Dalgona Coffee Going Viral Amid Coronavirus Social Distancing
Dalgona coffee is the latest fad that has taken the internet by storm. This 3-ingredient creamy coffee drink is going viral as people are social distancing and self-quarantining amid the coronavirus pandemic, and people are coming up with creative ways to make even the most mundane tasks, like making their morning coffee, a little bit more exciting and enjoyable.
The Dalgona coffee trend began on TikTok, with the hashtag #DalgonaCoffee garnering over 10 million views on the video making application. The trend soon spilled over to Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube too with video recipes being shared by people who tried their hand at it. The name ‘Dalgona’ originated from a South Korean toffee by the same name – a sugary toffee with a thick sponge-like exterior and it took off from there.
South Korea calls its spongy toffee candy “dalgona” or ppopgi, a candy that’s made by heating sugar, oil, and baking soda; mixing until it’s thick and fluffy; then letting the mixture harden. Over the past few weeks, as coffee shops close amid government recommendations and as many of us retreat inside with our stockpile of groceries, dalgona has picked up new meaning with “dalgona coffee,” an online global coffee trend.
In YouTube tutorials, TikToks, and posts on Instagram, Facebook (Facebook groups like Subtle Asian Eats, the food offshoot of Subtle Asian Traits), and Twitter, people all over the world are making dalgona coffee. Though the early posters of dalgona coffee videos were based in Korea, people in Japan, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Germany, and the United States have taken hold of the trend—all countries with cases of COVID-19 and where there are mass communal efforts toward isolation and social distancing. Its popularity is a confluence of multiple internet trends: fluffy food, ASMR videos, and, perhaps most importantly, the fact that so many people across the globe are now isolated or quarantined amid the global coronavirus outbreak and are now making coffee at home.
According to Google Trends, the phrase “dalgona coffee” was basically nonexistent until January 26 of this year, when there was a tiny blip of interest. On February 22, Korean YouTuber 뚤기ddulgi posted what’s now the most viewed dalgona coffee video on YouTube, with over 2.8 million views.
Unlike a latte or a cappuccino, in which the froth comes from aerated milk, the fluffiness of dalgona coffee comes from the coffee and sugar itself.
Here’s How To Make Dalgona Coffee At Home:
Ingredients:
- 2 tbsp Instant Coffee
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 2 tbsp hot water
- 1/2 glass cold milk
- Ice cubes as required
Method:
- Combine coffee, hot water and sugar in a bowl. Use a hand-mixer or simply a spoon to beat the mixture at a fast pace.
- Keep stirring quickly until the coffee mix becomes a thick froth.
- Pour milk in a glass. Top it with ice cubes.
- Add the coffee mixture on top. Serve chilled.
