Vietnamese Iced Coffee (pictorial)

10:57 AM

Oh!!! Its Sensational!

That's all I could manage to mumble, in between glugging my very first glass of this delightful drink. It's chilled, Its sweet, Its rich, its creamy and has that heady aroma of filter coffee. With a nod from Hubby, I licked my lips and ordered one more.

It was a hot and humid February day and we were shopping in Chatuchak market in Bangkok when we first tasted Vietnamese Iced Coffee. The petite young girl had a big potful of Boiling coffee decoction which she poured on a glass full of ice and then a big dollop of the magic ingredient, sinful yet delicious condensed milk. Gave us a thick straw to stir and create some serious Yum!

History says that coffee in Vietnam was introduced by the French. Later due to the unavailability of fresh milk they started using sweetened condensed milk and gifted the world one of the exquisite drink to cherish. Ca phe sua da as it is known in Vietnam literally means Coffee-milk-ice and the sua part comes from sweetened condensed milk.

If you are a filter coffee addict like me then you cant think of a better drink in hot hot summer. It quenches your thirst for your favourite drink and provides much respite in the hot weather. The pre requisite definitely is some good quality coarsely ground roast dark coffee. Which needs to be brewed to extract the most aromatic coffee decoction. Earlier I used to brew a cupful of this in my mini filter coffee container but ever since saw this post I now a days prepare a big batch of coffee decoction and store in a glass bottle in the fridge. That way am always iced coffee ready, whenever the thirst settles in.

Statutry Warning: This is addictive and be warned its full of calorie.

Vietnamese Iced coffee

Ingredients:

Ground coffee: 1/2 cup

Water: 1 liter

Condensed milk: 3-4 tbsp per glass (my glasses are quite tall)

Milk: 4-5 tbsp per glass (Use full fat for best result)

Ice cubes: enough to fill the glasses

Sugar if required

Method:

Boil the water.

Place the filter coffee in a big glass bowl and pour the boiling water. Mix, loosely cover and let it come to room temparature. Then tighten the lid and place in the fridge for 24 hours.

Strain the liquid and store in a glass bottle.

When you are ready to serve.

Mix condensed milk with milk and stir to mix in the condensed milk. Keep aside. for best result use chilled milk. I find this method easier than stirring the thick stick milk directly in the glass.

Fill the glass with ice.

Start pouring the coffee decoction till its 3/4th full.

Fill the glass with the milk mixture.

Little more....

Now stir...

Taste...

My big sweet tooth wants little sugar...mix...taste

A little more condensed milk never kills anyone (greedy greedy me)...its so delish...so sweet...

stir...stir...stir...taste...

Ah Perfect!
Love the Kick of Caffeine and heady aroma.

A Homemaker's Notes:
Use a dollop of vanilla ice cream o make it super tempting.

You need loads of ice cubes to fill the glasses. If you are planning to serve more than 2 make sure to stock some ice cubes.

Events: