ingredients

What you need.

2 tbsp Shyne Coffee
2 tbsp Hot water
2 tbsp Sugar
8 oz Cold milk
1 cup Ice cubes

~150 calories per serving

indulgentrefreshingtraditional

instructions

How it’s done.

1
Combine coffee, hot water, and sugar in a bowl.
2
Whip with a hand mixer or whisk for 3-5 minutes until fluffy peaks form.
Pro tip: An electric mixer makes this much easier, but hand whisking is a good workout!
3
Fill a glass with ice and cold milk.
4
Spoon the whipped coffee on top.
5
Stir before drinking to combine, or enjoy the layers.

Dalgona Coffee Recipe: The 1:1:1 Rule

Every dalgona coffee recipe comes down to one ratio: equal parts instant coffee, sugar, and hot water — 2 tablespoons of each. Whip that mixture and it transforms from brown liquid into a pale, glossy foam with stiff peaks, like coffee meringue. Spoon it over cold milk and you have the drink that took over the internet in 2020, named after the Korean honeycomb toffee (dalgona) it resembles.

It only works with instant coffee. That's not a limitation of this recipe — it's the chemistry of the drink.

How to Make Dalgona Coffee (and Why It Whips)

Instant coffee is dried brewed coffee, so it's packed with soluble proteins and carbohydrates that trap air when agitated — the same job egg whites do in meringue. Sugar stabilizes the foam. Brewed coffee or espresso is mostly water and will never whip, no matter how long you try.

The steps, with the details that matter:

Combine 2 tbsp coffee, 2 tbsp sugar, 2 tbsp hot water in a roomy bowl. Hot water dissolves everything faster and whips better.
Whip until stiff peaks form. Electric mixer: 2-3 minutes. Hand whisk: 5-8 minutes and roughly 400 strokes — real, but doable. You're done when the foam holds its shape on the whisk and has turned several shades lighter.
Fill a glass with ice and cold milk, then spoon the foam on top.
Stir before drinking — the foam is intense on its own; mixed in, it becomes a sweet, strong iced coffee.

Can You Make Dalgona With Less Sugar?

Somewhat. Sugar is structural here, not just sweetener — go below about half the amount and the foam gets loose and deflates quickly. Coconut sugar works (deeper, caramel-like flavour). Most zero-calorie sweeteners won't build the same stable foam. If you want less sweetness, use the full sugar in the foam but a smaller dollop per glass; the whipped coffee keeps in the fridge for a couple of days.

Dalgona Coffee FAQ

Why won't my dalgona coffee whip?

Three usual culprits: you used brewed coffee instead of instant, the water was cold, or you stopped too early — it genuinely looks unpromising for the first two minutes before it suddenly lightens and thickens. Any instant coffee that's 100% coffee whips; Shyne whips well because it's freeze-dried arabica.

Can I make dalgona coffee without a mixer?

Yes — a hand whisk takes 5-8 minutes of committed whisking. A jar with a tight lid and vigorous shaking gets you most of the way there too, though the foam is a little looser.

Is dalgona coffee served hot or cold?

Traditionally over iced milk, but the foam works on hot milk too — it slowly melts in like a coffee-flavoured cloud.

How much caffeine is in dalgona coffee?

This version uses 2 tbsp of coffee, so it's stronger than our usual recipes — roughly double a standard Shyne serving if you drink the whole foam. Split the foam over two glasses for a regular-strength drink.