Drinks
Buna
The Quirky Foodster Team
Ingredients
- 60 g (1/3 cup) Green coffee beans
- 750 ml (3 cups) Water
- to taste Sugar, to taste
- to serve Fresh popcorn or kolo, for serving (optional)
Method
- Rinse the green coffee beans and roast them in a dry frying pan over medium heat, stirring constantly, for 10–15 minutes until dark brown and fragrant.
- Let the roasted beans cool slightly, then grind to a fine powder using a mortar and pestle or grinder.
- Bring the water to a boil in a jebena or small saucepan.
- Add the ground coffee and stir once, then reduce heat and let it simmer gently for 5 minutes without stirring further, allowing the grounds to settle.
- Pour carefully into small cups, leaving the settled grounds behind, and serve with sugar to taste.
- Traditionally, three rounds are served from the same grounds, each slightly weaker than the last.
Introduction: The coffee ceremony, known as buna, is a cornerstone of Eritrean hospitality and daily social life.
Cultural Background: The coffee ceremony, known as buna, is a cornerstone of Eritrean hospitality and daily social life. Green beans are roasted, ground and brewed fresh in front of guests across three rounds, often accompanied by burning incense, as a mark of welcome and connection.
Storage: Best brewed and consumed fresh; leftover brewed coffee can be refrigerated for 1 day.
Reheating: Gently reheat leftover coffee on the stovetop; avoid boiling hard.
Tips: Waft the pan gently while roasting so guests can smell the beans as they darken — this is part of the ceremony’s ritual. Pour slowly and steadily from a height to keep the grounds settled at the bottom of the pot.
Variations: Serve with a few grains of roasted kolo alongside for guests to snack on between sips. Add a pinch of ground cardamom or cinnamon to the grounds for a spiced variation. Naturally vegan.
Nutrition: Calories: 5 kcal · Protein: 0 g · Carbs: 1 g · Fat: 0 g · Fiber: 0 g
FAQs:
Q: Why is coffee served in three rounds?
A: Each round — called awel, kale’i and bereka — carries its own significance in the ceremony, representing hospitality shared over an extended visit.
Q: Can I use pre-roasted coffee instead?
A: Yes, for convenience, though roasting the beans fresh in front of guests is central to the ceremony’s meaning.
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