The short answer
To make authentic Arabic coffee, lightly grind light-roast beans, add to water in a dallah or small pot with crushed green cardamom, and bring almost to a boil. Lower the heat and let it steep so the grounds settle, then pour clear into small cups. Serve with dates. Do not let it reach a rolling boil.
Interactive · Arabic coffee timer
- 1Heat the waterSteaming, not boiling · 60s
- 2Add coffee and cardamomStir gently to combine · 30s
- 3Steep gentlyJust below a boil · 180s
- 4Rest and settleLet the grounds sink · 60s
Heat the water
01:00
What you need
- Light-roast coffee, ground medium (about 2 tablespoons per 2 cups of water)
- Green cardamom pods, lightly crushed (3 to 4 pods)
- Optional: a thread of saffron or a clove or two
- A dallah or small saucepan, and small handleless cups
The method, step by step
- Heat the water in your dallah or pot until it is steaming but not boiling.
- Add the ground coffee and stir gently to combine.
- Add the crushed cardamom and any saffron or cloves.
- Bring it almost to a boil, then lower the heat and let it steep gently for several minutes. Do not let it boil over.
- Rest the pot off the heat so the grounds settle to the bottom.
- Pour slowly and clear into small cups, leaving the grounds behind.
Serving it right
Fill each cup only a third of the way, serve the eldest guest first, and offer dates alongside. The dates carry the sweetness so the coffee stays clean and aromatic. Refill as cups empty, and watch for the gentle side-to-side tilt that means a guest is content.
The signal of a good cup
Authentic qahwa is light amber, not dark, and you should smell the cardamom before you taste the coffee.
Prefer to taste ours first, or stock up on beans?