Before jumping to the question, let us first be clear about a couple of things. Firstly, vegan. So what is vagan or veganism? Well, it is the practice of not eating or using products that are created from animals. Or in other words, in the manufacturing process, animals are not allowed. Hmm… so it simply means that veganism is a diet, isn’t it? So how to make vegan coffee?
Since vegans are only involved in eating foods containing plants, they always deny animal products. Whenever they purchase a new product, they always consider checking out whether it is involved with animals or not. In the vegan lifestyle, they do not eat dairy, eggs, meat, or any animal byproduct even honey because it is produced by bees. Therefore, some people being vegan is just for the dietary option, whereas for other people (vegan), it is a lifestyle choice.
Contents
But What About Coffee? Is It Okay For Vegans To Drink Coffee?
The answer is YES. Sometimes, it sounds silly to ask people this question, but for vegans, it might be not easy to find suitable coffee to drink. Raw vegans always eat food that is not cooked at a high temperature. The same thing for coffee which needs to be heated for brewing, so if you are a strict vegan, then coffee is a no-no answer for you. How about cold brew coffee? Even your iced coffee frappe is not heated, yet the bean itself is still roasted during the production; hence, it is not suitable for raw vegans who are on diet.
More than that, you also need to consider what sweetens in your coffee. In order to make it sweet, there are several ways to sweeten your cup of iced coffee, while some are vegan, and some are not. Additionally, we often hear that black coffee is vegan, but little do you know that it is obviously not vegan at all!!!! Unless the milk is from the plant or we call it plant milk.
Now you might consider that if all ingredients in the coffee are vegan, so it is safe for vegans to drink then. Umm…Not really!!! Why? We need to know the way of processing the coffee beans. Some beans are grown and processed without the vegan philosophy. Therefore, vegans need to take extra care in choosing the right coffee bean.
Some Guides To Know If Your Coffee Really Is Ethical
Regarding ethical coffee, there are three main things that a vegan should lookout in order to choose sustainable, cruelty-free coffee.
1. Make sure it is shade-grown coffee, not sun-grown coffee
Naturally, coffee grows under the shade of high trees. However, to make it more profitable, some coffee plantations would like to speed up their coffee in the growing process so that they can earn more. To reach their goals, they have to grow it in full sunlight which results in several issues. First and foremost, sun-grown coffee needs a lot of fertilizers as well as fungicides as chemical inputs. Therefore, it can harm wildlife, and especially soil. When the nutritional content of the soil is depleted, it would become nutrient deficient so that that area of the land is not suitable for coffee plantation in the future anymore. Or in other words, the farmers have to do deforestation to clear new landscapes.
2. Organic coffee
Organic coffee is one of the best options for vegans. Nevertheless, most of the standard coffee production is not vegan-friendly since it exposes wildlife to herbicides, synthetic pesticides as well as fertilizers. Hence, make sure to check out for USDA-certified organic coffee in order to know farmers haven’t used any synthetic toxins in harvesting coffee in the last 3 years.
3. Ethical accreditation
The followings are the ethical accreditation schemes:
– Rainforest Alliance – Make sure farmers follow the social, economic plus environmental guidelines set by the Sustainable Agriculture Network.
– Fairtrade – Ensure farmers can get a well living wage.
– Bird-Friday Coffee Seal – This can allow us to know the coffee is shade-grown and it is 100% organic.
– UTZ – Both workers’ rights and environmental problems are covered under this accreditation scheme.
Even though some coffee brands do not contain all of these accreditations, vegans should at least for one or two of these before purchasing any coffee brands.
Why Black Coffee Is A Good Option For Vegans?
To ensure it is vegan, it’s better for you to order black coffee.
Imagine when you drink coffee at your friend’s house where they have limited non-dairy options like milk or don’t have at all, then it is the best choice for you to get into black coffee. The same thing when you are at your workplace, sometimes, it does not always have to fulfill everyone’s demand, or another option, for sure, you can bring your own vegan cream or milk with you so that a vegan can enjoy their coffee.
Is Black Coffee The Only Choice For Vegans?
You might get bored drinking only black coffee every day without other ingredients to make it tastier. Luckily, there are several things for you to put in coffee instead of cows’ milk. Below is the popular vegan milk to add to your coffee to make it more delicious, at the same time, it can be replaced by 2% of the classic coffee creamer. You may be interested to check out “ How To Choose The Best Milk For Your Coffee?” for vegan or those who simply enjoy these plant based milk.
- Almond Milk – With the nutty flavor, this foamy milk can give an extra layer into your coffee very well.
- Oat Milk – It is a great option to create foam from this creamy and thick texture, especially you can get the taste of wheaty.
- Cashew Milk – If you wish to get bubbly coffee, then cashew milk is an option for you. Not only that, It can give you a sweet and creamy taste.
- Coconut Milk – with coconut milk, your coffee will be covered with a mass of small bubbles, and it gives you a taste of exotic.
- Soy Milk – If you don’t want to get too much taste, then soy milk is highly recommended among non-dairy milk.
- Hemp Milk – Even though it is thin, yet it is still creamy. This milk is similar to almond milk since it also has a nutty flavor moderately.
- Rice Milk – It has no foam, no taste, just a little watery only.
- Pea Milk – Yes, it is the most nutritious milk for vegans. You would enjoy a neutral flavor from pea milk when adding it to black coffee.
- Macadamia Milk – Sound surprised right? This fruity subtlety now appears in this smooth and thick nut milk. It is worth giving a try then.
- Flax Seed Milk – You would fall in love with the earthy-nutty tone, and it is thin has cashew milk.
Each vegan milk has its own nutrients which vary from one to one. Some come in high protein, while some give you lower calories. So if you are on a diet, you have to choose it carefully in order to reach your diet goals. To get the most suitable vegan milk, it is essential to try a few different tastes until you find the one that you like the most. Most of the time, you might have to take a few cups to get used to the taste. If you are a home barista, you can make your own milk frothing with good milk frothing pitchers. Take a look at Tips For Beginners To Make Perfect Milk Frothing.
7 Additional Recipes To Add To Your Cup Of Vegan Coffee
As we all know that black coffee is vegan, but cappuccino and other coffee drinks are not suitable for vegans. Generally, you can find milk alternatives in many coffee shops, but you have to pay a premium for that. Instead, you can save money if you make them at home, especially you can even control the amount of it into your mug.
Below are the receipts for making coffee for vegan. Plus, you can also explore your black coffee but flavored even if it does not include any milk or milk alternatives. As a result, you will be excited about your coffee break while you can maintain your vegan lifestyle.
1. Café Noir
Café Noir, also known as New Orleans coffee, is a coffee that is spiked with bitter perennials and chicory. At the same time, it also gives you a chocolate caramel flavor while you do not have to add sugar, dairy, or don’t even gain calories. Interestingly, the Café Noir has lower caffeine naturally. If you want to get a milder result, you can drip a coffee maker to reach your demand. But if you prefer a spicier flavor, then the fresh press is a good choice for you.
To make this vegan coffee, the ingredients that you need are
- 2 tablespoons chicory
- 4 tablespoons drip-ground coffee
- 4 cups filtered water,
- ¼ teaspoon salt (optional)
- sugar (optional)
Step 1 – You have to set your drip-style coffee maker up, which enables you to manually add water into its filter.
Step 2 – In the brewing basket, place the chicory, coffee as well as salt (optional). Then put it into the filter.
Step 3 – You have to take the water into a boil.
Step 4 – To moisten the chicory and the grounds, add enough water. Then start to pour around half a cult of water into the filter.
Step 5 – When the water drips through, you can add another half of water. Redo this until you have brewed all of these 4 cups.
Step 6 – In this step, you can serve it immediately. If not, you can even keep it hot with your coffee machine until it is ready to be serve.
Step 7 (Optional) – It is an optional step whether you want to add sugar to taste or not.
Step 8 (Optional) – In case, if you prefer to enjoy milky coffee, all you need to do is just pour equal parts of scalded milk as well as New Orleans coffee into your cup in order to get traditional New Orleans-style Café au Lait. Or you can even add half and half to taste.
2. Vegan Gingerbread Latte
This latte has a beautiful flavor thanks to the blackstrap molasses as well as grated ginger. By using 2 shots of real espresso to get a strong flavor or using instant espresso powder, it will become your new favorite of a pick-me-up in your middle work. Creamy almond milk would make your coffee smooth; simultaneously, cinnamon can add another layer to your already perfumed coffee. In case, if you want to get a shorter beverage, you can feel free to use various creamy non-dairy alternatives such as cashew milk, oat milk, or even a splash of full-fat chocolate milk. Cheers!
The following ingredients will let you enjoy Vegan Gingerbread Latte for day long.
- 1 and a half cup of unsweetened almond milk or nondairy milk
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ginger (make sure it is fresh and grated)
- ⅛ teaspoon cloves
- ¼ cup non dairy cream for topping
- 1 to 2 tablespoons granulate sugar (coconut palm sugar or turbinado are recommended)
- 2 teaspoons instant espresso powder (instead of water + instant power, you can use 1 to 2 shots of espresso per latter if you have an espresso maker)
- 4 tablespoons for a very hot water
- Dash cinnamon
- Dash nutmeg
Step 1 – Whisk the unsweetened almond milk, cinnamon, ginger, coconut sugar together. As well as add cloves together in a tiny saucepan.
Step 2 – In here, you have to stir it consistently. At the same time, heat it over medium heat to get the very hot result, but make sure it does not reach a boil.
Step 3 – If you use espresso powder, you can combine water with the espresso powder in 2 small mugs or a large mug. (If small mug, you can add 2 tbsp water per mug for 1 tsp espresso powder) and then stir well.
If you use an espresso machine, you can follow the instructions from the manufacturer in order to make the espresso. It is recommended to use double shot in this recipe. But anyway, you can feel free to adjust it according to your taste and preferences.
Step 4 – In a large or 2 smaller mugs, you can pour the espresso into those mug(s).
Step 5 – By placing a strainer over the mug(s), you can hold the espresso. Then, you can even pour the hot almond milk and mix it over the espresso carefully.
Step 6 – You have to stir well for mixing the hot almond milk mixture into the espresso.
Step 7 – User can use whipped non-dairy cream to top the latte including coconut, a sprinkle with a touch of cinnamon as well as nutmeg. And then you would fall in love in this hot vegan gingerbread latte. Or you can even store the leftovers in the refrigerator and it would be perfect for those who enjoy the cold one. Sometimes, users can heat over medium-low heat to reach the desired temperature.
3. Cold Brewed Coffee
You can use this cold-brewed coffee method as a basis for any vegan coffee drink. With this cold-brewed coffee, you have to steep coffee grounds using cold brew coffee makers for up to 24 hours at room temperature. Then, the concentrate coffee will be diluted with water. So that you can use it for cold coffee drinks. For extra flavor, you can add vegan sweeteners, dairy alternatives, spices, and other ingredients. Moreover, you can pour it over ice, after that, add oat milk with your coconut sugar to feel fresh during the summer afternoon. Or you can drink it black with vanilla syrup. Another option you can use is for baking a cake that has coffee-flavored which is a great gift for your friend’s (coffee lover’s) birthday. Or to make it simple, you can add ice and any liquor to get more liveliness as a party beverage.
There are some reasons to make you want to enjoy this cold brew coffee.
- Lower Acidity: Heat has the ability to remove the acid-producing oil from normal coffee beans. Therefore, it causes some people to get stomach aches and other irritating conditions such as acid reflux. Reversely, cold brew coffee can leave the acid in the coffee bean, and some also claim that it has 67 percent less acid.
- Less Bitterness: With the stomach-churning acids, heats can also contribute the bitter flavor into the coffee. However, cold brew coffee can give you a naturally sweeter coffee.
- Freshness: Although hot brew coffee can wake you up, it is hard to drink. In contrast, cold brew coffee can give you a fresh morning all day long.
4. Vegan Irish Coffee Recipe
Having a class Irish coffee cocktail, your life would become a unicorn and rainbow. Instead of whipped cream, this coffee dairy-free is made from optional vegan whipped topping. You can also use Irish whiskey to get extra flavor of the beverage. On a cold night, you can be ready with this coffee within 5 minutes, and it is also ideal for the ending of any celebratory meal.
Regarding the ingredients, all we have are:
- ⅔ cup of hot strong brewed coffee
- 2 tsp. raw sugar
- 2 tbsp. Irish whiskey
- (Optional): vegan whipped topping or whipped cream
Step 1 – Gather all of the ingredients.
Step 2 – You can stir the whiskey coffee as well as sugar together. Especially make sure the sugar dissolves.
Step 3 – Then generously garnish a spoonful of non-dairy whipped cream if you prefer.
Have a great day with your vegan Irish coffee !
5. Coffee Liqueur
To make your coffee liqueur from home, all you need is just vanilla bean, instant coffee, sugar, water, and ram. After steeping within 10 days, you would be excited with the full flavor of the development from this liquor. And then you can drink it over ice, or use it in cocktails or baking recipes.
To make a cup of Vegan Spiced Turkish Coffee Recipe, you need:
- 3 cups of sugar
- 2 cups of water
- 8 tablespoons instant coffee
- 2 inch piece vanilla bean
- 750 ml bottle vodka or rum
Step 1 – First and foremost, you need to gather all of these ingredients.
Step 2 – To create a normal syrup, you have to combine the water, vanilla bean, and sugar within a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Then, you bring it to a boil. And stir the sugar until it is dissolve completely.
Step 3 – Reduce it to a simmer. After 30 minutes, the sugar will be reduced by half, so you can remove the pan from the heat conveniently. Then, you can stir in around 8 tablespoons of the high quality instant coffee and enable the mixture to cool it.
Step 4 – You can combine the flavour of syrup with vodka or rum into a sealable glass bottle or jaw. After that, you have to shake it well and let it sit in a cool with the dark area around 10 days. And every day or every two days, you have to give a bottle a good shake.
Step 5 – 10 days later, you can strain the liqueur through a cheesecloth or fine-mesh strainer in order to remove all of the granules of coffee and vanilla bean. Finally, you can store it in a sealed bottle.
Step 6 – Now you can enjoy your liquor on your own way.
6. Vegan Spiced Turkish Coffee Recipe
With this beverage, you as a vegan would feel confident in drinking. Since Turkish coffee is served sweet or unsweetened (bitter) when it has no milk.
So if you want to get more flavor, you can burst it from cardamom, and it includes cloves, almond extract, and vanilla. You can treat yourself greatly without getting extra calories from milk. Without any sweetener, you will grow to like these spices all day long.
7. Vegan Coffee Syrup Recipe
It is normal when you order coffee from a coffee shop like Starbuck, most of the time, they would add syrups to make your cup more flavored. Anyway, not all syrups that they add are vegan at all. For example, some of the thin syrups like caramel, vanilla, hazelnut, chai as well as toffee nut are vegan. In contrast, pumpkin spice, white mocha, caramel drizzle, crème Brulee which are the thick syrups and sauces, are not vegan. As a result, when you order a cup of coffee with syrups, make sure you check with the server to clarify this problem.
Another solution is that you can make your own vegan coffee syrup from home as the base for other vegan drinks, for example, instant sparkling coffee sodas. Furthermore, you can add it to vegan hot chocolate, vegan milkshakes, vegan coffee cocktails as well as vegan smoothies.
Below is the ingredients for making this vegan coffee syrup.
- 1 cup of water
- 1 cup of extra-strength brewed coffee
Step 1 – Gather all of these ingredients
Step 2 – You have to combine the extra-strength coffee with the sugar into a medium saucepan. After that, bring a boil. And stir the sugar until it is dissolved.
Step 3 – Lower the heat and simmer it for about 3 minutes. And you have to stir often.
Step 4 – Now you can transfer the coffee syrup into your container. Then let it cool to room temperature.
Step 5 – You can seal and store it slighting covered in the refrigerator up to one month. As a result, you can enjoy using it into your favourite drink and food recipes.
Can Vegans Drink Coffee Creamer?
Not all coffee creamers are vegan. For example, coffee Mate, so if you normally prefer to apply powdered coffee cream rather than fresh milk into your coffee, you should be aware of that. There are several vegan coffee creams on the market that are made from plant milk.
More interestingly, please be careful with the labeled coffee creamers as “non-dairy”. The reason is that this term sometimes is used if the product contains the weight of milk less than 0.5%. Which means that some of them are made from milk that is suitable for lactose intolerant people, not for vegetarians.
To conclude, although coffee brings us many benefits, not all coffee is suitable for everyone. That is why vegans need to be careful in choosing their own coffee and making their own vegan coffee from home, it makes them feel more confident and comfortable. So we hope the above recipes can bring you as a vegan a tasty and delicious coffee to freshen up your day!
References