Image Credit to: Unilever Food Solutions
Coffee has always been a traditional hot beverage in Malaysia widely popular across multiple generations. At home, coffee is served during breakfast, tea time, supper and a welcome drink for guest. You can easily find them in restaurants, outdoor stalls, and kopitiams (local coffee shops) in any part of the country.
The traditional way of drinking coffee in Malaysia is using the filtered type, served in a porcelain cup. You can add sugar or condensed milk to your coffee. However, the recent hipster café trend has led the younger demographics to be more innovative with coffee. Instead of black or white, many want to have theirs as a Kopi 3 Layer, served in a tall transparent glass. The visible, colourful layers are alluring to those who have never tried it.
This layered drink is inspired initially from the Sarawak’s famous ‘ 3 Layer Tea’, which has gained its popularity over a decade ago across the states of West Malaysia. As for the coffee version, the drink consists of three layers of black coffee, palm sugar, and evaporated unsweetened milk. It tastes different than ordinary coffee and usually served cold.
Want to try making your version of three-layer coffee at home? Fret not, as the recipe is simple for anyone to try.
Ingredients (2 servings):
- 1 tbsp Coffee Powder
- 20g Palm Sugar (Gula Melaka)
- 60ml Evaporated Milk (unsweetened)
- Water
- Ice cubes
Directions:
- Brew a cup of coffee and set aside.
- Melt palm sugar in a pot of hot water. Stir well until fully dissolved. The concentration of the syrup should be like that of fluid honey, neither too dilute nor too thick. Add more water when necessary.
- Set the syrup aside and let it cool to room temperature.
- Pour the palm sugar syrup into a glass to become the first layer.
- Add ice cubes to fill up at least half the glass.
- Pour evaporated milk slowly into the glass to make the second layer.
- Pour coffee as the final layer carefully into the glass.
- Ready to be served. Don’t forget to stir the layers and taste how these three layers nicely blend!