Saudi Arabian recipe
How to make Arabic coffee
قهوة (gahwa)
All of Saudi Arabia
Lightly roasted coffee boiled with plenty of cardamom, sometimes with saffron or cloves, giving a pale golden, bitter and fragrant drink. It is poured from a long-spouted pot called a dallah into small cups without handles, a few sips at a time.
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons lightly roasted Arabic coffee, coarsely ground
- 1 tablespoon cardamom pods, lightly crushed
- A few saffron threads and 2 cloves (optional)
- 750 ml water
- Dates, to serve
Method
- Bring the water to the boil in a small pot, add the coffee and simmer gently for 10 to 15 minutes, taking care it does not boil over.
- Take off the heat, add the cardamom, and the saffron and cloves if using, and leave to settle for 5 minutes so the grounds sink.
- Pour carefully into a flask or dallah, leaving the grounds behind.
- Serve in small cups, only a third full, with dates on the side. Take care: the coffee is very hot.
Made it at home? Tick it off and it goes into your kitchen passport.
In 2015 UNESCO added Arabic coffee as a symbol of generosity to its list of intangible heritage, after a joint nomination by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Oman and Qatar. Jordan joined the listing in 2024.
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