us sneaking down to the kitchen late at night during summers at our grandfather's house in Karachi for a little caffeine fix. 

It was easy- instant coffee granules, some sugar, and hot water to get a little paste going, then some milk to finish the job. Amazing to know that had we kept beating the mixture, we would've ended up with a viral bevvy a good decade or two before virality was a thing.  



Step 1 & 2: I grabbed a very cute and photogenic ramekin then added the coffee granules and some Sugar in the Raw. The kind of sugar doesn't matter, as long as it is granulated. Add hot water, (via our handy electric kettle for the folks following along at home). Two tablespoons of each, and then you're ready for the thick of it.



Step 3: Realize aforementioned cute ramekin is actually not suited to the task, and switch to ugly, but deep plastic tupperware guy. I ended up using a spoon ~for science~* and because I did not have a good #tinywhisk to suit the container. 

Now here's where the real work happens:

Hand whipping with a spoon. 

I'm not gonna lie. This took a long time. At one point I put it down and forgot about it, until Cecily texted to ask how my coffee ended up. 

I was also pretty convinced I would not get the pro results of bloggers and TikTokers on this journey before me. It looked frothy, sure. But would this muddy sludge really froth up to match my home barista dreams? About thirty minutes in, I wasn't sure, but I swore the froth had grown in volume. A little later, it started to change color, becoming more caramel in hue. A little after that, I was really glad I wasn't using the ramekin since my little frothy monster had now become very tall frothy monster. My pro tip for this whole process is to put on an episode of 90 Day Fiance or Succession and just ride it out, (depending on your hand mixing strength, you might be running through both). 
Stay the course, and you'll get there. 


Step 4: Once you get the smooth little frothy boi of your dreams, you're ready for the best and final step.  Prep a glass with a milk of your choice; in this case I used almond, but you really can't mess this part up. Hot or cold, per your pleasure. Lovingly spoon your sugar-coffee foam on top, and enjoy your 'grammable moment.

Super-secret Step 5: You can't actually drink the coffee in its most photogenic state. The foam is way too thick to sip through. Mix that sucker up, and enjoy!

*J/k for convenience/laziness

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