5 Things You Didn't Know You Can Make With Instant Coffee
Delicious cup of joe with no hassle is only one of the advantages of instant coffee, but there is so much more to the delicious coffee granules than "just" coffee.
With instant coffee, your life is made easier in various ways. When you are craving that caffeine influx of coffee you don’t have to jump in your car to the nearest coffee shop, or wait for hours for a fresh brew. Just some hot water and instant coffee will give you that coffee taste that you so desperately need.
Instant coffee has changed the coffee game for the better. People everywhere have switched to instant coffee for various different reasons. Whether they are too groggy in the morning and need a fix or are too comfortable in pajamas but still want coffee, instant coffee always comes in handy to save your day.
For all those late night study sessions, instant coffee has got your back. With instant coffee you can make all your fan-favorite drinks that you find in your local coffee shop in the comfort of your own home. All those lattes, cappuccinos, americanos, etc. don’t have to make a hole in your pocket, you can easily spare yourself all that money by using instant coffee. Making these drinks in the comfort of your own home by using instant coffee will not only give you a delicious drink, but will also have you feeling like a professional barista!
WHAT CAN YOU MAKE WITH INSTANT COFFEE OTHER THAN COFFEE
No need to limit your days with café-style drinks, or coffee art, with instant coffee you can make more than "just" coffee. The options of what you can make with instant coffee that aren’t coffee are endless. We all love the taste of coffee and wish to have it with every meal of the day, if only that were possible...
Since instant coffee is in a crystallized form, it is an easy substance to just add anywhere. Instant coffee will allow you to continue enjoying the taste of coffee throughout the day, by drinking it, eating it, or even smelling it. Here are 5 unique ways to use instant coffee, other than your typical favorite drink.
1. Smoothies/milkshakes
There’s nothing easier than getting your daily dose of fruits and vegetables than by drinking a smoothie. As you are getting dressed in the morning or on your commute to work, you can easily get your source of fiber by sipping on a smoothie. Just add your fruits and vegetables of choice, some ice, and a splash of milk and you will be all set for your daily dose.
Although milkshakes don’t give you as much nutrients as you would find in a smoothie, they do come in an array of flavors, with chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry being the leading three. Milkshakes give you the opportunity to have your ice cream while still being able to get your work done without making a mess.
If only there was a way to make these smoothies and milkshakes better than what they are already. There is! By adding instant coffee to the smoothie and/or milkshake you add a little flavor of coffee to your drink. Why limit your smoothies and milkshakes to the common flavors that are normally associated with them, when you can add a new flavor; a flavor of coffee.
Not only will the instant coffee give your beverage a hint of coffee taste, it will also give it the caffeine that you need to help you get through your day. If you are worried about juggling both drinks in your hands all day long, just add a teaspoon of instant coffee to your smoothie or milkshake.
Try this mocha java smoothie recipe
Try this coffee milkshake recipe
2. Dry rub/sauce
We all love a good well-seasoned meat or chicken at a steakhouse or barbecue. Leave the expert level carvers to the masters and create your own by using a homemade dry rub. Most dry rubs consist of every day like spices that are found in most people’s pantries, like salt, pepper, garlic, paprika, etc. The world is your oyster with the level of creations that you can make with the typical spices that you use every day.
Sauces provide the flavor to dishes that we didn’t know they needed. The beauty of adding a sauce is that little effort is required, just pour your favorite sauce over any dish for new and exciting flavors. Depending on the type of sauce, it will grab itself onto the food, allowing its flavors to be portrayed throughout the food. You’ve got your light sauces, thick sauces, citrus sauces, and even vegetable-based ones. Each sauce works best with a specific type of dish, giving them all a twist on their natural taste.
For any meat or poultry, you get the most flavor out of the food when you allow it to marinate in its spices and sauces for as long as possible. The longer they sit in the flavors, the more they absorb the flavors of the spices and sauces; giving you a more flavorful dish. If you’re going to allow the meat to reach a level of perfection, you might as well consider adding something that will bring out all of the flavors. By using instant coffee as a dry rub or as part of a sauce you are giving the other flavors a chance to stand out. Instant coffee also adds smokiness, aroma and some sweetness to your dish.
Check out this homemade instant coffee rub recipe
Check out this instant coffee barbecue sauce recipe
3. Salad dressing
A meal is not complete without a salad to cleanse the palate in between bites. But, you can’t have a salad without the perfect salad dressing to pair it with. There are so many different kinds of salad dressings, how do you know which is best for your salad? If you are having a salad with light vegetables you want to pair it with a dressing that has a little more flavor so it doesn’t seem too dull. On the other hand, if you are having a salad with many different vegetables and flavors, you want to pair it with a dressing that isn’t too heavy; so that you don’t ruin the flavors that are found in the vegetables themselves.
Since it is not a liquid, or liquid based, you wouldn’t think of turning your instant coffee into a dressing, in fact it is just the opposite. Instant coffee would dissolve in your liquid-based dressing and make the perfect addition to your salad, giving it that little bit of extra flavors. With every salad bite you will get a mouthful of coffee, almost as if you were drinking coffee along with your salad. When adding your instant coffee to your salad dressing be cautious of the amount, too much coffee will damage the taste of your salad. You want to be able to taste the salad with a hint of coffee, not taste the coffee with a hint of salad...
Try this grilled green salad with instant coffee vinaigrette
4. Baked goods
There isn’t a baked good that no one likes, we want them all, at all times! Our sweet teeth comes to life every time we see a baked good, craving that whole box of cookies. When it comes to these sweet delicacies, it seems like there is never enough. If only all the cakes and cookies that we eat every day tasted like our favorite drink...
As strange as it may seem, instant coffee is actually found in more baked goods than not. Cakes, cookies, brownies, muffins, and many more all have a secret ingredient in them that make them taste so good; instant coffee. You would think that a simple chocolate cake gets its flavor from the chocolate, but really it's from the coffee that was added. The coffee pulls all the flavors together, giving you the most out of your goods. As part of the dry ingredients, add a teaspoon of instant coffee as to your mix. Tip - make sure that the dry ingredients (including the coffee) are well blended before you are adding the other ingredients.
Read these 26 desserts that get a boost from instant coffee
5. Houseplant fertilizer
After cooking all these delicious meals, what about making your dining room pretty to serve them? For those of us who dream to become an herbalist and botanist, houseplants are the closest thing we can get to that without completely opening a whole greenery. We buy many types of plants to fill up our gardens, both indoors and outdoors, hoping that we can keep them alive for as long as possible. The more plants we can take care of, gives us a feeling of actually doing this for a profession.
Instant coffee actually makes the perfect compost and fertilizer for these houseplants to bloom, adding nutritional material to the soil. Adding coffee to the soil will aerate the soil, control the water level, and will improve the drainage that occurs with plants. The coffee granules will also improve plant growth, giving you the fully-fledged garden that you are looking for. Bonus, it will make your room full with that delicious coffee aroma.
How to use your diluted coffee to fertilize plants
