Turkish coffee with an electric machine or hot sand
Let a machine or a bed of hot sand do the slow heating while you watch the foam.
⏱️ 5 minEasy
Starting recipe
7 g coffee + 70 g cold water per cup (1:10), heated gently until the foam rises in 2–4 minutes.
Grind: Extra fine, like flour
You need
- 7 g coffee per cup, ground extra fine like flour (or pre-ground Turkish coffee)
- 70 g cold water per cup
- An electric Turkish coffee machine, or a sand heater with a cezve
- A small spoon
- A demitasse cup (about 70–90 ml)
- Optional: sugar
Step by step
Add water, coffee and sugar
Measure 70 g of cold water per cup into the machine's pot or your cezve. Add 7 g of coffee per cup, plus sugar if you want it.
Stir once
Stir gently until there are no dry lumps. Then hands off.
Start heating
Machine: press start; most detect the rising foam and stop by themselves. Sand: push the cezve into the hot sand. The deeper you push it, the faster it heats.
Hot sand is far hotter than boiling water. Use the long handle only and keep fingers out of the sand.
2:00Watch the foam
After 2–4 minutes the foam rises. On sand, lift the cezve out as the foam reaches the neck. On a machine, stay nearby in case it doesn't stop in time.
Serve
Spoon some foam into each cup, then pour the rest slowly down the side. Let it settle for a minute before sipping.
60 sRinse the pot
Rinse the pot once it's cool. On a machine, wipe the sensor area so it keeps detecting the foam correctly.
Common mistakes
- Using hot water instead of cold.
- Overfilling the machine's pot above its max line.
- Burying the cezve deep in very hot sand and letting it boil over.
- Stirring after heating starts.
Tastes off? Fix it
| If it… | Try this |
|---|---|
| Sour or thin | Use a finer, flour-like grind. On sand, heat a little more slowly by keeping the cezve shallower. |
| Bitter or harsh | Stop the heat sooner so it never boils. If you grind it yourself, try one step coarser. |
| Weak | Use more coffee for the same water, for example 8 g per cup. |
| Too strong | Use a little less coffee for the same water, for example 6 g per cup. |
| Machine boils over | Stay within the max line and clean the foam sensor. If it keeps happening, stop it by hand as the foam rises. |
Words you'll hear
- Cezve
- A small pot with a long handle and a narrow neck, traditionally copper or brass. Also called an ibrik.
- Foam
- The thick, creamy layer that rises to the top as the coffee heats. Plenty of foam is the sign of a well-made cup.
- Turkish grind
- The finest grind there is, like flour or cocoa powder. Many grinders can't go that fine; pre-ground Turkish coffee works well.
- Grounds
- The sludge that settles at the bottom of the cup. Let it settle and leave it there.
- Ratio
- Water weight divided by coffee weight. 1:10 means 7 g of coffee to 70 g of water, one small cup.
- Demitasse
- A small cup, about 60–90 ml, used for Turkish coffee and espresso.