Ingredients
Drink
- 400 mlwater
- 2 tsporange blossom water, mazaher
- 1 tsphoney or sugar, to taste
Optional
- a strip of orange peel
- a small piece of cinnamon
- a few drops of rosewater
To serve
- small coffee cups or tea glasses
- after dinner
Directions
- Use about a teaspoon per cup, and start with less rather than more. Too much orange blossom water and the drink tastes of soap or perfume, and it goes from fragrant to overwhelming very quickly.
- Add it gradually and taste as you go.
- Boil the water, then let it cool for a moment before adding the mazaher.
- Add the orange blossom water off the boil rather than boiling it.
- Pour the hot water into the cups first. Sweeten with a little honey or sugar if you want, though many drink it unsweetened.
- Serve it in small cups, the same ones used for Arabic coffee, or in small glasses.
- Add a strip of orange peel or a small piece of cinnamon to the cup if you like, though the plain version is standard. It takes two minutes and it is the sort of hospitality that costs almost nothing.
Technique
- It contains no coffee whatsoever and is named by analogy.
- Mazaher is distilled from bitter orange blossom in spring.
- Malaysian and American white coffee are entirely different things.
Substitutions
- Rosewater in place of orange blossom, which is a different but related drink.
- A good quality mazaher, which is worth paying for.
Variations
- With a little cinnamon.
- With a strip of orange peel.
- Made with rosewater instead.
History
Digestif of Lebanese homes made with a spoonful of orange-blossom water, called coffee only by habit.
Frequently asked questions
What is White coffee?
White coffee is a drink from Lebanon: hot water scented with orange blossom, drunk after dinner; no coffee at all. Digestif of Lebanese homes made with a spoonful of orange-blossom water, called coffee only by habit.
How long does White coffee take to make?
White coffee takes 2 min of preparation and 3 min of cooking. The recipe makes 2 cups. It is rated easy to make.
What can I substitute in White coffee?
Yes, within limits. Rosewater in place of orange blossom, which is a different but related drink. A good quality mazaher, which is worth paying for.
What is the most important thing to get right in White coffee?
Use about a teaspoon per cup, and start with less rather than more. Too much orange blossom water and the drink tastes of soap or perfume, and it goes from fragrant to overwhelming very quickly.
