A Guide To Baking With Instant Coffee

True to its name, instant coffee is a reliable substitution for any java lover who needs a cup of coffee fast with minimal cleanup and appliance usage. And for any baker who wants to incorporate the bold flavor of coffee in their next sweet treat without going through all the steps of brewing a big pot, this quick and convenient product can easily jump from cup to cake.

But what is instant coffee made of? How does it affect your bake; can it be dissolved and how much should you be using? Instant coffee can give you a fun flavor for batter, dough, and glaze recipes. There are plenty of ways to use it — and plenty of ways not to. 

Here's why you can trust me as your go-to instant coffee guide: as a professional baker and pastry cook, I have worked in many food industry settings like hotels, bakeries, cafes, and restaurants. With my kitchen expertise, thorough recipe development background, and plenty of trial and error testing desserts with instant coffee over the years, I am a credible — albeit incredibly buzzed and jittery! — source for teaching you how to use instant coffee for more than just your next speedy morning drink. As I have learned, and what you'll soon discover, the type of instant coffee and the way you use it shouldn't be the same for every recipe. Depending on what you're making, you'll need to use a specific technique and understand your different buying options for the best results.

Instant coffee is a dry powder created by dehydrating brewed coffee. The process of dehydrating is done by one of two main methods, either freeze-drying or spray-drying. Dehydrating eliminates all liquid present, producing a shelf-stable ingredient in a concentrated form.

In order to use it for making a typical hot coffee beverage, a small amount of powder is mixed directly into hot water. The powder will immediately disperse and dissolve, making a quick cup of steamy coffee in seconds. You can then customize it by mixing in your preferred additions like sweeteners or milk.

Instant coffee products are typically (but not always) made using less expensive robusta beans as opposed to arabica beans, the two most common coffee varieties for the majority of all coffee production. Robusta beans have a more bitter and earthier flavor compared to the smoother and sweeter flavor of arabica. If you prefer the softer and more well-balanced profile of arabica coffee, seek out instant coffee products that specify using 100% arabica beans.

While the quality of the beans is often inferior and the caffeine levels are lower than a regular brew, instant coffee is a useful product that completely eliminates the process and equipment of brewing necessary for ground coffee. Along with its easy application in the home kitchen, instant coffee's strong flavor makes it a smart choice for using in a wide variety of recipes when you simply want the flavor of coffee unattached from brewing more expensive premium beans.

Similar to the range of regular coffee and espresso beverages, instant coffee is available to purchase in different levels of roasts and blends. The type of instant coffee you buy will influence the final flavor — light roasts will yield a most subtle coffee flavor with fruitier notes, medium roasts will have a slightly stronger and more caramelized flavor, while dark roasts will be far bolder and more bitter. Instant espresso powder is the darkest roast, and will have the strongest flavor as well as the most concentrated level of caffeine per serving compared to lighter roasts.

There are also decaffeinated instant coffee options if you want to add flavor to your recipes without consuming any caffeine. Again, these will also come in a range of roasts that will progress in strength of flavor.

For the purpose of using instant coffee in baking, avoid any pre-flavored options or ones that include other ingredients such as dry milk powder. Choose brands that list coffee as the only ingredient, as you don't want to negatively affect the final outcome of what you are baking with other additions.

Depending on its application in your recipe, instant coffee can be dissolved or used dry. Blending it in liquid is the technique I use the most in my own baking. I found that mixing the granules with liquid is helpful for two main reasons: it aids in diluting and evenly distributing the granules amongst themselves, and it also promotes the ease of being able uniformly combine the dissolved granules with other ingredients. Similar in technique to creating a slurry with water and cornstarch, you'll avoid clumps of instant coffee that will not mix evenly. This dilution method is useful when you need a larger amount of plain coffee for a recipe, or when you're making something containing higher levels of liquid like batters, custard bases, and icings.

While it's tempting as a quick shortcut, I don't recommend mixing dry granules into a prepared batter that contains wheat flour in recipes like cake, muffins, or brownies. Because you'll need to very thoroughly mix the granules for the most uniform distribution to prevent concentrated clusters, you'll develop unnecessary gluten formation in desserts that should have a tender crumb structure. When I have used this mixing option, my desserts have turned out far tougher than when I first dissolved the coffee granules in water and then added that solution earlier on in the mixing process. However, if you are planning on using instant coffee as an ingredient in a dry application, like mixing with dried spices, it can be used as is without dissolving.

Water is often the best choice for mixing with instant coffee. If your recipe calls for plain coffee, use water rather than another liquid to avoid conflicting flavors. In other cases, try blending instant coffee with a portion of a liquid already present in the recipe you are using, like milk or extract.

For the temperature of the liquid, you can use cold, room temperature, or hot — with some caveats! While the granules will still dissolve in cold or room temperature liquids, they will dissolve more slowly compared to a warmer temperature, and it will yield a weaker flavor. I recommend using a hot liquid, which helps the granules dissolve smoothly and rapidly, and leads to better extraction. However, a liquid that is too hot will extract excessively bitter flavors. The most important rule to follow here is to not let your liquid reach the boiling point at 212 degrees Fahrenheit. For an ideal brewing temperature, utilize the guidelines per the Specialty Coffee Association of America, which recommends a range of 194 to 204 degrees Fahrenheit.

Unless otherwise specified in your recipe, allow the hot liquid to cool slightly once the granules are completely dissolved. You don't want it to melt and ruin any recipes with a delicate structure, like a frosting or meringue. I learned the hard way when I added steamy coffee to a perfectly whipped vanilla bean buttercream I was planning on using for a batch of cupcakes, which immediately melted the butter and curdled the frosting.

Due to its dehydrated concentration, you don't need a lot of instant coffee to achieve the flavor you desire. Usually, you should use increments no larger than tablespoons. Most recipes will likely call for just a teaspoon or two, sometimes even just half of a teaspoon. This is especially the case when you are using darker, stronger roasts like espresso. For these, aim for a smaller amount.

If you are experimenting, the general understanding to keep in mind is that the more instant coffee you use, the stronger and less diluted the flavor will be. I love going big and bold on coffee flavor in desserts where it should be a prominent feature. Recipes like tiramisu, coffee ice cream, and anything with a pronounced mocha influence demand a powerfully perky punch. However, I apply a gentler hand for more delicate or plainer desserts that only need a subtle taste or scent. A fragile panna cotta, crisp meringue, or basic shortbread cookie need a disciplined touch to not swamp their intentional simplicity.

If you are substituting instant coffee for freshly brewed in a recipe, follow the ratio of instant coffee to water as recommended by the specific brand you bought. Be sure to use the same amount of total liquid required in your recipe — you don't want to meddle with your recipe's ingredient measurements, particularly the liquid portion, as this interference may drastically alter the final outcome of what you are baking.

Rather than being an overpowering presence, coffee enhances the chocolate flavor in desserts like cakes, muffins, brownies, and cheesecakes to yield a decadent dessert. Following Ina Garten's technique in her recipe for Beatty's chocolate cake, mixing in a cup of hot coffee into the batter deepens the chocolate base while creating a moist crumb. You'll enjoy a rich, forward-flavored dessert with no noticeable taste or smell of strong coffee.

The same method can also be used for a box mix of brownies or chocolate cake. Replace the water in the recipe with the same amount of prepared coffee, mixing it in at the same time as you would the water.

They type of chocolate or cocoa powder in the recipe should also influence your instant coffee choices. If you're using chocolate with a higher percentage of cacao between 80 to 90 percent, the final flavor of your dessert might be too harsh if you choose a strong instant espresso powder. Balance the bitterness by using a lighter roast of instant coffee or a smaller amount of instant espresso. If your recipe calls for 100 percent unsweetened chocolate, I actually recommend not adding any instant coffee at all, since the unsweetened chocolate carries all the complexity and bitterness you'll need.

As for cocoa powder, if you're using a natural cocoa powder with a higher level of acidity and more complex fruitier notes, a darker roast of coffee will work well with it. Compared to an alkalized Dutch-process cocoa powder with less acidity, the addition of a more acidic lighter roast will be a welcome companion for balance.

Bring a big boost of energy and flavor to your next batch of cookies by mixing instant coffee granules into cookie dough. Because most cookie dough recipes require less liquid compared to looser batters like cakes and brownies, instant coffee granules should be mixed in a way that helps them to be evenly dispersed without the addition of excessive water.

There are a few easy options to incorporate the granules during the dough-making process. If you need to cream white or brown sugar with butter in one of the beginning stages, you can whisk the granules with the sugar before creaming. Or, you can whisk the granules with the flour and other dry ingredients before mixing them into the wet ingredients.

Do you want to use instant coffee as a replacement for an extract that's featured in your cookie recipe? This is one instance of how incorporating a little water will not be detrimental to the dough, since you're simply replacing one liquid for another. If using the instant coffee as a substitute for an extract like vanilla or almond, blend it with a small amount of water to create a pourable slurry. For a bigger impact of fragrance, you can double up on aromatics by using the original extract itself as the base for mixing the instant coffee.

Make your own coffee-forward dry spice mix by adding a couple teaspoons of instant coffee to your favorite spice combos. If you fall for the pumpkin spice latte trend every year, use instant coffee in any pumpkin spice mix for all of your autumnal sweet treats like pumpkin bread, cake, or pie. You can also add it to a classic mix of cinnamon and white sugar for sprinkling in cinnamon rolls, coffee cakes, babkas, and other pastries. And I love adding it to batches of sweet spiced nuts or pumpkin seeds as a crunchy snack to serve during small get-togethers.

Note that the individual granules of instant coffee powder can vary in size from brand to brand. If you purchased instant coffee with larger granules, you may need to briefly pulse the granules in a food processor or coffee/spice grinder to achieve a finer powder that is more uniform in size to the other ground spices you will use in your spice mix. If you don't own one of those appliances, you can also place the granules in a resealable plastic bag and pound by hand with the smooth side of a meat mallet.

A shiny glaze on a freshly fried donut, a drizzle of chocolate ganache on a crisp cookie, a light-as-air frosting covering a cake. Take full advantage of instant coffee's impressive ability to swiftly dissolve by using it in a smooth glaze, ganache, icing, or frosting to decorate your desserts.

This application is ideal when you are striving for just a hint of coffee aroma and flavor as a subtle complementary note in your dessert rather than as the bolder main feature. It's a fun way to play with flavors, and gives you a little creative freedom to update classic baked goods you make all the time. I always have quick breads in my baking rotation, and will sometimes top off my banana, pumpkin, or zucchini breads with a thin coffee glaze for a perfect breakfast treat, served right alongside mugs of hot coffee.

The preparation method for this is quick and painless, and is virtually similar across all styles: dissolve dry instant coffee with a liquid before incorporating it into the remaining ingredients. So delicious to mention twice, you will find instant coffee in the chocolate buttercream frosting Ina Garten uses for Beatty's chocolate cake recipe. Garten dissolves one tablespoon of instant coffee in hot water before adding it along with melted chocolate to a whipped buttercream base.