Cuban coffee (café Cubano) is a more than just a caffeinated beverage, it’s a source of sustenance, comfort and a reason to gather. Growing up in South Florida Cuban coffee has been part of everyday life. Called Café in Spanish and affectionately referred to as Cafecito, Cuban coffee is a strong, dark and sweet espresso with a characteristic thick foam (espumita) made from beating the sugar with a little bit of the coffee.
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I live in Miami; I have for all my life. One of the best things about living here is the food. Cuban food is one of the best cuisines in the world (I’m super biased with this opinion, I know).
Another great thing about living in Miami is that when you visit someone’s house (usually an older relative) you get offered “un Cafecito”. The offer is never to be refused because they will keep asking you until you say yes! So relent at once, you won’t regret it!
What you need to make Cuban coffee
- Appliance – Café Cubano can be made with an electric espresso machine – which is what you’ll find in restaurants and cafeterias. But, at home it’s typically made with a stove top coffee maker called a Moka Pot.
- In Spanish it’s called a cafetera. It’s a three piece appliance with a base that holds water, a metal filter that holds the coffee and the top that holds the brewed coffee.
- Coffee – What kind of coffee beans are used to make Cuban coffee? The coffee beans and grind used for Cuban coffee is the same as for espresso. Typically, a dark roast that is finely ground. Popular coffee brands include Café Pilon, Café Bustelo and Café La Llave. The coffee comes already ground in metal tins or in vacuum-packed bricks.
- Sugar – Regular old white sugar is what you’re going to find when you get coffee in South Florida and it works perfectly fine. I also use raw cane sugar and it works great too.
How to make espumita
Espumita is the foam on the Cuban coffee that’s made by beating a generous amount of sugar with the first few drops of the brewed coffee. That first bit of coffee is super dark and strong.
The sugar mixture is beaten vigorously until it becomes light in color. When the coffee is brewed and added to the sugar a delicious foam will magically rise to the top.
How it’s served
The cup your coffee comes in is going to depend on where you are. So, if you are at a cafeteria window and you ask for a “colada” you’ll probably get a 4 ounce paper or Styrofoam cup with mini plastic cups that hold about ¾ ounce of coffee. You’ll get about 5 or 6 of these mini cups so you can share. You know what goes great with the Cafecito, a pastelito de carne or empanadas.
If you are at a sit-down restaurant or at someone’s house the Cuban coffee will usually be served in a ceramic espresso cup that will hold 2 – 3 ounces.
Ingredients
- Coffee – Will be labeled espresso ground coffee or espresso – look for it in the coffee section of larger supermarkets, or in the international section. Popular brands include Café Bustelo, Café La Llave and Café Pilon.
- Sugar – White sugar or raw cane sugar will work just fine to make Cuban coffee.
- Water – Needed to brew the coffee, how much to use will depend on the size of the stovetop espresso maker
You will also need:
- Stovetop espresso maker (also called a Moka pot), you can find them at home stores and online. They range in price from relatively inexpensive to quite pricy. I have a pretty cheap model and it works great. And, as it gets older it becomes seasoned and makes better coffee.
- Sturdy cup – to beat the sugar with a little bit of coffee to make the foam, and then add the brewed coffee.
- Spoon – to beat the sugar and coffee
Instructions
The amount of water, coffee and sugar is going to depend on how large your stovetop coffee maker is and how sweet you like things. This is how I make Cuban coffee, and for reference my I have a 1 cup stovetop coffee maker.
Fill the base/water receptacle with cool/cold water up to the valve. Don’t go over. For our maker it was 1 cup.
Insert the filter (funnel), it goes right over the water.
Fill the filter with ground espresso to the top. Spread it evenly and level it off but do not pack it tightly. For our coffee maker we used about 5 heaping and loosely packed teaspoons. Check the rim and wipe any grounds off.
Screw the top on and tighten. Don’t make it so tight that it’s almost impossible to open but do create a good seal.
Place the coffee maker on a small burner over medium-high heat. Leave the lid up so you can see when it starts to brew. It is going to take a bit to get going, about 7-10 minutes, but once it does it will brew very quickly. Don’t leave it unattended.
While you wait, prepare a cup with the sugar. We use 3½ heaping teaspoons for our café Cubano.
As soon as the coffee starts to brew, take the pot off the heat. Get about 1 teaspoon of the brewed coffee and add it to the cup with sugar. The reason we want to get it as soon as it starts to brew is because it will be strong. That’s how we want it to make the foam.
Immediately place the pot back on the burner and let it continue brewing. When ¼ to ⅓ of the coffee has brewed, turn off the heat and close the lid.
In the meantime, beat the sugar and coffee mixture vigorously until it lightens in color.
Pour the coffee in the cup with the sugar and stir gently concentrating on the bottom and sides where the sugar is. I usually leave a little coffee in the pot and don’t pour it all in especially the last little bit that brews after I’ve added the coffee to the sugar.
Serve immediately and enjoy!
Variations
- The brewed coffee with just sugar is called a colada, but you don’t have to have plain Cuban coffee. There are two popular ways to enjoy it, a Cortadito and a Café con Leche.
- A cortadito is the coffee with a little bit of steamed milk. It will still have the strong coffee taste but will be mellowed some by the milk.
- A café con leche (which translates to coffee with milk) is exactly that, steamed milk with Cuban coffee. The ratio will vary by taste.
You may also like these Cuban recipes:
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Cuban Coffee (Café Cubano)
Ingredients
- 5 – 6 teaspoons Espresso Ground Coffee (use heaping teaspoons)
- 1 cup Water
- 3½ teaspoons Sugar White sugar or raw cane sugar
Instructions
- You will also need: Stovetop espresso maker (also called a Moka pot), Sturdy cup, Spoon
- Fill the base/water receptacle with cool/cold water up to the valve. Don’t go over. For our maker it was 1 cup.
- Insert the filter (funnel), it goes right over the water.
- Fill the filter with ground espresso to the top. Spread it evenly and level it off but do not pack it tightly. For our coffee maker we used about 5 heaping and loosely packed teaspoons.
- Check the rim and wipe any grounds off.
- Screw the top on and tighten. Don’t make it so tight that it’s almost impossible to open but do create a good seal.
- Place the coffee maker on a small burner over medium-high heat. Leave the lid up so you can see when it starts to brew.
- It is going to take a bit to get going, about 7-10 minutes, but once it does it will brew very quickly. Don’t leave it unattended.
- While you wait, prepare a cup with the sugar. We use 3½ heaping teaspoons.
- As soon as the coffee starts to brew, take the coffee pot off the heat and get about 1 teaspoon and add it to the cup with sugar.
- Immediately place the pot back on the burner and let it continue brewing. When ¼ to ⅓ of the coffee has brewed, turn off the heat (but leave it on the burner) and close the lid.
- In the meantime, beat the sugar and coffee mixture vigorously until it lightens in color.
- Pour the coffee in the cup with the sugar and stir gently concentrating on the bottom and sides where the sugar is.
- Serve immediately and enjoy!
Notes
- The amount of water, coffee and sugar is going to depend on how large your stovetop coffee maker is and how sweet you like things. This is how I make Cuban coffee and for reference my coffee maker is a 1 cup stovetop coffee maker. For smaller and larger coffee makers the amounts of water, coffee and sugar will have to be adjusted.
- I usually leave a little coffee in the pot and don’t pour it all in especially the last little bit that brews after I’ve added the coffee to the sugar.
Deb
How long to brew, as I can’t see to measure 1/3 to 1/4?
Elizabeth
It is going to be quick. It only brews about a minute or two. The 1/3 to 1/4 brewed is to cover and turn off the heat. The residual heat on the burner will finish the brewing and the closing the lid is so it doesn’t splatter everywhere. Hope that answers your question, thanks for stopping by.