Mehawag is Turkish coffee with cardamom already ground into the bag. At Coffee & Cream, plain on this page means no cardamom in the bag. Sugar is a separate choice: sada (the no-sugar level), ala el reeha, mazboot and ziyada are in the Turkish coffee guide. Egyptians call the spice habahan, the Levant and the Gulf call it hel or hal, and English calls it cardamom.
Turkish coffee with cardamom
Mehawag is also written mahawag, and in English our product titles say Turkish coffee with cardamom. Turkish coffee is sometimes flavoured with cardamom. In Egypt it is the usual extra, already in the bag on mehawag blends from Al Ameed and Segafredo Zanetti. Across the Middle East, cardamom is a traditional flavouring in coffee and tea. True cardamom is the green kind, from the plant Elettaria cardamomum.
Turkish coffee with and without cardamom, side by side
Both bags brew the same way, with the same dose and the same sugar levels. The Turkish coffee guide has the stove steps and the foam.
| Without cardamom (plain) | With cardamom (mehawag) | |
|---|---|---|
| What is in the bag | Extra-fine Turkish coffee, no cardamom | Extra-fine Turkish coffee ground with cardamom |
| What you taste and smell | The coffee and its roast | The coffee, plus a fragrant cardamom note |
| Sugar | Your choice: sada, ala el reeha, mazboot or ziyada | The same four levels |
From Al Ameed, cardamom comes in light and medium roasts. English titles say "with cardamom" or "Cardamom" on mehawag, and "without cardamom" or "Plain" on plain bags. Al Ameed's own Arabic product name uses the word hel for cardamom.
Which bag is which
With cardamom, our bags are Al Ameed (Kuwaiti and Jordanian) and Segafredo Zanetti Cardamom 250 g. Without cardamom, they are Al Ameed without cardamom, Segafredo Zanetti Plain and Mehmet Efendi. The table in how to choose Turkish coffee in Egypt lists every bag by roast, with and without cardamom, and by pack size.
The listings for Bon Masr Turkish coffee blends (Thutmose, Horus, Cleopatra and Amun, 125 g and 250 g) show coffee only: arabica and robusta, a medium roast, and no spice.
Same pot, cardamom from the bag
One 8 g Al Ameed Jordanian sachet makes one cup: the description says to add one sachet to a cezve or a suitable coffee pot with water and sugar to taste. The 24-sachet boxes come in light and medium, with cardamom and without. Each sachet is one measured cup, and the rest of the box stays in its own sachets.
Let the cardamom come from the bag. Extra pods in the pot on top of a cardamom blend make a very strong cup.
How long a ground bag stays fragrant
Cardamom keeps its flavour best in the pod, because exposed or ground seeds lose it quickly. A mehawag bag holds ground coffee and ground cardamom together. An unopened bag stays fresh until its best-by date. Once it is open and moved to an airtight container, ground coffee stays fresh for about 1 to 2 weeks at room temperature, so buy a smaller batch more often, one you will finish in that time. Keep a cardamom bag the same way: airtight and cool, in an opaque container, away from air, moisture, heat and light. How to choose Turkish coffee in Egypt gives the cups in each pack size.
FAQ
What is mehawag coffee?
Turkish coffee ground with cardamom, with the cardamom already in the bag. In English, our product titles say Turkish coffee with cardamom. It brews the same way as plain Turkish coffee.
Which is better, plain or mehawag?
It depends on whether you like cardamom. Plain gives you the coffee and its roast. Mehawag adds the fragrance of cardamom to the same cup. Sugar is separate on both. To choose by roast, brand and pack size, read how to choose Turkish coffee in Egypt.
What does cardamom do in the cup?
Cardamom has a strong taste and an aromatic, resinous fragrance. Our listings for the Al Ameed Jordanian cardamom sachets describe a fragrant Turkish coffee profile with an aromatic cardamom note. The plain sachet listing describes the classic coffee profile of Turkish coffee without added cardamom.
Do they put cardamom in Turkish coffee?
Sometimes. In Egypt it is the usual extra, already ground into mehawag bags from Al Ameed and Segafredo Zanetti. A plain bag has none. Mehmet Efendi's Turkish coffee in this range has no cardamom listed.
What is coffee with cardamom called?
In Egypt, mehawag. In English, Turkish coffee with cardamom. Hel on an Arabic product name is the same spice as habahan.
How do you make Turkish coffee with cardamom?
Use a cardamom blend and the same recipe as plain Turkish coffee: one heaped teaspoon, about 7 g, per small cup of cold water, about 60 to 70 ml, sugar at the level you want. The guide on how to make Turkish coffee has the steps, the foam and the four sugar levels.
What does a kilo of mehawag coffee cost?
The price is on each product page. Open Turkish ground coffee and check the bag you want. The mehawag on this page comes in 200 g and 250 g bags and in boxes of 24 sachets of 8 g, so each product page shows the price of that pack.
Where to get it
Both kinds are in Turkish ground coffee at Coffee & Cream: Al Ameed Kuwaiti with and without cardamom in the Al Ameed Kuwaiti collection, Segafredo Zanetti Cardamom and Plain in Segafredo, and Mehmet Efendi with no cardamom in Mehmet Efendi. Brew either bag in a kanaka or in a machine from Turkish coffee machines. Orders reach Cairo and Giza in 1 to 2 business days and other governorates in 2 to 4 business days. You can pay cash on delivery or by card. Delivery fees are on the shipping policy.