Brew Method
Swedish Egg Coffee: A Shell-Free Brewing Guide
Swedish egg coffee brews coffee grounds together with egg, then separates the solids before serving. Associated with Scandinavian-American kitchens and church gatherings, it produces a cup of coffee rather than an egg-cream topping.
Brew Snapshot
- Coffee dose
- 40 g, medium grind
- Water input
- 640 g (22.6 oz) total: 600 g (21.2 oz) + 40 g (1.4 oz)
- Egg
- 50 g (1.8 oz) pasteurized whole egg
- Serving yield
- Measure after straining; divide in two
More brewing details
- Method
- Swedish Egg Coffee
- Brew time
- About 15 min, including heating
- Grind size
- Medium, suitable for drip brewing
- Equipment
- 2-liter (2.1 US qt) saucepan and stove, Scale, bowl and spoon, Food thermometer, Fine sieve, paper coffee filter and stable heatproof jug
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Body
- Varies with coffee and filtration
- Clarity
- Paper-strained home version
Key Takeaways
- Expect a strained cup of coffee; the cooked egg-and-grounds mixture is removed rather than served as a topping.
- Ladle patiently through the supported paper filter for a clearer cup instead of squeezing out the final drops.
- Choose coffee you already enjoy and keep the water split consistent when comparing this method with your usual brew.
On This Page11 Sections
Shell-Free Swedish Egg Coffee Recipe
This home version uses a shell-free egg-and-grounds method.
Recipe
Shell-Free Swedish Egg Coffee
- Makes:
- 2 servings; divide the measured collected coffee equally
- Time:
- About 15 minutes; heating and straining vary
Ingredients
- 40 g medium-ground coffee
- 640 g (22.6 oz) water, divided into 600 g (21.2 oz) and 40 g (1.4 oz)
- 50 g (1.8 oz) refrigerated, unflavored pasteurized liquid whole egg
Equipment
- 2-litre (2.1 US qt) saucepan and stove
- Scale, mixing bowl, spoon and ladle
- Food thermometer
- Fine sieve, paper filter and stable heatproof jug
- Two serving cups
- Timer
Method
- Measure 600 g (21.2 oz) water into a 2-liter (2.1 US qt) saucepan. Set aside the remaining 40 g (1.4 oz) water for the paste.
- In a bowl, mix 40 g ground coffee, 50 g (1.8 oz) pasteurized liquid whole egg and the reserved 40 g (1.4 oz) water.
- Bring the saucepan water to a boil. Carefully stir in the coffee-egg paste, reducing heat to prevent overflow.
- Boil gently for 3 minutes, stirring. Check with a food thermometer that the mixture reaches at least 71°C (160°F).
- Remove from the heat. Slowly ladle through a paper-lined fine sieve into a stable heatproof jug; do not squeeze the solids.
- Weigh the collected coffee and divide equally between two cups. Serve immediately and discard the retained solids.
Recipe notes
Contains egg after straining. Use pasteurized whole egg and no shells.
Use a stable heatproof jug. The generous pan headroom helps manage the mixture when it rises. Choose an unflavored whole-egg product, not an egg-white carton or an egg substitute assumed to behave identically.
Stay beside the pan during heating. If the mixture rises rapidly, reduce the heat or lift the pan off the burner briefly. The thermometer check is a minimum cooking check, not a target to cool boiling coffee down to.
Saveur's authored Swedish egg coffee recipe combines coffee, beaten egg and water into a paste, boils it for three minutes and strains it through a paper-lined sieve. It does not include eggshells. Our 40 g coffee dose, water split and weighed pasteurized egg are editorial choices, not quantities published by that source. The named editor prepared and tasted this recipe using the amounts and method shown.
The FDA's egg-safety guidance supplies the food-thermometer temperature check. Pasteurized egg is our ingredient choice; it does not replace cooking or clean handling.
Swedish Egg Coffee Water and Serving Size
Use 640 g (22.6 oz) water in total: 40 g (1.4 oz) goes into the paste and 600 g (21.2 oz) into the saucepan.
The coffee-to-water input ratio is 40:640, or 1:16 by mass. That arithmetic excludes the egg, which is a separate ingredient containing both water and solids. Use that input ratio to keep the batch consistent.
Some liquid stays with the discarded coffee and egg solids; some evaporates. Weigh the strained coffee and divide that amount equally. For example, if you collect 520 g (18.3 oz), two equal servings are 260 g (9.2 oz) each.
This version does not add a final cold-water dose. Other recipes do, so compare the total water inputs when comparing recipes rather than treating all cups of “egg coffee” as equal. Adding extra water also changes the serving; record it if you do so.
What Does the Egg Do in Swedish Egg Coffee?
The distinctive step is combining the egg with the grounds before brewing. As the egg cooks, the solids clump, and the mixture can be separated from the coffee. Historical accounts describe egg being used to help clear boiled or steeped coffee. Our paper-lined sieve catches fine material that would otherwise reach the cup.
The egg helps separate solids; the coffee’s roast, dose and brewing still shape its flavor.
Why Leave Out the Shell?
Historical recipes vary: some use whole egg, some white, and some shell. The published shell-free recipe cited here shows that shells are not essential to this approach. Using measured pasteurized liquid whole egg also avoids shell fragments in the pan.
For a method with no egg at all, use cowboy coffee, French press or pour-over. Those have their own sediment or filtration techniques.
What Does Swedish Egg Coffee Taste Like?
The finished drink should taste primarily of coffee, with the cooked solids removed and the paper filter giving it a relatively clear, low-grit texture. It can feel rounded, but it is not a sweet or custardy egg drink. A darker roast will still leave a more pronounced roasted finish.
I prefer a medium roast with a gentle cocoa-like finish for this method. It gives the clear, strained cup enough coffee flavor to enjoy plain while making a useful first comparison with my usual brewed coffee.
Swedish Egg Coffee vs. Vietnamese Egg Coffee
I drink the first cup fairly plain to notice what the brewing method contributes. The egg works with the grounds here. I don't approach it expecting the sweet egg-cream topping that belongs to quite a different drink.
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| Preparation | Where the egg goes | What is served |
|---|---|---|
| Swedish egg coffee, this version | Mixed with grounds before boiling and straining | Coffee separated from the cooked solids |
| Vietnamese egg coffee | Prepared as a sweet whipped egg mixture | Coffee with an egg-cream topping to consume |
In the Vietnamese drink, the topping is deliberately eaten; in this brewing method, the cooked solids are strained out.
How Egg Coffee Became a Swedish-American Tradition
Swedish egg coffee has a particularly strong Scandinavian-American story. Historian Joy K. Lintelman records that Salem Lutheran Church in Minneapolis opened a Minnesota State Fair food stand in 1949. Egg coffee became its signature offering, and the stand increasingly presented it as a marker of Swedish heritage.
The technique itself had a wider history. Lintelman found egg-clearing instructions in nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century cookbooks and notes that it was known in Sweden, where dried fish skin was another, more common clearing material. The fairground cup shows how an older kitchen technique could become a distinctive community tradition in America.
Searches for Scandinavian egg coffee, Norwegian egg coffee or church-basement coffee may lead to related recipes. Each family or community may use a different preparation.
Troubleshooting Swedish Egg Coffee
| Problem | What to check |
|---|---|
| Mixture threatens to boil over | Use the full pan headroom, lower the heat and stay beside it. A gentle boil is enough for the timed step. |
| Paper filter drains slowly | Ladle in small amounts and allow drainage. Do not squeeze solids through the paper or overfill the sieve. |
| Grit in the cup | Check that the paper is intact and supported; keep solids from bypassing its edge. |
| Coffee seems weak | Check both water portions and any extra dilution. Record collected yield before changing dose on the next brew. |
| Unexpectedly eggy flavor | Verify the whole-egg amount and complete straining. Choose a conventional egg-free method if that flavor is unwelcome. |
Caffeine, Calories and Egg Allergy
We do not have a measured caffeine or calorie value for this strained recipe. Neither the egg's presence nor a mild taste establishes lower caffeine. The dry coffee dose, beans, extraction and actual collected portion all matter.
For context, a separate 200 g (7.1 oz) serving of generic plain brewed coffee is estimated at 2 kcal and 80 mg caffeine.
Plain-coffee reference and retained egg
USDA brewed coffee, NDB 14209, lists 1 kcal, 0 g sugar and 40 mg caffeine per 100 g. Doubling gives the separate 200 g reference. Caffeine appears on page 548. The amount of egg retained after straining is unknown, so this reference is not a recipe nutrition total.
The recipe has no added milk or sugar.
Contains egg, even after straining. Do not serve it as egg-free to someone avoiding egg. An ordinary black coffee made without egg is the appropriate separate preparation.
Egg Handling and Storage
Follow the pasteurized egg product's refrigeration and use-by instructions. The FDA advises washing hands and equipment around egg preparation, cooking egg-containing dishes to 71°C (160°F) and serving them promptly. A clear brew is not a substitute for the thermometer check.
Make the two servings for immediate use. If keeping leftovers, refrigerate promptly; FDA's general limit for leaving cooked egg foods unrefrigerated is two hours, or one hour above 32°C (90°F).
Common Questions
Can I Make It Without Eggshells?
Yes. This recipe uses pasteurized liquid whole egg and no shell. The egg-and-grounds method does not require adding shell fragments, and the published recipe used as a preparation reference is also shell-free.
Can I Put Egg in My Drip Coffee Maker?
Do not put this mixture through an automatic brewer. The method here uses a saucepan followed by separate straining. Keep egg mixtures out of equipment not designed for them.
Do I Need an Expensive Coffee or a Special Roast?
No particular origin or roast is required by this formulation. Use coffee you like, ground to a medium size, and keep the measured inputs fixed while learning the method.
Is the Finished Cup Creamy Like Vietnamese Egg Coffee?
It should look like coffee, without a whipped topping. The sweet egg cream in Vietnamese egg coffee is a separate preparation that is consumed with the drink.