Saudi Coffee (Qahwa with Cardamom, Official Saudi Recipe)

Gulf Arabic coffee as the Saudi government’s encyclopedia gives it: light-roasted coffee boiled for about 17 minutes, then nearly as much cardamom as coffee, served unsweetened in small cups with dates.

Untested: not yet made in this kitchen. It is here for the Arabic Coffee page.

Ingredients

800 ml water
40 g ground coffee, light to medium roast
1 pinch saffron or 2 to 3 whole cloves, optional (see notes)
30 g ground cardamom, preferably freshly ground from green pods
12 to 20 dates, to serve

Directions

Bring the 800 ml of water to the boil in a pot and add the ground coffee.
Add the saffron or cloves now, if you are using them, and stir once.
Keep it over medium heat for about 17 minutes, without letting it boil hard.
Add the ground cardamom and stir for about 2 minutes.
Turn off the heat and let it rest for 2 minutes so the grounds settle.
Pour it off the grounds into a dallah or a vacuum flask. Serve a little in each small cup, a quarter to a third full, unsweetened, with dates.

Notes

Where this comes from After “How is Saudi coffee made?” in Saudipedia, published by Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Media and citing the Ministry of Culture. It gives cloves or saffron “depending on local customs” without quantities; the amounts here are a starting point, after the Founder’s Office recipe in the UAE (2 to 4 cloves and a pinch of saffron per litre). Regional styles The same source describes golden coffee with occasional cloves and saffron in Najd, darker coffee boiled 20 to 30 minutes without spice in the north, the widest spice mix (ginger, cinnamon, fennel, cloves, saffron) in the south, mastic in the Hijaz and saffron in the east. Serving Oldest or most honoured guest first; the cup is handed over with the right hand; at least one cup and usually no more than three; shake the cup to stop. Yield Roughly 20 small servings; the source gives no yield. The photo A small cup of pale Arabic coffee, served in Qatar; it is not this recipe’s cup.