Does Instant Powder or Espresso Work Better for Whipped Coffee?

Frozen 400 times coffee is made by whipping coffee, sugar, and warm water at a 1:1:1 ratio into a dense foam, then adding one freezing step so the foam turns ice-cream-like. A comparison test set espresso against instant freeze-dried powder to see which whips more easily, how each expresses flavor, and how the finished texture differs.

The drink's popularity traces back to a Korean variety show featuring a Macau shop's hand-whipped recipe, later copied by celebrities and spread across social media. The frozen version adds richer layering similar to snow-top coffee. Front Street Coffee ran two test sets recording extraction adjustments and whipping times for both espresso and instant powder.

400次咖啡 became a viral hit across the internet thanks to its cloud-like dense foam and caramel sweetness, and the frozen version of 400次咖啡只需要多一步冷藏，就能让咖啡泡沫变身冰淇淋质地，层次感直逼雪顶咖啡。But when making it, should you use espresso or instant freeze-dried powder? What exactly are the differences between the two in terms of whipping difficulty, flavor expression, and final mouthfeel? Front Street Coffee conducted two sets of comparative experiments using freshly extracted espresso and instant coffee powder respectively, recording everything from extraction parameter adjustments and whipping time to the texture of the finished product, to help you find the method that suits you best.

Last year, Front Street introduced a coffee that took the internet by storm—by whipping it with a tool, liquid coffee is continuously infused with air and expands, ultimately forming a dense, thick coffee foam that floats atop white milk like a cloud. It tastes rich and mellow, with a hint of caramel-like sweetness. Since the ingredients and steps are both simple, many coffee lovers with a sweet tooth tried to recreate it at home. It is "400次咖啡."

Today, building on this popular drink, Front Street continues with its upgraded version—Frozen 400次咖啡. Compared to the original, it only adds one freezing step, yet it gives it a rich layering similar to snow-top coffee. Friends who enjoy sweet coffee might want to give it a try.

What Is "400次咖啡"?

400次咖啡, also called "400-stir coffee." Because drinking it brings to mind the traditional Korean snack "dalgona," it has another name—「달고나커피」, which means Dalgona Coffee.

Image source: Korean variety show 《新品上市便利餐厅 》

The popularity of this coffee originated from a Korean variety show, 《新品上市便利餐厅》. The show introduced a signature drink from a small shop in Macau: the owner mixed instant coffee powder, sugar, and warm water at a 1:1:1 ratio, then relied on hand-whipping to create a cloud-like dense foam. Ice cubes and milk were then added, completing this cup of coffee.

After that, more and more Korean celebrities mimicked and made it themselves in livestreams, praising it endlessly, which made this hand-whipped coffee not only go viral in Korea itself but also sweep across the entire Asian region. The term "400次咖啡" also flooded multiple social media platforms.

400次咖啡 2.0

"Freeze your 400次咖啡"—this is a new version Front Street discovered one day while browsing online. It is said that simply inserting a "freezing" step into the original process can give the coffee foam an ice cream-like texture. Scoop a spoonful on top of milk, and you have a specialty coffee that delivers both taste and appearance. That being the case, Front Street, which loves both coffee and desserts, naturally had to make a cup and try it.

Without further ado, let's get started!!

First, the ingredients you need to prepare are: coffee, fine granulated sugar, plus an electric whisk and a refrigerator as auxiliary tools.

The choice of coffee is very broad. Online, most people use 3-in-1 instant coffee powder or freeze-dried powder, add an equal proportion of hot water, and then whip it. Because these coffee products have a higher solid content, the concentration after dissolving with an equal proportion of hot water is also much higher than other coffees, making it easier to whip into a fluffy texture that does not collapse easily.

However, freshly made strong coffee (including regular espresso and moka pot coffee), when whipped with sugar, can also achieve a creamy effect—it just requires slight adjustments to the extraction concentration.

For example, Front Street's output parameters today are 20 grams of coffee powder extracted for 29 seconds to yield 40ml of coffee liquid. Here, it can be adjusted to 25 seconds extracting 30ml, that is, Espresso Ristretto. At this concentration, the espresso has a lower water content, making it easier to whip into a milk-cap-like texture.

Similarly, if you are using a moka pot and normally wait until the coffee liquid passes the halfway point before removing it from the heat, then use the residual heat to extract the remaining coffee liquid, you can reduce the release of coffee liquid by interrupting the heating earlier, thereby increasing the concentration. After experimenting, Front Street found that once the coffee liquid rises to about one quarter of the upper chamber, you can turn off the heat.

Here, Front Street used freshly extracted espresso and instant coffee powder respectively to make two batches of Frozen 400次咖啡, to see how the results turn out.

Espresso group: First, use 20g of coffee powder to extract 30ml of coffee liquid, add 15 grams of fine granulated sugar, pour them together into a cup, then whip with an electric whisk until the coffee foam formed by incorporated air becomes a moldable creamy state. Front Street spent nearly 16 minutes completing this.

The texture whipped from espresso looks very soft, fluffy, and smooth.

Next, seal this "coffee milk cap" and place it in the refrigerator to freeze for more than two hours, until the coffee foam continuously cools down and becomes an ice cream-like texture. At this point, simply find a cup you like, add ice cubes and milk, then scoop a spoonful of the frozen coffee foam into it, and add a piece of caramel biscuit as a garnish. Frozen 400次咖啡 is ready!

Instant coffee group: Add 15 grams of instant coffee powder, 15 grams of hot water, and 15 grams of granulated sugar into a cup in sequence, then turn on the electric whisk and whip. It took about 13 minutes. The subsequent steps are the same as above.

The result whipped from instant coffee powder is firmer.

Finally, by comparing the two groups of coffee, Front Street found that the instant group's raw materials had a heavier burnt-bitter taste, while the Frozen 400次咖啡 made with espresso was superior to the instant group in foam texture, aroma, and the latte taste after pairing with milk. The upper layer of coffee foam was dense with a bit of coolness, the aromas of caramel and nuts were solid, and the milk was sweet, fragrant, and smooth. Delicious!!

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The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.