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a recipe for greek frappé

25/8/2012

18 Comments

 
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Georgiou's Barbers are located in a passageway just off Rye Lane, opposite Choumert Road. They're open from 6:30 in the morning and close at about 3:00 in the afternoon (closed Thursday and Sunday)

In the past I've travelled to quite a few Greek islands; I just had a look at a list of them and I can recall seven, although there's probably a couple of others that I've forgotten about. I know I've visited Santorini so - Naxos and Paxos maybe? Anyway this was all very long ago and, memory shrouded by the mists of time, the forgetfulness is perhaps understandable. What isn't understandable is why the fuck I've never thought to make a Greek frappé at home before yesterday. Especially given that it's a piece of piss.

This sorry state of affairs may well have continued indefinitely had I not decided to splash out on a haircut the other day (£6, eyebrow trim included) at Georgious Barbers. First opened in 1953, Steve and Andrew have been cutting hair here since 1965. We usually end up talking about food and Greek food in particular, as both are of Greek-Cypriot heritage. As I stepped out into the sweltering and humid sunshine, with images of island idylls swirling around the old, freshly cropped noggin,  I suddenly thought: 'I could murder a frappé now'.

Greek frappé, at its simplest, is Nescafé, chilled water and (usually) sugar, shaken or frothed and served cold in a long glass with ice cubes and a straw. It can also include milk (evaporated or fresh) if you like, and you can have it without sugar (sketo), medium sweet (metrio) or sweet (glyko). Legend has it that it was first created in 1957 at a trade fair in Thessaloniki, when a Nescafé representative, unable to find boiling water to make a coffee, improvised with cold water and a shaker. Over time it has become part of the culture of Greek café life.

There's a scientific reason why you need spray-dried instant coffee to make a frappé - something to do with the density of proteins created in the process. These proteins act as a foaming agent during the initial phase of mixing, thereby producing a foam with something of the texture of the head on a pint of stout.

For a true frappé you need Nescafé Classic I'm told, but you can't get that in the UK (or at least I've not been able to find it) so I've used Nescafé Original. I haven't yet been able to find out what, if any, difference there is between the two.

You also, really, need a table outside a harbour café on a Greek island, a backgammon board and 3-5 hours to while away; but you can't have everything.

Despite being a blindingly simple concoction, knocked out in seconds, there are forums online (of course there are) on which you can debate the merits of different methods, recipes, equipment, water etc. Here's the recipe I used:

what you need

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Nescafé Original
Sugar
Chilled water
Milk
Ice cubes
A clean dry jar
A tall glass
A straw

how to make it

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enough for a medium sweet frappé for one person
1 dsp Nescafé Classic (if you can get it) or Original
1 dsp white granulated sugar
chilled water to just cover the above
a splash or two of semi-skimmed milk
2-3 ice cubes
chilled water to top up


Spoon the coffee and sugar into the dry jar. Add just enough water to cover. Screw the lid of the jar on tightly and shake vigorously for probably 40-60 seconds. Place a few ice cubes in the glass and pour over the resultant foam. Pour a little milk into the jar and swirl around to collect the remaining foam and pour this into the glass. Top up with more chilled water. Add a straw (essential for stirring) and serve.

Instead of the jar/shaking method, you could also use one of those battery operated milk frothers instead - in which case put the coffee, sugar and water straight into the glass and froth well, adding the ice cubes after, followed by your chosen combination of water and/or milk.

18 Comments
Shed
25/8/2012 06:13:32

I am worryingly obsessed with all variants of cold coffee at the moment, and sir, I fear you've added another to the list.

Last week I tried cold brew coffee for the first time; grounds into a jug, cold water on top, leave for 1-2 days. Malty and smooth, with no bitterness at all. Then, in a relative hurry, hot-cold brew; boiling water over grounds, leave for three hours. MOST CAFFEINATED THING EVER. Possibly not advisable, but I had a plane to catch.

Thanks for the frappe inspiration!

Reply
The Skint Foodie
25/8/2012 08:04:48

So when you're making the cold brew, you're after a concentrate, are you? Which you then dilute to taste?

I'm going to have to try *that* now, damn your eyes.

Reply
Ed Ward link
25/8/2012 06:13:52

I wonder what would happen if, instead of horrible Nescafe (which, I'm willing to admit, may not be so horrible in this circumstance, although I doubt it) you used a tube of that expensive instant Starbucks puts out. That stuff's saved my bacon on the road a number of times, when I'm confronted with horrid pod-coffee makers, and it actually does taste like coffee.

Reply
The Skint Foodie
25/8/2012 08:11:21

I'm sure you could make a lovely drink Ed; it just wouldn't be a Greek frappé. And wouldn't have the texture either, I'd wager.

Reply
diana link
25/8/2012 06:30:57

I've never forgotten the divine taste of frappes, and it's been years since I was in Greece - unbeatable. Ta for the recipe!

Reply
The Skint Foodie
25/8/2012 08:13:34

Well, it's *a* recipe - you'll no doubt adjust it to suit your own taste - less coffee/more sugar/all milk/all water etc. But for those hot days when you want a caffeine hit but a cold drink - YES!

Reply
Shed
25/8/2012 08:44:53

You use as much ground coffee as you would for very strong filter or cafetiere, and the idea is that it's quite long. You get totally different flavours out of it because you don't get the super-agressive ones that come from the oils (apparently) which only react at a high temperature. And it's just as caffeinated. Just strain through muslin or a filter. Have a go!

Reply
Denny
26/8/2012 04:33:00

A great addition to the frappe (which makes it into a cocktail/indulgent coffee break) is a dash of Baileys. Discovered this in a cafe on Crete. Yum!

Reply
Markef
26/8/2012 14:00:54

In Athens, I know that our milky frappés were always made with evaporated, not condensed milk, as I don't drink anything sweet.

At home, I always stuck a few cubes of ice in the shaker and remember that this would be enough for a round for several people. Makes a nice noise in anticipation of a treat, too. But the remainder of the ice gets chucked, not put into the drinks.

With the hot days after long, late nights at the taverna, these were lifesavers during work time. And addictive too -even if the thought of Nescafé is otherwise repulsive to you. I'll be sure to drink mine through a couple of cheap plastic straws to accurately re-create the time and the pleasure.

Reply
The Skint Foodie
26/8/2012 14:24:26

You're right Markef - that *should* read evaporated not condensed. I've got condensed on the brain, as it were, because I just bought a tin to make Vietnamese iced coffee with.

I'll alter it straightaway. Thanks!

Reply
Emily
28/8/2012 09:15:15

I've just discovered your blog while browsing randomly online and I'm looking forward to trying out some of the recipes at home! I could have done with a frappé like this during the heatwave we had here (France) this weekend... Looking forward to your next posts.

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Art
28/8/2012 12:15:12

There is a place with frappe in the name on the high street, almost entirely Greek, near where I live in Toronto, Canada. I knew a frappe was a drink of some sort, but was not entirely sure of its constituents. Now I know, and remain untempted. Your blog is brilliant though. Truly.

Reply
Jacob
31/8/2012 11:51:19

As a Greek living in UK, who searched for a long time for a replacement for Nescafé Classic, I recommend that you use Nescafe Brazilia or Nescafe International Roast, both available in discount shops such as Quality Save. It is much more similar to Nescafé Classic than Nescafé Original, and it is also much cheaper. However, it should only be used for frape.

Reply
The Skint Foodie
31/8/2012 11:55:12

Jacob, that's a fantastic tip - thank you so much!,

Reply
Jacob
31/8/2012 12:01:34

For a true frappé you need Nescafé Classic I'm told, but you can't get that in the UK (or at least I've not been able to find it) so I've used Nescafé Original. I haven't yet been able to find out what, if any, difference there is between the two.
---
Just to add, that the key difference between the two coffees is that
Nescafé Classic is freeze dried powder while Nescafé Original is freeze dried medium grind coffee. Nescafe Classic is lower quality than Nescafe Original and thus much cheaper, however it produces a much darker coffee, that is preferable in some countries, including Brazil, Greece, Malaysia (where frappe is also drank) and some African Countries. Also Bulgarians, who learned about frape from the Greeks, like to drink it with coca-cocal rather than water (not for the faint-hearted).

Reply
The Skint Foodie
31/8/2012 13:11:01

Thanks again Jacob, you're a veritable treasure trove of frappé-related information. I'd read about the coca-cola travesty - can't see myself trying that out in the near future.

Reply
Oooo Loook 0_o
4/10/2012 06:39:00

off topic slightly..... how about "white russians" .... the cocktail.
what cream, coffee, and vodka combos taste nice

Reply
Found some
6/10/2015 10:05:13

Just Bought some Nescafe Classic in Savers in Stroud Gloucestershire. Half the price of Original. I find it a little more bitter that the Original I usually get

Reply

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  • blog
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