Café Algérois | Algiers Style Coffee

A  café that will transport you back to the 17th century harems of the Bay of Algiers

بِسْــــــــــــــــــــــمِ اﷲِارَّحْمَنِ ارَّحِيم

السلام عليكم و رحمة الله و بركاته

Marhaba - Welcome!  If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed, check out the Recipe Index. Or follow me on the social network Facebook. Thanks for visiting!

It's been quite a while my friends. Too long in fact. But life happens like that. We often tied with our everyday real lives  and the less important things get pushed aside. This sadly often even happens in my real life. Weeks, even months go by without having the chance to sit with friends to chat.


So I'd like to invite you all over to share a cup of coffee with me. Let me share with you a little story ... and then let's catch up!

Centuries ago, women in around Algiers, the capital of Algeria used to animate their long nights listening to old women telling the stories of the Prophets, kings and even "Djenoune" (genies or spirits) Sitting in a circle, all the women would sit around a "skimpla" (small low coffee table) laden with fragant teas, coffee, and various snacks like dried fruit, nuts, Helwa Turk, and sweet desserts dripping with honey. This was women's rite practised in some cities and towns that are ports of the region: Algiers, Cherchell, Dellys,  Koléa, Miliana, Blida and Medea.

They would recite poems that were handed down by their ancestors from mother to daughter. They make wishes and talk about their futures. Just as their elders did before them. They would also play El bouqâla, a game. The word bouqâla, from the French word bocal means a clay vase.  This container is the main object of the game.  It is filled with water. And all the women throw in a jewel or coin for the old woman. The woman then holds the bouqâla above a kanoun (earthenware container filled with embers and incense) passing it to each woman,  thinking of a particular person then recites a bouqâlates and dedicating it  them.The game finished water from the bouqâla is empty. The gathering ended by decorating henna on each other.

This hertiage has not been lost.This gather and game still exists today, but in a much less formal way. With many of the magical, unIslamic rituals now deleted. The gathering of today are more about unity, reciting ancestoral poems abnd transfering tradition to the next generation. And food and drink always seems to be a part of passing traditions. So  I would like to share one such traditional drink that dates back to  back to the 17th century, enveloping the fragance of Alger, la blanche (the white). A drink that is still prized today: Café Algérois or in Algerian Arabic Qahwa Maâtra. 

café algérois 

algiers style coffee 

A fragrant coffee that will transport you back to the 17th century harems of Bay of Algiers. 

drinks | serves 5 - 6

KITCHEN TIME

PREP TIME: 5 MINS

COOK TIME: 5-7 MINS

۞ = SUBSTITUTIONS

SERVE WITH

Your favorite honeyed dessert such as besboussa, qalb bel louz or maqrout. 18.2000007629395px;"> 

INGREDIENTS 

‣ 3 TBS Arabica espresso coffee

‣ 1 tsp ground cinnamon

‣ enough water to fill your coffeemaker (I used 270ml little over 1 cup)

‣ 2 -3 cap fulls of orange flower water

‣ 1 tsp of vanilla

‣ sugar (optional)

METHOD

ADD the cinnamon to the ground coffee beans.

ADD the proper amount of  water to your espresso maker. Mine uses about 270ml or little over 1 cup of water for every 3 TBS coffee to yield 4 servings). 

BREW the coffee as per your manufacturer's directions. After it has brewed, left the lid of the maker and add in the orange blossom water and vanilla.

ALLOW to sit for about 2-3 minutes.

ADD your desired amount of sugar in each cup. Pour the coffee into the cups and serve. It's not traditional to add milk or cream, but you can if you like.

I have used an Italian style stovetop espresso maker to make this recipe. You can certainly use a drip style or even French press. See user instruction for the method.

KITCHEN TIPS

Method
This coffee can be made in an espresso maker as I've done, OR alternatively in a drip or French press coffee maker. You can even use an instant coffee if you prefer.

Leftovers
Any leftover coffee can be poured into ice trays and then used to make iced coffee :)

SAHA F'TOURKOUM! 

 CATEGORIES:  beverage, algerian, 

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• Looking for  another drink to enjoy? Try this Saharan date milk or even this refreshing homemade Orangina. 

•  Or check out this Khouz el Bey Algerian almond cake it'll go so nicely with this coffee.

• Or browse through the recipe index to get inspired. 

HOW DO YOU ENJOY YOUR COFFEE?

Above is a traditional gift set filled with incense and dried roses for the guests at the El bouqâla.

PS: on a side note, it's been about 2 years since I lasted blogged. I mostly didn't blog because I was going hrough some health issues plus a pregnancy. Also didn't bother blogging since I no longer have my camera. I didn't think pics from my cameraphone would be justice. But many sisters cheered me on, on my personal Facebook page where I've been sharing recipes and stories on and again.  And for some reason all the fonts on my blog were changed. I need to somehow find the time to redo them. So please bare with me.

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