Does anyone drink instant coffee anymore?

BarqsHasBite@lemmy.ca to No Stupid Questions@lemmy.world – 156 points –

For some reason I think of it as an older concept. Now Starbucks and coffee chains are popular.

Seinfeld on instant coffee https://youtu.be/uDrh5pujB9I?si=VdlVEREjMTNd2Bs7

Highlighting carlcook's advice:

dissolve in cold water, ONLY THEN add hot water. The rationale behind it is that aromatics evaporate too quickly when the instant powder is infused with too/boiling hot water.

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Starbucks tried to modernize it with these little packets a few years back, under the name “Via”. The older brands still exist too, such as Nescafé, which, as a Nestle product, I assume is made from the blood of indigenous people.

The production actually is pretty cool really. They basically brew giant vats of coffee and then freeze dry it into a powder that can be easily rehydrated.

That actually made me like insta coffee a tiny bit more just for being so cool

The biggest difference is that starbucks via doesn't start with awful coffee.

Starbucks isn't good coffee compared to some fancy pants third wave coffee, but It's not nescafe either.

Freeze drying and rehydrating might not do anything to hurt coffee flavor, but it's not going to make bad coffee suddenly taste good.

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I imagine there are tons of office workers, mechanics, construction workers, etc. who are drinking instant because it's impractical or impossible to have a coffee machine at work or in the field. I believe the vast majority of coffee vending machines also use instant coffee behind the scenes, so everyone who's ever gotten a cup of highway rest stop coffee was most likely drinking instant at least once. Ditto with the "cappuccino" machines at every convenience store and gas station on earth.

I carry instant coffee with me when I'm camping, because I can't be bothered to have to carry and more importantly clean any kind of coffee gadget.

Look into an Aeropress.

It'd work comfortably in camping or office situations. Not as easy as instant coffee but much, much better.

I've seen 'em and I've used them in the past. They're a fine solution, but they still require cleaning and a couple of satchels of Taster's Choice or whatever is easier on the KP and also much smaller than a giant coffee syringe. Showing up at the pay-for-pitch in the station wagon is one thing, but usually all my stuff needs to either fit in my panniers or my backback.

There are guys I've hiked with who have them, though. To each their own.

I’m with you on this one, too. I prefer my jet boil and instant coffee (or matcha) compared to an Aeropress.

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Vacuum insulated hot drink containers are a thing, and work very well. That's what field workers use. Who has time or a device to boil water?

Every coffee vending machine I have ever used ground the coffee while you wait. Cappuccino machines are definitely a mix, though.

I just brew in my French press after dinner, pour some into a thermos after it's done, and store the rest in my French press in my fridge. The next day, I pour more into my thermos. I feel even old coffee tastes better than instant, but I understand that's my opinion.

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It’s all I drink. But I only drink coffee for the caffeine, it all tastes like shit. If I want to enjoy it I have a cup of tea.

Put a little salt in it! It helps a lot especially with the cheaper brands.

The link literally has "joke" in it so I'm not sure if I should be taking this seriously.

A tiny pinch of salt actually dulls the sharpness of a bitter coffee. Something something chemical reactions when salt mixes with coffee. Try it. It's great!

Based on experimenting with flavours but not this particular one yet, it doesn't hurt to try. Balancing the different flavour groups is an easy way to elevate meals (well, easy once you've calibrated your taste to be able to figure out what's "missing").

Just tried it and I'd say it's a positive difference, though I didn't spend much time searching for the "right" amount. With salt, I find it's better to err on the side of too little. Things tend to be ok with too little salt and yuck with too much.

It's for real. But make it a small pinch. You don't actually want to taste salt.

You do you I guess but... surely a good cup of proper coffee tastes less-shit and has more caffeine?

I drink both instant and real.

I drink french-press rocket fuel in the morning, a strong cap at lunchtime on office days, and I wouldn't compromise on either.

But afternoons at home, or in the evening... I dunno, it's just too much drama. I want something in the background that isn't going to make any demands on my attention. It's the equivalent of watching garbage TV at the end of a long day. You don't want hard-hitting incisive social commentary, you just want a couple episodes of Ow, My Balls.

I've found a brand that doesn't taste like toner; it's not real coffee, just Brown Drink. But it's entirely acceptable Brown Drink, and it does what I need it for.

Same. French press for work, instant for home where I don't know how long I can keep a given activity going.

It's a bit more common in the UK. Everybody's got 230v electric kettles practically in every room (/s) so having coffee that just takes hot water has extra appeal. I'm also lead to believe that their instant coffee is a bit better quality than what is common in the US.

this is so odd for me to read. instant coffee is treated like literal dirt over here. so the idea theres a good kind of drinkable dirt sounds hilarious.

UK here, and yeah, this is my experience.

I'll drink instant most days (right now in fact) and proper coffee when we have guests or if I'm not pushed for time.

Quality of instant varies wildly, but there's at least a few versions that are very decent indeed IMO.

I love coffee. I am a coffee snob. Instant coffee is easy to pack and travel with. If you have access to hot water it's still coffee which is better than nothing. If you don't have access to hot water then it's a tastier caffeine pill.

I do. Almost always. And there are three main reasons for it.

(A) Hassle free prep. Hot water and stirrer, bam!

(B) No waste/by-products (e.g. filter, brewed coffee granules residue, blah blah) - so much less carbon footprint.

(C) A cup of instant coffee has slightly less caffeine content than the same cup of freshly brewed coffee. Good for me, because I have been a caffeine-addict, and trying to cut down now.

So I always try to go for Freeze-dried instant coffee ( especially Colombian, like Juan Valdez ), and not the Spray-dried shit.

Edit : I thank max and the OP for enlightening me about the instant coffee manufacture process. It surely appear that Instant coffee has a lot more environmental impact than simple ground coffee because of more processes involved. I have always consumed instant coffee, but were totally ignorant on this part. Dumb of me.

Thanks to the people directing me to the right way, and I will strike out my second point above.

so much less carbon footprint.

Bad news for you.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1385894723015243

Instant coffee has >2 times higher impacts and costs than ground coffee.

Based on the functional unit of 1 tonne of coffee produced, instant coffee has higher impacts and costs than ground coffee for both system boundaries because it requires double the amount of green coffee beans and 7–11 times more energy.

Really bad news, and so ignorant of me. Thanks for the enlightenment btw !

There is waste and byproduct, just not in your kitchen. Look into the manufacturing process. There are still beans that are roasted, ground, brewed and discarded.

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(B) No waste/by-products (e.g. filter, brewed coffee granules residue, blah blah) - so much less carbon footprint.

Not sure how you come to this conclusion. The waste is the same (if not more), just ends up somewhere else. Also, you're adding a whole extra process (freeze drying) requiring extra energy, and water needs to be boiled twice (during brewing and at home).

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For me instant coffee is for backpacking, because when you're busting your ass on the trail for a few days literally anything you can eat or drink tastes amazing

One of the best feelings in the world is a morning hike up the mountains, reaching a stopping soot and boiling some hot water for some tea/coffee.

I was recently on holiday where most of the other guests in our hotel were 50-70 year old Germans.

The breakfast buffet at our hotel had a large scale coffee maker which could do some surprisingly good freshly ground coffee. What it could also do is spit instant coffee into your mug and pour hot water on top.

In two weeks I never saw someone (other than me) draw anything but fucking instant coffee from that thing.

Absolutely!

It’s portable, stores well, takes nothing more than a mug and hot water to make, and takes no longer to make than it does to heat the water.

Sure, I prefer good drip coffee or an espresso-based drink, but I travel a lot and often hotel room coffee sucks. Sometimes a decent insta-coffee works great to get you out the door.

Instant coffee is still popular and common in Asia. Coffee vending machines, which are technically instant, are also common in waiting areas of businesses (i.e. dealership, leasing offices, clinics, etc.)

I still do. Most of my coffee consumption is instant, but I am not particular about coffee so long it doesn't taste bad.

I like drinking really good coffee as much as I can, but I do not look down on a cup of instant from time to time. I have a jar at home for if I run out, and it's often the only option while traveling.

Coffee is coffee, and I like coffee.

I used to because I am single and it didn't seem economical to brew a pot for one cup. Then I found out about the "4 cup" machines like the ones they put in hotel rooms.

I grind enough for a big cup, pour water in it, and decant it to another cup using a fork as a filter. Seems to work fine.

Revenue in the Instant Coffee market amounts to US$30.3bn in 2023. The market is expected to grow annually by 5.03% (CAGR 2023-2028).

In global comparison, most revenue is generated in Japan (US$4,741m in 2023).

In relation to total population figures, per person revenues of US$3.95 are generated in 2023.

In the Instant Coffee market, volume is expected to amount to 1.6bn kg by 2028. The market for Instant Coffee market is expected to show a volume growth of 3.5% in 2024.

The average volume per person in the Instant Coffee market is expected to amount to 0.19kg in 2023.

https://www.statista.com/outlook/cmo/hot-drinks/coffee/instant-coffee/worldwide

In college, I used to drink Starbucks' Via. That instant coffee hits different.

Nowadays, I make either an espresso or a pour over. But I still crave Vias sometimes.

Yes. When I can't be arsed to grind beans and boil water. Doesn't taste as good, but it's fine with a little cookie or something.

Same. Instant in the morning and a normal one with grounding beans in the afternoon.

Not me, but it’s great for baking (a bit of coffee makes chocolate taste more chocolatey) and making nutrition shakes palatable.

I generally only drink instant for late night decaf, though the premixed Korean instant coffee packets are a treat every hour and then

In the UK it's still very common for people to have instant coffee at home. Companies will sometimes have their own fancy coffee maker (e.g. Nespresso) but not always.

Unless you work in tech, then the offices have £5k Italian espresso machines that only five people know how to operate.

Have solely or in addition to ground coffee?

Solely.

It's kinda like asking "why don't more Americans own electric kettles?".

UK: Kettle for tea. US: Coffee maker for coffee.

We generally drink more tea than coffee and so kettles became the norm. Some people do own their own coffee makers or cafetieres but it's less common. One is a nation coffee-drinkers and the other tea drinkers. Each has settled into using different machines and therefore different products.

Still seems like the default in much of Europe and Asia

I had a British coworker that said she thought instant coffee was the only kind until her twenties. Then I remembered British drink tea.

I think that instant Chai is actually quite popular worldwide. I assume it's pretty similar to instant coffee.

I feel like it's 2 different market segments.

Starbuck and othes fancy coffee shop I am in town, look for clean toilets and wifi so I'd pay 10 € to get them

Instant I am camping, (and sometimes indoor without coffee machine) and want a coffee

I drink it. It's cheaper and quicker to make than anything else I've found.

I use instant coffee for baking. And I had instant coffee as part of the tea-making facilities in British B&Bs (but I definitely prefer the tea there).

I'm thinking about making coffee ice cream and I was going to make a coffee reduction for that flavor (I experiment a lot. If it doesn't work I still have ice cream) but this sounds like a much better idea.

It is nice in chocolate desserts, pralinees, creams. Just imagine a buttercream cake where the buttercream has a hint of coffee flavor.

How do you use it for baking?

Not them but adding it to cakes, cookies, macrons, etc like cocoa powder does the job wonderfully in my cases.

Huh, I've only used espresso powder for that, not instant coffee.

Espresso powder definitely has a better coffee flavor and I'd use that if allowed but instant still works well for quick work and light flavors. Always have some on hand for camping :)

Use it anywhere you want coffee flavor without adding grit, or liquid.

Absolutely. Quality instant coffee tastes as good as a regular brew, when prepared correctly: dissolve in cold water, ONLY THEN add hot water.

Are those the actual directions or what you've found?

I used to avoid instant coffee until I read this somewhere and tried it. It definitely changed my coffee game. The rationale behind it is that aromatics evaporate too quickly when the instant powder is infused with too/boiling hot water.

Elaborate

When you dissolve instant coffee directly into hot water, the amylum contained in the granules hardens, creating a powdery taste and consistency. By mixing the granules with cold water first, they dissolve more gently once introduced to hot water.

I found this technique makes for a richer and more flavourful coffee experience. Allegedly also because aromatics evaporate slower.

I only use it to make Dalgona coffee. Basically a tablespoon of crystals, tablespoon of sugar, tablespoon of boiling water. Whip it until its a really thick foam, almost like shaving cream, then you put it over some milk, ideally also lightly sweetened as the foam ends up really bitter without a shitton of sugar which I don't prefer to use.

You add MORE sugar after the tablespoon of sugar you already added???

It's about balance of flavor for a specific treat. I consider it more of a dessert coffee. I won't argue that it's nutritionally a nightmare.

Starbucks and coffee chains are, you know, nowhere near my house, for one thing. How am I going to have coffee in the morning if I have to first leave my house and get a bus to where the coffee shop is, then get the bus home again and then go to work, or whatever?

Further, those places are EXPENSIVE AS HECC. The sort of people that can afford to buy coffee at those places every day sure do have it real nice.

For the rest of us, we make our coffee at home, and sometimes if we're lucky we get the cheap "real" grounds instead of the instant powder, haha

I like it just fine. Used to drink it all the time at my old job. My current job actually has coffee in the break room as a perk, so now I drink that. It's still basic Folgers or whatever, but it's fine. Not every coffee needs to be fancy. Sometimes I just want a cup of joe.

$8 buys a container of instant coffee and a single cappuccino is $6.

I’d love Starbucks everyday.I drink instant coffee, because money.

Sort of like asking with restaurants around everywhere does anyone bother to cook. It’s awesome but cup noodles will hit the spot as well.

At night when the espresso machine is too loud

I did the same for a long time. Now I find the histamine bomb from instant coffee just makes me feel terrible so I grind coffee with a hand mill and use an aeropress if I'm making a cup in the middle of the night.

histamine bomb

Is this a you thing or have I not been drinking coffee long enough? Is there a science behind it but I don't understand? I just googled and found a bunch of stuff about coffee having histamine but most of the sites are less than authoritative. The NCBI article I found (I only skimmed a little) seemed non coffee specific but interesting. Gonna save to read later.

It's a me thing but it's fairly common in Europe as well. I've had histamine issues since my 20s but they got much worse in my late 30s so I'm careful about which coffees I drink now. Chocolate gets me too so I don't eat much of it anymore. Both reactions are much worse during allergy season when my histamine is already high, during the winter I tolerate both much better.

Like, not asking for medical advice but does taking antihistamines help? I've just been on monteleukast recently and also started drinking coffee recently. I'm curious if it's something worth bringing up with my MD next visit. I live in a pollen bowl tho so I'm not sure it has anything to do with the coffee my nasals were just kinda clogged for 10 years before I did anything about it.

I wouldn't worry about it unless you're already having similar issues. If you drink a cup of coffee and get suddenly tired, congested or physically sore then I'd bring it up with your doctor. This didn't start happening to me until my late 30s, and only when I drink particularly high histamine coffees, I don't think it's a common reaction.

Antihistamines help a little but I usually have to reach for something like Benadryl which leaves me exhausted (not usually what I want after a coffee) so I've just gravitated to safer coffees. High doses of DAO enzyme seem to do a slightly better job but I'd rather just avoid the attack in the first place when possible.

Again, it's probably not something you need to worry about unless you start having histamine reactions to tea, coffee or chocolate. I'm just particularly sensitive to all of them.

If I'm going camping and want to keep things light I'll buy instant coffee and transfer it into a freezer bag.

My husband does. Nescafe. Though I make coffee each morning in a moka pot, fresh ground. He likes the instant coffee (and likes it much earlier than I make coffee).

I like coffee but not enough to like bad coffee.

I keep it to make dalgona

What's dalgona?

I keep a jar of it in my desk at the office.

Handy for those overnight callouts when noting else is available.

In the army we used to get a pack of instant coffee with the afternoon meal. We rarely wanted to shit ourselves later in the bush, so, no. We'd save it for whomever was fucked with guard shift that night.

Please understand there is no hot water at night; no real water supply at all. We do not traipse about the boonies looking for a stream, nor do we make a fire so it can be seen for miles. We even hide the pips on our wristwatch.

Not since bush coffee have I had instant coffee. And if I die without having instant coffee again - even properly prepared - it will be too soon.

I don't mind instant coffee and there are so many options. I get hired if I drink the same thing all the time. So some weeks I drink cold brew, some weeks I drink instant coffee, some week I drink iced and some weeks I drink tea. I alternate between different sources of caffeine pretty much every other week.

Dealing with coffee grinds got annoying. It’s also one of my first grocery store purchases when traveling.

Bonus points for instant iced coffee.

Yes. I don't like it but sometimes I don't have time to make my normal pour over. Like lunchtime. Tastes pretty bad. Especially to a pour over coffee snob like me.

Even Costco sells it.

I’m a pour over die hard but have you tried aeropress? You can make a single cup very quickly and easily.

Pour over doesn't seem that popular in Australia. I mean I know it's a thing but I've never seen it or heard of anyone drinking it.

Here the at-home-coffee options go instant > french press > mocha pot > pods > espresso machine.

Where would pour over fit in here?

Not sure I understand your question. How strong is pour over coffee?

Not really, you can make "strong" coffee using any method.

I'm asking about the overall quality. On a scale of swill-drinker to intolerable-coffee-snob, who uses pour over ?

I would judge that pour over is higher tier. Search YT for vids, some people are sickly obsessive over how to do a pour. IMHO, pour over is second only to espresso.

Hmm. I did have a look.

I think you could divide extraction methods into pressurised vs non-pressurised.

Probably personal preference which is best.

I'm finishing my cup right now. People say it's shit but I don't mind it.

I drink instant cappuccino, a habit I picked up from my wife. It's much less "coffee" than it is "vaguely coffee-flavored drink."

I don't drink coffee at all but I do live outside of the US. I have noticed that in MANY places in the world, instant coffee is the norm. It's not normal to see coffee beans in the grocery store at all really where I am now. I would have to go to a more upscale place or to a specialty spot to find whole or ground coffee.

I think it still represents something like 5-10% of the US coffee market.

Better doesn’t always drive out cheaper.

It's not always about cost but convenience.

Got hot water? Add instant coffee and you're done.

And you can make hot water with just about anything. Most people use a microwave, I'm sure. But you could use a stovetop or hot plate, a camp fire, or even a tin cup over a Zippo if you really had to.

I’m pretty sure every other country in the world just uses an electric kettle. That will just emphasise the convenience of instant over ground coffee.

Isn't that basically what a Keurig pod is? I think more people use instant coffee now than they did before those things existed. As much as Starbucks is popular, I still think most people make their own coffee at home.

Keurig pod has coffee grinds and filter. Instant coffee dissolves in water.

Personally, not very much. I’m aware my personal experience doesn’t translate to universal truth, but I only know what it know.

I have a little bit of instant coffee around but it’s mostly for camping.

Day to day, I either drink homemade iced coffee, or regular coffee made in a pour over. Getting the iced coffee ready is as fast as putting some ice in a bottle and pouring the coffee. Even the pour over, which takes maybe 15 minutes total is still faster than the time spent going to a Starbucks, waiting in line, ordering, and waiting for it to be made.

To me, buying coffee is really only going to happen when I’m traveling.

I don't drink instant as my daily coffee, but I do use it for baking and cocktails. When you want coffee flavor in something without the grainy texture of coffee grinds, instant coffee is the best solution because it dissolves entirely. It's great for ice cream, frosting, coffee cake, coffee syrup, or anything else of the sort. I've also found that the quality of instant coffee has improved significantly over the years, so it does actually make a pretty decent cup of coffee in a pinch.

Can you add it to...

...coffee?

You can add the instant coffee to coffee and some powdered milk to some milk for it and then you'll have more coffee per coffee and milk per milk than anyone else

For ice cream you can also seep with whole beans and then strain. Uses a lot more beans, of course.

I do occasionally. I'm mindful of my caffeine intake, so if I really want a hot beverage and herbal tea doesn't cut it I can make up a light cup of coffee, or a mix of coffee and cocoa. I usually do this after I've had my coffee for the day or when I'm planning on having my regular coffee later than normal.

I do when I can't be arsed otherwise.

On a good day, I slowly simmer oat milk and water in two pans and Aeropress fresh-ground coffee to make something akin to a flat white.

Can't be arsed? Oat milk in a mug in the microwave for 1-2 min and a tablespoon of Medaglia De Oro instant espresso powder.

I do it when I'm too lazy to make espresso at home. I have some freeze dried quality coffee that mixed with oat milk or vanilla ice cream tastes really good but I also do 3in1 which is delish.

Instant coffee is becoming quite popular again thanks to tiktok. People are sharing many recipes and its big because it's very accessible and can taste good. Also people finally figuring out that there is some special prep involved like not burning the coffee etc.

I don't really get beverages elitism tbh it's all some weird nonsense we put into our water to entertain ourselves.

My flavored water is better than your flavored water.

I do when I'm in a hurry. It's not as good as the real one but gets the job done when I really need it.

I do. I left my pour-over coffee maker at the office, so I make do with instant coffee. It's... ok, if I drown it in almond milk.

At least instant coffee makes sense in an economical way: it saves steps and time. what i don't get are filter coffee machines, the coffee they make is always horrendous.

Generally only when camping. Really like Mt. Hagen, but the canisters of Starbucks Premium Instant are decent.

My father-in-law prefers it. I have pretty good coffee here at the house, not excellent, but pretty good 2nd wave stuff. He hates it and wants Folger's crystals. I use it when backpacking. I'm not carrying beans, a grinder, and an aeropress over a mountain. Fuck that.

I use it, because I have fibromyalgia. So it's easier sometimes to just press the button on the kettle to makes some coffee. When I'm doing well, I always make Turkish coffee, since it feels like it makes me clearer way faster than other coffee does.

We keep a little on hand for coffeemergencies. Say the power's out and we don't have any ground, and we either don't want to start the generator just for the coffee grinder or are out of fuel or something. Or we're camping and didn't grind enough before we left. All this assuming we're out of The Good Tea because that'll do in a pinch. I've used it twice.

I have a 10 year old emergency stash.

Umm, is it still good?

I just go to coffee shops. I live in Seattle ffs (though I prefer the smaller and local shops, their food and coffee is more unique and tastes better, and they usually treat their employees way better than starbucks)

Try Korean instant coffee, it's about the best I've had. Check the ingredients carefully if you have food sensitivities, there's often surprise 🌽 in the creamer and sometimes corn syrup powder as sweetener.

Life is sad, and there are fewer options, when you drink decaf. It's all I can get at work, while the big, sophiscated coffee machine, with all it's flashy buttons, is dedicated to grinding life giving caffeinated beans to the masses.

If you count k-cups ….

Or occasionally as an ingredient for baking

We discuss below that k cups have grinds and a filter. Instant coffee dissolves.

I don't normally drink coffee at all, but my parents still have a coffee maker, so they at least do.

Sometimes. I keep it on hand. I usually do a French press or pour over coffee maker. But sometimes, just some hot instant coffee in theocrowave is good because I'm too tired to wait for the water to boil

Is there really anyone left who -would drink it?

Instant coffee, instant sex ... not pleasant, but over with quik. Now - get back to work. Slacker.