Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Eritrean Coffee

Just a quick little post on on awesome new foodstuff I discovered the other day. I was wondering around Prahran market for the first time in ages and stopped at Beangreen Vegetarian Cafe. They had a few pretty delicious gluten free options, and then I saw the sign. Eritrean Coffee. Brewed turkish-style, with added ginger, cardamom* and cinnamon. Mmmmmm.

The coffee gourd
 It was a delicious experience! Served in little turkish cups with a spoonful of sugar in the bottom (don't stir it though!) Just the right amount of sweetness seeps through to balance the intense ginger flavour. First thought was that they had put a bit of chilli in the mix, but it was just the spiciness of the ginger. It was wonderful! I love the thick sweetness of turkish coffee anyway, and I'm a sucker for a good chai, so this was the best of both worlds. Definitely worth checking out for a unique coffee experience.
Little side note: the woman who served us explained the importance of the pouring ceremony. It has very specific rules and traditions. Have a read if you're interested! 



*Upon writing this post, I realised that for my entire life I have been pronouncing it as Cardamon. I'm clearly an idiot, but hey, I learnt something new today!