The best coffee for Italian tiramisu is instant espresso. Used by the most popular tiramisu recipes on the Internet and recommended by professional chefs, instant espresso has the strongest aromas and is the fastest, cheapest and freshest type of coffee for tiramisu. The second most popular method is a freshly brewed Italian espresso, due to its bold flavor and strong coffee aroma that is important for.
Ah, the delectable Italian tiramisu. Who doesn’t love tiramisu? It’s always been one of my favorite deserts.
And coffee is an ingredient in tiramisu, right? Yes, of course.
As a coffee and tiramisu lover, this question is pretty interesting to me, so I spent hours reading others’ experiences on the Internet for this post.
So which is the best coffee method and type for making tiramisu? In this post we’ll find out.
Should You Use Espresso for Tiramisu?
Probably. One form of espresso or another are the types of coffee most of the highest rated tiramisu recipes call for.
In fact, 6 of 7 of top-ranked tiramisu recipes call for using espresso.
[wptb id=1701]Instant espresso is the easiest and cheapest way. But despite being easy and cheap, it is the number one most popular method.
Instant espresso is very aromatic which should be the primary concern of tiramisu chefs around the world.
Substitutes for Espresso
Note that the top-ranked recipes call for espresso. But not everyone has an espresso machine.
Instant espresso is the most popular choice among chefs in cooking forums. We suggest trying instant espresso if you don’t have an espresso machine. Don’t be scared of the word “instant”.
What Do Popular Recipes Say?
Here are the following coffee methods for various tiramisu recipes. It is unclear whether or not each recipe has tried different methods to compare the results though.
- The New York Times’ tiramisu recipe says to ”pick up the espresso from a local coffee shop or use strongly brewed coffee”
- Taste Cooking uses instant espresso powder
- A 5 star top-ranked recipe calls for ”coffee (better if espresso)”
- Yet another recipe just says ”coffee”
- Many people in this thread suggest using instant coffee
Super Strong Coffee is Called For
Because tiramisu really calls more for the aroma of coffee than the taste, a super strong brewing method is called for.
And the strongest, densest method is espresso. Espresso has the greatest amount of coffee relative to water.
Using French Press Coffee for Tiramisu
Can you use French Press coffee for tiramisu?
Yes, you can. Just make sure to brew it strongly and ensure that there is a strong coffee flavor. This is the real reason chefs add coffee to tiramisu: for the aroma.
Can You Use Strong Coffee for Tiramisu
Yes! In fact you should use strong coffee for tiramisu.
Almost all of the recipes call for espresso or ”strong coffee”. So you can absolutely use strong coffee.
Do You Put Sugar in Coffee for Tiramisu?
No, you should use plain coffee. Sugar is combined with other ingredients.
Do You Use Hot Coffee for Tiramisu?
No, you should let the coffee cool to room temperature before you combine it with other ingredients.
Can You Use Instant Espresso for Tiramisu?
Yes. In fact many recipes across the Internet prefer instant espresso as the top coffee method.
No Real Consensus About this On the Internet
Despite there being many different posts about this on the Internet, there is no single generally accepted method of making coffee for tiramisu. Many different tiramisu recipes use different coffee methods.
This shouldn’t be surprising, as there are many ways to make many recipes. Rarely is a recipe super strict. Just think of how many different combinations of spices and cooking methods you can use to cook a chicken.
And coffee itself is a great example: there are dozens of ways to make coffee. It is mostly personal preference as to which one is the best.
The fact that recipes call for using ”coffee” and not ”espresso” tells us that the method matters less than just including the coffee itself.
Tiramisu is Italian Therefore the Original Recipes Used Espresso
It’s possible that tiramisu recipes call for using espresso as the coffee because both are Italian concoctions.
Espresso is the default coffee in Italy. So why would an Italian desert recipe say to use French Press or Aeropress as the coffee making method?
When tiramisu was created 200 years ago the only sort of coffee there was was espresso. Therefore espresso must have been the original type of coffee used.
For original Tiramisu recipes, these methods didn’t even exist.
So it is possible, if not very likely that Tiramisu recipes still call for using espresso simply because that is the only type of coffee that was available in Italy in 1800.
Be Careful about the Roast
Because the more you roast coffee the more bitter it comes, only use dark-roasted coffee is you want your tiramisu to be bitter.
You probably don’t want this, so you should really use a light or medium roast coffee.