Okay, we agree. The name dirty coffee doesn’t sound too appealing when your first hear it. “dirty” isn’t a word that should be used with any food or beverage. But not only is this coffee called “Dirty Coffee,” but it’s trendy too.
What makes it so popular? And how can you make this latest caffeine sensation at home?
Read on, and we’ll answer both of these questions for you.
Table of Contents
What Is Dirty Coffee?
Simply, dirty coffee is made using cold milk and hot espresso. The barista first starts with cold milk and then tops it with espresso. Since the two layers have such different temperatures—one cool and one almost boiling—it takes a few minutes for the espresso to settle in the glass. This is because liquids with two different temperatures don’t mix.
Unlike other common coffee drinks, dirty coffee isn’t a hot drink. Instead, it can be lukewarm or cold, depending on how much ice you add to the mixture.
For those few minutes, the espresso floats on top of the milk. The espresso slowly starts bleeding into the cold milk below as the milk gets warmer. As the espresso oozes across the edges of the glass, it creates swirls and drips, giving the coffee a dirty look that gives it its name. So now you know the coffee isn’t dirty. It just looks the part.
The drink tastes so good because you first taste the intense espresso, followed by cold milk that washes down the bitter flavor. Hot espresso and cold milk are perfect for a sound cup of coffee.
Temperature-wise, dirty coffee can be a lukewarm drink or a cold one. If you add ice cubes, it’ll be cooler.
Where does dirty coffee come from, though? The delicious beverage is from Asia, though it is difficult to pinpoint its location to any country. Some say it is Japanese, while others argue that the drink hails from China or South Korea. No matter where it came from, this coffee took the world by storm and has become a sensation that’s part of coffee houses everywhere.
How to Make Dirty Coffee at Home?
You don’t need to try dirty coffee at a fancy coffee shop.
Moreover, now that you know what dirty coffee is, you may want to learn how to prepare this delicious drink at home.
It’s easy. After all, it takes only cold milk and espresso. The drink sure is simple, and here’s how you can make your version. As a bonus, we’ve also included our best tips for making it taste and look fantastic.
Step 1: Make Your Espresso
This step doesn’t give you any problems if you have an espresso maker at home. Here we’ve used 8 g of coffee per 29 ml of water for an espresso shot, but you can adjust this according to your preference and your machine.
Additionally, you can use a single or a double shot of espresso for this drink. To keep things simple, we’ll use a single espresso shot.
Step 2: Serve the Drink
Start with a glass—a transparent one works best because you can see the espresso and milk mixing— and add your cold milk to it. Then top it with your hot espresso right before you’re about to serve it. If you’d like to sweeten things up, use syrup instead of sugar and add it to the bottom of the cup. Do not mix the coffee after adding the espresso. This will ruin the entire effect of the drink.
These two steps are all it takes to make a good dirty coffee. Do these two steps right, and you’ll have yourself a smooth cup of liquid heaven. Now take some pictures and make your friends jealous, share them with your friends online, or enjoy the coffee by yourself. Dirty coffee looks and tastes amazing anywhere.
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Dirty Coffee: What is it and how to make it
Dirty coffee is a delicious and easy-to-make beverage combining hot espresso and cold milk. To make it at home, we used Moka pot coffee, which is a more affordable and simple alternative.
- Total Time: 7 minutes
- Yield: 2 cups of dirty coffee 1x
Ingredients
- 10 g ground coffee
- 120 ml water
- One glass of cold milk
Instructions
- This step doesn’t give you any problems if you have an espresso maker at home. Here we’ve used 8 g of coffee per 29 ml of water for an espresso shot, but you can adjust this according to your preference and your machine. Additionally, you can use a single or a double shot of espresso for this drink. To keep things simple, we’ll use a single espresso shot.
- Start with a glass—a transparent one works best because you can see the espresso and milk mixing— and add your cold milk to it. Then top it with your hot espresso right before you’re about to serve it. If you’d like to sweeten things up, use syrup instead of sugar and add it to the bottom of the cup. Do not mix the coffee after adding the espresso. This will ruin the entire effect of the drink.
These two steps are all it takes to make an excellent dirty coffee. Now take some pictures and make your friends jealous, share them with your friends online, or enjoy the coffee by yourself. Dirty coffee looks and tastes terrific anywhere. Do these two steps right, and you’ll have a smooth cup of liquid heaven.
Notes
Nutrition facts are approximated and calculated using the Verywell recipe nutrition calculator.
- Prep Time: 2 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Category: Coffee drinks
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 74
- Sugar: 6.4 g
- Sodium: 51 mg
- Fat: 4 g
- Saturated Fat: 2.3 g
- Carbohydrates: 5.5 g
- Fiber: 0 g
- Protein: 4.1 g
Our Favorite Tips
Here are our favorite tips for making the best cup of dirty coffee.
Darker Roast: Use a darker roast when brewing your espresso for a more intense flavor. Additionally, even though our recipe uses espresso, you can also use ristretto for a more robust flavor profile.
The Milk: When it comes to milk, the colder it is, the better. The longer the milk takes to warm up, the longer the espresso shot’s “floating effect” with beautiful layers will last. On that note, milk with high-fat content both looks and tastes better.
Chill the Glass: Here’s our favorite tip for making excellent dirty coffee: chill the milk and the glass. The chilled glass will contrast the hot espresso, amping up our experience. Secondly, cooling the glass prevents the milk from warming up too fast, making the effect last longer.
Espresso Without a Machine: You can use anything from a manual espresso machine to a Moka pot if you don’t have an espresso machine. There are tons of other methods online too.
Pour the Espresso Right: When pouring your espresso, ensure you don’t pour it too fast and with too much pressure. This will prevent the espresso from forming a layer on top. Add a teaspoon between your espresso and the milk, and pour the espresso on the spoon. The spoon will break its fall and spread your espresso widely, producing a thin layer.
Other Drinks Like Dirty Coffee
Dirty Chai Tea
Although not a coffee drink, the dirty chai drink resembles dirty coffee. Instead of espresso, you use masala chai and pour it over cold milk. The final effect is very similar to dirty coffee.
Dirty Chai Latte
The chai latte is a consumer favorite made with a mix of masala chai and espresso. However, adding it to cold milk helps make a dirty chai latte a must-try for any chai lover.
Are you ready to get your hands dirty?
So now you know what dirty coffee is and how you can make a cup of the brew at home. So, is it something you’re looking forward to trying? If it is, you’re in the right place. The recipe and tips we’ve shared above will help you make a dirty coffee worthy of any Instagram feed. Also, if dirty coffee doesn’t suit your taste, you can always try dirty chai tea or chai latte. With coffee, the possibilities are limitless.
