How To Make Black Coffee Taste Good: Some like it hot. Some like it black. When it comes to coffee, hot is not exactly what you should be going for, but black, definitely.
It’s the ultimate pleasure for true coffee lovers. Never tasted black coffee? Well, we got you covered and we are going to teach you how to make black coffee taste good.
There are so many different types of coffee in the world and you’ve never actually tasted any of them if you fill your mug with sugar, cream, milk or all the flavors available in coffee shops.
All the things you or your local barista put in your coffee hide its natural flavor, making all types of coffee taste more or less alike. It’s a caffeinated beverage, but not true coffee.
What You’ll Need To Make Black Coffee Taste Good
It should come as no surprise that making black coffee is fairly simple. No matter what method you’re using, simply grind up your coffee (to the right coarseness, of course) brew a pot, and, hey presto, you’ve got black coffee!
Now, in order to help keep that coffee black, you’re going to need at least one or two of these:
- Cleaning equipment (sponge, rag, cleaning solution, etc.)
- A unique, new kind of coffee
- High-quality butter
- Coconut oil
- Vanilla
- Cinnamon
- Cacao powder
- Salt
5 Methods To Work Your Way Towards Drinking Black Coffee
Follow these essential steps on how to drink black coffee:
Step 1: Clean, Clean, Clean
While coffee doesn’t leave much of a mess, you still need to clean your maker once in a while. Scrub out that Chemex. Unscrew that French press filter and wash it out. Run a cleaning solution through your coffee maker.
PRO TIP: Running very hot water through your Chemex or glass carafe as soon as you empty it, before the coffee inside dries, will make it much easier to keep your coffee maker clean.
Chances are there is already some crud in your coffee maker. Just because you’ve been covering up that weird taste with cream doesn’t mean it’s going to magically go away when you start drinking your coffee black.
It’s a good first step – a “reset” of your coffee escapades, so to speak.
Step 2: Experiment With Your Coffee Choices
You may have been fine getting the generic “Coffee Shop” flavor for all your coffee needs in the past, but really, once you add in a bunch of that coffee creamer, it all tastes the same.
Not anymore. It’s time to expand your coffee flavor profile. After all, this isn’t an article on how to make black coffee with coffee powder. If you want to enjoy your black coffee, you’ve got to embrace the tasty power of well-roasted coffee beans.
Get a little bit adventurous. Branch out and look for the best tasting ground coffee you can find. Try some smaller bags of different flavors of coffee from different roasters and see which ones you like the most.
Eventually, when you’ve worked up the courage and you’re feeling REALLY adventurous, you can check out some of these coffees, too.
If you can narrow it down to a handful, you can even get them into a rotation. Maybe one for mornings and one for afternoons, or alternate by days or weeks. Make it fun! That way you can look forward to each kind.
Specific kinds of coffee aside, there is also the matter of dark roasts, light roasts, whole bean vs. ground, Arabica and Robusta beans, and so on.
PRO TIP: Use FRESH coffee if you can (i.e. grind your own). While coffee doesn’t “go bad” like a moldy orange in the fruit bowl, it does still go bad in its own way, and your coffee’s flavor will seriously decline over time. If you’re going to drink black coffee, drinking it fresh is the way to go.
Step 3: Start By Trying Bulletproof Coffee
Have you ever heard of bulletproof coffee? Now, it’s not exactly “black” coffee, but it’s a great way to shift your focus off of those less healthy options like cream and sugar, and focus on putting a minimal amount of something powerful into your cuppa joe.
Making bulletproof coffee is really easy. Simply add a couple tablespoons of coconut oil as well as a teaspoon or two of high-quality butter. Mix or blend it up and you’re good to go!
PRO TIP: Instead of coconut oil and butter, you can add MCT oil and ghee for an even healthier option. Check out a few bulletproof recipes here.
Step 4: Get Rid Of The Sugar
First off, the main thing to keep in mind here is to take it slow. This isn’t a race! You’ve got plenty of time to work the sugar out of your system – and your cup of coffee.
Even if you add sugar and don’t exceed your calorie needs, you’re still negating some of the benefits because sugar is a negative food ingredient.
Make it a process. Measure out how much sugar you usually add to your coffee and reduce it by 20%. Wait a few days, maybe a week and then reduce it again. Before you know it, you’ll have weaned yourself off of the need for sugar in your coffee! Nice work.
PRO TIP: Try adding a touch of vanilla extract, a pinch of cinnamon, or unsweetened cacao powder as as “sugar replacement.” This can help divert attention from the absence of sweetness and keep things interesting.
Step 5: Add Some Salt
Salt? What? Yep, you heard me. Just like that teaspoon of salt that’s needed to make the perfect birthday cake, a bit of salt can take out the bitterness and make your black cup of coffee that much smoother.
Add a small pinch of salt into your black coffee, stir, and taste. Still bitter? Keep adding small amounts of salt until you reach the perfect amount. Remember, just as when cooking anything, it’s easy to add salt – it’s not so easy to take it out.
PRO TIP: Make a larger batch of coffee and pour a “trial cup.” Add small doses of salt to this, tasting it regularly. Take note of the point when it tastes the best. Once you’ve added too much salt for your liking, dump it out, pour a new cup, and add the exact amount of salt needed.
How to train yourself to drink black coffee
Finding the best black coffee for beginners takes baby steps. If you’re ready to train yourself to drink black coffee, start here:
- Throw out the cream and sugar. Out of sight, out of mind!
- Start with flights. If you have the ability to taste-test multiple types of coffee side-by-side, you’ll begin to appreciate flavor nuances and zero-in on which coffees you like to drink black. If you can attend a cupping, that’s even better.
- Pay attention. If you’re not consciously consuming your coffee, you’re not going to be able to discern patterns in your flavor preferences. Take notes if you’re nerdy, and be sure to mark down where it was grown, the process type, whether its a blend or single-origin, and of course, where you got it!
- Once you find a coffee bean you enjoy, try it multiple ways. We think brewing coffee at home is a fun game, even more so when you can try coffee black made with a pour over vs. cold brew vs. French press, for instance.