How to Make Norwegian Egg Coffee and Your Own Winter Spice Blend by Cleo Coyle (2024)

If your grandmother threw egg shells into her coffee filter, this post may give you a clue why...

My story starts with a man inNorway. Martin Lersch has a PhD in chemistry and a passion for food and drink. Dr. Lersch stumbled upon Americans making "Norwegian Egg Coffee," and became puzzled. He was Norwegian, yet he’d never heard of it.

He described the method to his mother who said she’d never heard of it, either. But she did recall Norwegians using the skin (or swim bladders) from fish when boiling coffee in order to help clarify it.

The chemist’s conclusion was that Norwegians who came to the Midwestern United States replaced the fish skins with eggs. Eggs were a much easier source of protein to come by than fish in their new home, and the chemical results the same.

This is about the best explanation I have come across for why egg coffee may have become popular in the Midwest and among Americans with Norwegians roots.

As for the scientific rationale behind this method of making coffee, it’s fairly simple; Dr. Lersch explains it this way: eggs contain proteins (as do fish skins, which is what Norwegians in Norway once used).Proteins help the coffee grounds toflocculate; that is, clump together, which helps to prevent the bitter grinds from ending up in you cup. Proteins also bind to the polyphenols in coffee, ridding it of astringency, which aids in clarifying it. That’s why the result is a pleasant, mild tasting brew.

This method isalsoa fun way to make your own Spiced Coffee Blend. I'll show you how in the recipe below. May you drink it with joy and...

Helse! ~ Cleo

What about Grandma
and her Egg Shells?

She was right, if she did it right. While some people like to use the whole egg when making this coffee, some use the egg and shell, too—the shell is calcium carbonate, which will neutralize acid. Here’s the thing, though, it only works if you really crush up the shell into the grinds. Simply throwing large, empty shells into a coffee filter does nothing to change the acidity level.

Once strained, the egg coffee produces a very pretty, amber-colored beverage. Despite using inexpensive, pre-groundcoffee,the result is clear, smooth, and delicious.

How Cleo Makes
Norwegian Egg Coffee

If you are making large batches of coffee and your grinds are coming pre-ground in a can or plastic container, this is an excellent method of doing it, (which is exactly why church basem*nts are famous for serving it).

Canned, pre-ground coffees are mass produced and mass roasted, giving them much less dimension and complexity than premium (aka "specialty") coffees, roasted in small batches. In other words, if you're using cheaper coffee, this method of making it will give you a smoother and more drinkable brew.

If you're making high-quality coffees, however, most coffee pros would recommend using other methods to preserve their complex flavors (and so would I). Use this method only for inexpensive, pre-ground coffees...or the occasional curious experiment.

Makes 10 servings(roughly ten 6-ounce cups of coffee)

(1) PLACE 2 quarts of water (eight 8-ounce cups) into a saucepan

(3) MIX a paste consisting of:

(4) ADD this coffee-egg paste into the water as soon as it begins to boil. Give it a gentle stir with a spoon, and do not stir again.

(5) BOIL for 3 full minutes.

As the coffee boils and the egg cooks, the coffee grinds clump together and the brew is clarified.

(6) REMOVE the pan from heat. (Don't just turn the heat down, take the panoffthe hot burner.)

(7) LET STAND for a full 2 minutes.

FINAL NOTES:

* STEP 6 - Many recipes for "egg coffee" direct you to add cold water during step (6). But in my experience this does little to benefit the brew. Instead, I find it makes the coffee more watery and lessens the pleasant impact of a wonderfully hot, steaming cup.

Make Your Own
Spiced Coffee Blend!

To create a spiced coffee blend using this method, simply add your favorite whole spices to the pot during step 1.

Here are the whole spices that I like to use...

3 cinnamon sticks, 2 whole cloves, 1 teaspoon of crystallized ginger, and1 star anise. You can mix and match your own with one warning...