Last updated on October 27th, 2023 at 13:35
When you learn how to make Brazilian coffee with a great traditional cafezinho recipe, it is in your best interest to follow the instructions and suggestions and enjoy it just as the locals do and enjoy your coffee black.
Using the very best ingredients will get you the best result. In this Brazilian coffee recipe we give two options for which coffee to use: one is outstanding in the taste department, the other is the most popular coffee in the nation.
Keep reading to learn this tasty Cafezinho recipe and what coffee beans are ultra delicious!
What Is A Cafezinho Coffee?
Table Of Contents
- 1 What Is A Cafezinho Coffee?
- 2 Cafezinho And Its Place In Brazilian Culture
- 3 How To Make Brazilian Coffee – A Delicious Cafezinho Recipe
- 4 Brazilian Coffee Maker – Do You Need One?
- 5 What Brazilian Coffee Should You Use?
- 6 Frequently Asked Questions About How To Make Brazilian Coffee
- 6.1 How Is Brazil Coffee Made?
- 6.2 What Makes Brazilian Coffee Different?
- 6.3 What Do Brazilians Put In Their Coffee?
- 6.4 What Coffee Is Similar To Brazilian Coffee?
- 6.5 What Coffee Is Famous In Brazil?
- 6.6 How Is Brazilian Coffee Made?
- 6.7 What Is A Typical Brazilian Coffee?
- 6.8 Why Is Brazilian Coffee So Expensive?
- 7 Final Thoughts – How To Make Brazilian Coffee
Cafezinho literally translates to little black coffee, hence why it is served black. The deeper meaning and beauty of Cafezinho is the underlying meaning and how it is culturally enjoyed in the South American nation – coffee with friends.
It is a coffee drink that you will find all over Brazil, even in the most remote of places, even though it is the traditional coffee drink and due to the name, a traditional Cafezinho is enjoyed black, but you will find that it is now relatively common for Brazilians to enjoy it with milk or cream.
The typical Cafezinho is made with rapadura, unrefined Brazilian sugar.
Read: Brazilian coffee recipe
Cafezinho And Its Place In Brazilian Culture
One of the fabulous things about Brazil is the hospitality of the local people, they are so warm, so welcoming and so friendly – you are always offered a cafezinho and, they won’t permit your refusal.
…that is if you are even asked! More often than not one will be made for you, just simply handed to you with the expected answer of yes…so why ask!
At work, in the office, you can be working away and from nowhere, from the coffee gods, someone will appear and just pour one for you.
Even when you are shopping in the more sophisticated boutiques, you can expect someone to approach you and offer you a coffee. At coffee bars, expect a sweet sugar-dipped orange peel to be placed next to your cup.
In Brazil, there is always time for cafezinho.
How To Make Brazilian Coffee – A Delicious Cafezinho Recipe
When you want to make Brazilian Coffee, and make it as delicious as you possibly can, use the best possible ingredients. It is the chef’s principle.
For an authentic cafezinho, use rapadura. One thing that changes the flavor and outcome of your drink quite dramatically in cases is the sweetener that you use. If you can’t find rapadura in your local stores, you can and will find it on Amazon.
For better results, instead of using coffee grounds, buy whole beans and grind them immediately before brewing. Of course, use Brazilian beans – that is part and parcel of this coffee recipe.
I’ll talk about which beans later.
Let’s get making a fabulous and tasty Brazilian coffee concoction.
Read: Café Bustelo Brazil
The Ingredients That You Need
You need very few ingredients to make Brazilian coffee. none of which are difficult to find. Rapadura, which is unrefined cane sugar you will find on Amazon.
Here is what you need to make 4 cups of Cafezinho.
- 4 heaped teaspoons of high-quality, finely ground coffee of an espresso grind.
- 4 teaspoons of rapadura.
- 4 cups (720 ml, 24 ounces) of mineral water or filtered water.
- Milk or cream (optional).
Equipment Required
There is no essential specialist equipment that you need to have other than what you may already have.
- A paper coffee filter, cotton cloth filter (coffee sock) or a metal coffee filter.
- A glass for serving your coffee drink.
- A saucepan for heating your water.
Step 1: Get Started By Boiling Your Water And Adding Sugar
This is where it all begins. Please adhere to the suggested temperature for making a great and very traditional coffee from a country that is very well known for its coffee.
The perfect temperature for brewing coffee is 92C and 96C (196F and 206F). Due to being a strong coffee, lean towards the higher end of the temperature scale.
When you brew below 92C (196F) you may end up with a sour tasting coffee; above 96C (206F) your coffee will taste burnt.
If you don’t have a digital thermometer you can boil your water and then take it out the heat to cool down for 30 seconds before you add your coffee grounds.
Heat your water and add your 4 teaspoons of rapadura and stir well.
Step 2: Remove Your Water–Sugar Mix From The Heat
Take your saucepan or pot off the heat and add your coffee grounds and stir well for 20 seconds. You can add your saucepan to the heat and stir your grounds to maintain the temperature range.
Step 3: Filter Time
Traditionally Brazilian coffee drinkers use a cloth coffee filter. You can try this one for an authentic experience. Traditional cafezinho is made with a cotton cloth filter that then drips into the cup below.
Later, it is up to you to adjust the type of filter that you use. The coffee filter that you use alters the final result due to how much of the coffee oils get filtered out.
A regular coffee filter, paper of a cone or flat bottom design results in a cleaner, crisper taste due to filtering out of all coffee oils.
A metal filter will result in a full-bodied coffee and full flavored due to filtering out none of the coffee oil.
A cloth coffee filter will result in a coffee that is in between the other two as they filter out only some, but not all, the coffee oils.
All will result in a great cup of coffee.
Simply pour your coffee mixture through your filter. To make it the way the Brazilians do, use a coffee sock, a cotton cloth filter and use it to filter your coffee.
Read: Cafezinho
Step 4: Enjoy Your Coffee
The final step. There is no need to add sugar since you already added rapadura when making your coffee.
You can optionally enjoy it as a black coffee or add milk or cream to lighten the taste and add texture.
Brazilian Coffee Maker – Do You Need One?
There is no specialist Brazilian coffee maker as such. Many use a coffee sock holder and place their mug below to catch the coffee that is dripping out.
What Brazilian Coffee Should You Use?
When you are making Brazilian coffee and want to get the best from this cafezinho recipe I encourage you to use high-quality coffee that is single-origin coffee beans from Brazil.
Whole beans are best and much fresher than pre-ground coffee.
Peaberry coffee is a rare mutation that needs to be hand-picked. They are coffee beans that instead of having a twin, they are single coffee seeds inside the cherry getting all the flavor compounds and nutrients and not sharing them with another bean.
Which makes them particularly nutritious and delicious.
Volcanic coffee is particularly desired due to the high quality soil that is high in mineral content. It is also known for being tasty.
This makes my top recommended choice Brazilian Peaberry Coffee by Volcanica.
If you want an authentic experience, buy Pilao coffee traditional roast. This is the most popular coffee in Brazil and is what they use to make cafezinho at home.
Frequently Asked Questions About How To Make Brazilian Coffee
How Is Brazil Coffee Made?
Brazilian coffee is processed in 3 different ways. You will either need to know your Brazilian beans or read the label on the packaging.
These are:
- Wet processed (also known as wet processing),
- Semi-washed (also known as pulped natural).
- Dry processed (also known as natural processed).
By far the majority of the coffee beans are dry processed which is due to the country having the perfect climate for this method.
What Makes Brazilian Coffee Different?
Brazilian coffee is different and stands out due to being a low acid coffee with an intense sweetness with chocolate and caramel notes. Brazilian coffee is full-bodied and heavy. Their specialty grade coffee is of top quality and very underrated. Upon a second or third sip you will absolutely enjoy the quality.
What Do Brazilians Put In Their Coffee?
Brazilians love to put rapadura in their coffee, the famous cafezinho coffee. Rapadura is unrefined sugar. The coffee drink is usually served as a black coffee and is best enjoyed so.
With that said, it’s also common to see Brazilian coffee drinkers put milk or cream in their cafezinho to slightly alter the texture and lighten the coffee taste.
Cafezinho is the traditional coffee drink that you will find all over Brazil.
What Coffee Is Similar To Brazilian Coffee?
The coffee that is most similar to Brazilian coffee is Colombian. They have a similar flavor profile and are, like Brazilian coffee, low in acid. They have a tendency to taste sweeter, just a touch sweeter.
What Coffee Is Famous In Brazil?
The famous coffee in Brazil and the one that is certainly worth trying is Bourbon Santos, arguable it is the best. It is silky smooth, with mild flavors and nutty sweet tones. Bourbon Santos is mostly grown in Minas Gerais or São Paulo.
How Is Brazilian Coffee Made?
The traditional way of making Brazilian coffee is to use finely ground coffee, add the grounds to sweetened boiling water that has been sweetened with rapadura and brew with a short brew time while stirring the coffee mixture. Then stain using a cloth coffee filter. That is how the famous Brazilian cafezinho is made.
What Is A Typical Brazilian Coffee?
The typical and classic Brazilian coffee beverage is a cafezinho. It’s a small 4 Oz (120 ml) strong black coffee. The name literally translates to little coffee.
Why Is Brazilian Coffee So Expensive?
Brazilian coffee is rising in price due to the increased energy cost. The price of oil forces the production cost to increase through the whole supply chain which impacts all aspects of the process from the machinery used for harvesting to even the fertilizer and pesticide used and of course the transportation and processing of the beans.
Final Thoughts – How To Make Brazilian Coffee
Now that you know how to make Brazilian coffee and what beans to use for an awesome traditional cafezinho with this cafezinho recipe you can go right ahead and make it.
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