Coffee tradition of Crimean Tatars

Coffee tradition of Crimean Tatars is a set of traditions of preparing and consuming coffee in the traditional cuisine of the Crimean Tatars. The drink made from coffee beans came to Crimea from Turkey in the 16th century. Since then, coffee has occupied a special place in the life of the Crimean Tatars: it was drunk with guests, during discussions of important matters and business deals, every day in the family circle and during holidays.^[1]

First, the roasted coffee beans are ground very finely. This is done using a special hand grinder called a degirman. There are two ways to brew coffee: home (in a cezve coffee maker) and outdoor (in a special vessel called a kave-kuman).

Crimean Tatars once distinguished between men's and women's (children's) coffee.^[2]

Men's coffee was prepared as follows: a crumb of rock salt and sugar was placed in a cold cezve, then coffee powder was poured in, cold water was poured in, and placed in hot sand, waiting for it to boil. A pea of mutton fat was placed in a heated filzhan cup, a little coffee that had just boiled was poured in, and then cream was added.

The recipe for women's coffee was as follows: before brewing, a small piece of crushed sugar was placed in a cold cezve, coffee powder was poured on it, boiling water was poured over it, and the cezve thus seasoned was immediately placed in the heat of the sand. As soon as the coffee boiled to the first froth, it was quickly poured into preheated fildzhany cups.

In the 20th century, coffee began to be prepared with various additional ingredients:

• fragrant coffee brewed with milk ("syutlyu kave");
• strong black coffee with cinnamon ("tarchin kavesi");
• strong coffee with cinnamon and cloves ("karonfil kavesi").

Coffee is served poured into cups called filidjan. For ease of use, so as not to burn your fingers, the filidjan is placed on a stand called zadar. In addition to the cups, a traditional coffee pot called yibrik and plates with sweets are placed on the table. As a sweet, crushed sugar is often served, which is simply eaten, rather than dissolved in coffee, or shortbread cookies called khurabje (khurabye), which are made from flour, sugar, and fried butter.

Coffee was also served with halva, various jams: roses in sugar, unripe walnuts, white lilies, and nut cookies - baklava. Men often preferred tobacco over sweets, enjoying coffee while smoking a chubuk or hookah.

Today, Crimean Tatar coffee can be tasted in coffee shops in Kyiv, Lviv, and Odesa. Crimean Tatar coffee was included in the National List of Elements of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Ukraine. Ukraine celebrated 15 years of accession to the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage.^{[3] [4]}

• Crimean Tatar cuisine
• Crimean Tatar culture