Bosnian Coffee. Smooth, dark, strong. Unforgettable!
Although I started drinking coffee very early (I was 7), it was a hard win. My grandma relented only after months of my scheming.
There was an arsenal of legends old folks would tell children to prevent them from trying coffee in secret. Not only did coffee stunt growth, grandma claimed, but girls who drank coffee grew a tail. I was skeptical but it was enough for our mutt Chubby to drag his ghastly train of hair through the kitchen, for my patience to return.
Grandma eventually put a miniature coffee cup in front of me. The moment my lips crinkled into an ‘o’ to greet the black liquid pursuing melted sugar on my tongue, my body delighted in this coming of age. "We'll keep this between us," she said.
If by chance someone from the Balkans offers you coffee, don't expect to leave soon. Coffee is the culture. It's a verb. It's what you do to keep yourself sane. It's also a way to show someone they mean something to you. It's a time investment one is making, and if they've invited you this means they think a lot of you.
If you've never had it before, it's deep and rich, and just a tiny bit weaker than traditional Turkish coffee. It's prepared in the coffee pot called "džezva," and you can easily find it on Amazon, C&B or Sur La Table (look for a Turkish coffee pot). It's served in small espresso cups.
Trust me, you only want a cup or two, and you sip it slowly.
Bosnian Coffee (Kafa/ Kava/ Kahva) Recipe
- Cook Time: 10 mins
- Total Time: 10 mins
- Yield: 2 1x
- Category: Beverage
Ingredients
- 2 and ½ cups water
- 1 and ½ teaspoon finely ground coffee (medium roast)
- 1 Turkish coffee pot or dzezva (one used in this recipe has the volume of 1.5 cups)
- Optional: sugar/ milk/ Turkish delight
Instructions
- Set water to boil in a separate pan (electric kettle is fine), and place the coffee into a Turkish coffee pot/ dzezva.
- When the water boils, pour it into the coffee pot and mix well.
- Place the coffee pot on the hot stove ring, and leave for several seconds, watching it doesn't boil over. Once the coffee rises and is almost about to spill from the pot, remove the pot from the hot stove ring to the cool part of the stove, and let settle down for another several seconds.
- Add some boiling water left over from before to the coffee pot, mix the coffee, and place the pot back on the hot ring. When it's close to boiling over, remove from the hot ring again.
- Repeat steps 3 & 4 once or twice. The goal is to have the coffee rise up a couple times, so that it develops a smooth cream-like top layer.
- When you're ready to serve the coffee, start by grabbing a teaspoon of the top layer and adding it to each coffee cup, and then pour the rest of the coffee in. This will allow the cream layer to rise to the top of each cup. Serve with Turkish delights, sugar or milk.
Notes
IMPORTANT: Your measurements will depend size of the coffee pot you're using. The measurement used in this recipe is 1 teaspoon for every cup of water. After you've made coffee this way a few times, you'll find out if you like it stronger or weaker and can adjust accordingly.
Lauren says
Aida, this coffee pot is GORGEOUS! Do you have a recommendation on where I could try Bosnian coffee in the area? I'm in MD just outside of DC. Coffee is my best friend 😉
aida says
You can use regular roast bean coffee from any grocery store. The trick is to grind it very well.
Or you can come over for a cup, I'm in Arlington! 🙂
Heather says
Yes! I was taught when in Sarajevo, but forgot and can't find my notes. Now I can make it proper with the set I brought back. 🙂
Aida says
Hi Heather! Glad you visited Sarajevo. Yup, super easy, tasty coffee, to go with your matching coffee set. Thanks for stopping by!
Josh says
Hello. We visited Sarajevo in July and stupidly didn't but a Bosnian coffee set. We would really like to buy, or maybe 2, sets. Any idea how we can do this? I can't find any websites that sell them online. Thank you
Aida says
Hey Josh,
I'm not familiar with US vendors selling the original coffee sets, and most shops in Sarajevo as far as I know don't do online orders. However, even in Bosnia most people don't drink out of the old school coffee sets you probably saw on Baščaršija. It's not about that set really, it's about a good pot and the way you make the coffee, so my recommendation is as follows. Search for a "turkish coffee pot" on Amazon and get one that looks similar to what you saw in Sarajevo. Also search for "espresso coffee cup set" and get a set. Then go to your neighborhood grocery store's coffee aisle. Get a medium roast of decent coffee, and grind it down until its consistency is similar to that of flour. Then follow the recipe above.
Best of luck!
Josh says
Thank you for that. I should have said in my previous reply that we would like the set for a souvenir from our time in Bosnia.
Matthew Gabbard says
Haha, your grandmother must have been a sweet lady. The "girls who drink coffee grow a tail," myth is really cute. I'm going to try making coffee this way. It sounds really good. Cheers ????
Aida says
Thanks Matthew... Oh yea, she was a trip... sweet with some bitchy moments. 🙂
Hope you make and enjoy the coffee, and thanks for stopping by!
Ryan Smith (Sibernethy) says
There are a lot of Bosnians in Idaho, particularly in Boise. I'll remember the customs regarding Bosnian coffee if I make some friends. 🙂
Aida says
Lovely 🙂
kat says
This is known throughout the world as Turkish Coffee even though it is enjoyed throughout the Balkans.
Aida says
It's not the same. Turkish coffee is much stronger and cooked differently.