A world tour of hot breakfast beverages

Which hot breakfast drink to take around the world…

1. The real cappuccino in Italy

Cappuccino is known, and enjoyed, all over the world. It’s always prepared in the same way: a black coffee into which a little milk or even a little foam is poured. But in Italy, preparing and drinking a real cappuccino is an art.

Over there, cappuccino is always drunk at the bar, in restaurants, standing at the counter. It’s always spelled with 2 p’s and 2 c’s! It’s made up (for one person) of 25 to 30 ml of espresso coffee, and 125 to 150 ml of milk, half of which is frothed. The art of cappuccino? The barista heats the milk for 15 seconds at between 60° and 70°C to obtain a dense layer of foam. The mixture is then poured into an espresso and sprinkled with bitter cocoa.

2. Un chocolate a la taza in Spain

The traditional chocolate is much thicker than our hot chocolate… and is best enjoyed with churros. Its thickness and flavor come from the quality of the chocolate and the fact that it has been boiled 3 times. Alternatively, you can use cornstarch.

The recipe to reproduce at home? Heat 150 ml of milk per person. When the milk comes to the boil, add around 45 g of dark chocolate to melt. Remove from heat and add a teaspoon of cornstarch. Add sugar to taste, and return to a low heat while whisking.

3. A ca phe sua da in Vietnam

Vietnam is renowned for its highly aromatic Robusta and Arabica coffees, as well as for its kopi luwaka coffee whose beans have been eaten and digested by… civets! 100% organic, guaranteed.

Whether or not you want to try civet coffee, Vietnamese coffee is often blended with sweetened condensed milk. It can be enjoyed hot at breakfast, or cold with ice cubes throughout the day. For a cup of black coffee, you’ll need around 2 tablespoons of sweetened condensed milk.

4. A po cha in Tibet

The po cha is none other than… yak butter tea! Surprisingly enough, it’s also very high in calories, and has a particularly bitter taste. Butter comes from the milk of the female yak, which is much fatter than cow’s milk. This makes butter tea an excellent appetite suppressant and a good source of energy for Tibetans, who see it as a health ally. Tibetans all have their own recipes for preparing it, but they generally boil the tea several times, then mix it with salt and the famous yak butter.

5. A api morado in Bolivia

In Bolivia, the hot drink at breakfast (served hot or cold, for that matter) isn’t made from tea or mate, coffee, chicory or even fruit… it’s made from purple corn. And yet, it has all the texture of hot chocolate.

The recipe? For about 8 cups, dilute one cup of corn flour, preferably mallow or classic, in 3 cups of water. Then infuse a cinnamon stick and 2 to 4 cloves in another 4 cups of water. Leave to stand for a few hours or overnight. Then stir, and heat to boiling. Sweeten to taste.

6. Sweet and salty chocolate santafereño con queso in Colombia

In Colombia, hot chocolate is lightly spiced (with cinnamon and/or cloves), and served with a piece of mild cheese. It can be enjoyed in the morning as a snack, or as an afternoon tea.

Recipe? For one person, heat 240 ml of milk. When hot, add a bar of Colombian chocolate (or 4 pieces of dark chocolate), a little sugar, a pinch of cinnamon and 1-2 cloves. Stir until the chocolate has melted. Enjoy with a piece of cheese (such as mozzarella) dipped in it.

And chicory: where does this tradition come from?

Chicory seeds were first roasted on the banks of the Nile, in Egypt, in 2000 BC. They used it mainly for medicinal purposes… Then it was soon used as a hot drink. The first people to enjoy chicory as a coffee substitute were in the Netherlands towards the end of the 17th century. It was in 1806 that coffee entered French and European homes. During Napoleon’s blockade of English products, coffee was no longer imported, and was replaced by the chicory we know today.

Chicory is now enjoyed by children and adults alike, all over the world, as a hot drink with breakfast and throughout the day (yes, because it contains no caffeine!).