Instant coffee

Just Like That

This might be a dumb question, but does water really need to be hot for instant coffee to mix properly (i.e. turn into coffee)? I mean, could I mix it with cold milk, or a room temperature beverage? (And yeah I know some of these would taste terrible, and instant coffee is worse than regular coffee, etc)

It seems like it shouldn't matter cause water is water, but I don't know if the heat performs some kind of 'final step' or something weird like that...

Shazkar Shadowstorm

I've made cold milkshake type things with instant coffee... so anecdotally, I guess it doesn't need to be hot.

Seaborn111

it can be done, yes.

but do you really want to?

there's a good chance you won't get a full mixture, meaning grittiness. and jeez, instant coffee is harsh enough without bits of floatyness.

but yes, properly beaten to hell with a spoon it will be drinkable.

Just Like That

Thanks guys.

Vater5B

As it has already been said, yes. For this reason it is an excellent way to add a little coffee flavor to things like cakes or puddings. Just throw a little bit of instant coffee in the mix and you've just made an everyday dessert slightly more interesting.

EggyToast

It's just like sugar or salt, really. Hot water will cause it to dissolve in a matter of seconds, cold water will take much longer.

If you use cold water, such as milk, just stir it longer. Think of it like chocolate milk powder. You gotta stir the shit outta that stuff for it to all get absorbed, and even then you usually end up with some undissolved powder at the bottom when you're finished.

whuppins

EggyToast wrote: »

It's just like sugar or salt, really. Hot water will cause it to dissolve in a matter of seconds, cold water will take much longer.

That's basically it. And "water is water", yeah, but even if we were talking about actual chemical reactions taking place, heat is still required to kick it off in many cases.

EggyToast

Well the science of it isn't that heat is a catalyst, it's that heat causes the water molecules to bounce around and "go crazy" in the container. Since they're moving around like crazy, they're ramming into the instant coffee bits and picking up those molecules, putting it in solution.

That's why it'll still dissolve in the cold, just take a lot longer. Also why it takes 3 minutes to make tea with hot water, vs. 30 minutes or so to make iced tea with cold water. And why you can't dissolve stuff in ice

whuppins

Hey, I said "even if we were", implying that we aren't

Did you just front on my subjunctive protasis?

DID YOU JUST FRONT ON MY SUBJUNCTIVE PROTASIS?!!???!?

Shiekahn_boy

Water molecules that are hot move faster then cold, so the coffee gets mixed better and faster...stronger..harder...

Just Like That

So yeah, I tried this today with cold milk and it is actually pretty good, for something that takes almost no time to make (better than just adding hot water anyway). I did have to stir it for a minute or two. It seems like it would be even better with chocolate added, but I don't have any chocolate at the moment to try it out.