The BEST Whipped Coffee aka "Dalgona Coffee" Recipe - Fed & Fit (2024)

After seeing dalgona coffee, AKA whipped coffee, all over the internet, we of course had to jump in and try it ourselves! After a few sips, we were hooked – but also curious about how we could make this tasty coffee drink even better – and more accessible to folks who might not have the key ingredients on hand.

While the dalgona coffee recipe at its core is super simple (water, coffee, and sugar), we’ve spent days in the kitchen whipping up (quite literally) as many variations of those three ingredients as we could think of, and we’re here to share our findings and answer all of the “Will it work with [insert type of coffee/sugar here]?” questions that you have!

Testing Whipped Coffee Methods

We tested instant coffee, PLUS 7 other coffee options, each with granulated sugar, coconut sugar, honey, maple syrup, stevia, monk fruit sweetener, and no sweetener at all. To keep things consistent, we used an electric hand-mixer for exactly 2 minutes for each of the trials.

What types of coffee work best?

Our basic formula was 2 teaspoons instant coffee + 2 teaspoons granulated sugar OR 1 ½ teaspoons liquid sweetener + 2 teaspoons boiling water. Below you’ll find the results of all the coffee types we tried!

• Regular instant coffee – we found that this is your best bet for fluffy, frothy whipped coffee!
• Decaf instant coffee – decaf worked just as well as regular instant coffee.
• Instant espresso – Espresso powder makes a slightly frothier, stickier whipped coffee that also tastes great.
• Four Sigmatic Pouches – These have a strong flavor, but they do whip well with all sweeteners!
• Starbucks VIA Instant Coffee – These behaved just like regular instant coffee!
• Strong Brewed Coffee and espresso – Strong brewed coffee and espresso did NOT work for this recipe. We found that you really need to use a dry/powdered coffee for good results.

Can you make whipped coffee with matcha instead?

We found that matcha won’t whip on its own when combined with water and sugar. For whipped matcha, you’ll need to either whip 2 tablespoons of aquafaba (liquid from a can of chickpeas) OR one egg white until frothy, then add the sugar (2 teaspoons) and whip until stiff. Whisk the matcha powder in until incorporated and dollop over iced milk!

What types of sweeteners work best?

Once we nailed down what types of coffee work best, we also wanted to try different sweeteners! Below is a comparison of every sweetener type.

• Granulated Sugar – Granulated sugar is what the original dalgona coffee recipe uses, and we found that it produces a reliable, frothy whipped coffee!
• Pure Maple Syrup – This was our winner in terms of both fluff and flavor!
• Honey – This produced the frothiest coffee, but had a strong honey flavor.
• Monk Fruit – Monk fruit created a slightly less frothy whipped coffee, but we found that it was comparable to granulated sugar. This is our pick if you want a sugar-free sweetener here!
• Coconut Sugar – We found coconut sugar was harder to work with than granulated sugar, it created a darker, less fluffy whipped coffee that fell quickly.
• Stevia – We found that stevia created a darker, more frothy than fluffy result.
• No Sweetener – Without sweetener, the mixture will fluff slightly, but will flatten quickly. Sweetener is key to a full whipped coffee experience!

What is the best whipping method?

Lastly, in our pursuit to be as thorough as possible, we tested three different tools for whipping: a hand whisk, a milk frother, and an electric hand mixer. Don’t give up if you aren’t getting fluff! If you hit the 5 minute mark (after high-speed consistent mixing/whisking), then there could be an unseen variable at play: altitude, temperature, or age of the sugar or coffee. Below you’ll find our test results!

• Hand Whisk – This method works well, but it takes a lot of elbow grease! You’ll need to whisk your coffee for about 3-5 minutes for a good result.
• Electric Mixer – This is hands-down our favorite whipping method! In 2-3 minutes, you’ll have perfect whipped coffee, with little mess.
• Stand Mixer – The stand mixer produces equally as great results as an electric mixer, but given the choice we’d choose the electric mixer because it is less clean up!
• Milk Frother – We found that using a coffee frother created a big, splattery mess and it didn’t froth the coffee as well!

Our Top Takeaways

Here are our takeaways from our whipped coffee tests:

• Fluffiest whip: decaf!
• Most reliable sweetener: maple syrup (with ANY instant powder)
• Thickest/creamiest whip: honey, but the flavor is very distinct
• Longest time to whip into a fluff (about 5 minutes with an electric hand mixer): coconut sugar
• Least stable fluff: no sweetener (black), or stevia (it’ll whip in 3-4 minutes, but will flatten quickly)
• Collagen powder: whipping the collagen with the instant coffee weighs-down the fluff, resulting in a texture that’s VERY similar to melted ice cream! It’s great…just different. If you want collagen in your coffee, we’d recommend stirring it in with your milk instead!

Our Foolproof Whipped Coffee Recipe

After making about 200 cups of Dalgona coffee collectively, we’ve decided that this combination is the winner:

• 2 teaspoons organic instant coffee
• 2 teaspoons PURE (the good stuff!) maple syrup
• 2 teaspoons HOT (doesn’t have to be actively boiling) water

Mix the instant coffee, maple syrup, and hot water with a hand mixer for 3 full minutes, then spoon over 1 cup crushed ice + 1 cup whole organic GF milk. Give it a good stir and enjoy with a metal reusable straw!

Troubleshooting Tips

Finally, here are a few tips to solve some common dalgona coffee problems!

• It’s too strong. Milk, milk, milk! Stir that coffee into at least a half cup of milk (both dairy and non-dairy work great!) before enjoying it.
• It isn’t getting lighter in color. We found that the versions we tested with less sugar (or none at all) didn’t lighten quite as much. If you’re looking for that picture-perfect caramel color, you’ll need to have equal parts instant coffee + sugar.
• It isn’t fluffing. Make sure you’re moving your hand mixer in a circular motion and keeping that mixer moving for at least 2 minutes straight.
• It’s splattering + making a mess. We found that using the correct bowl size was the best way to avoid a mess. It needs to be small enough for the instant coffee, sugar, and water mixture to not be too spread out. It also needs high enough walls to contain the splatter, as some of it is unavoidable. Also, our powerful milk frother made a MUCH larger mess than the hand mixer.

Frequently Asked Questions