Café de Olla Recipe (Mexican Coffee)

This traditional Café de Olla recipe is sweet, spiced, and incredibly easy to make with dark-roast coffee, piloncillo, cinnamon, and cloves.

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A clay mug with a decorative orange and black pattern holds a dark beverage, prepared using a traditional Cafe de Olla Recipe, with a cinnamon stick resting inside. The mug sits on a wooden surface.

Café de Olla ☕️ is traditional Mexican coffee made with dark-roast coffee, piloncillo, cinnamon, and cloves. It’s sweet, aromatic, and has a delicious earthy flavor that makes an ordinary cup of coffee feel extra special.

Traditionally, Café de Olla is prepared in a clay pot, or olla de barro, which is where it gets its name—literally, “coffee from the pot.” Today, you can easily make it at home in a regular pot and enjoy this comforting Mexican coffee any morning of the week.

Serve it hot with Mexican pastries, next to Huevos Rancheros, or whenever you want a sweet and cozy cup of coffee.

This Café de Olla recipe was first published in 2017 and has been a favorite at Mama Maggie’s Kitchen ever since.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe ❤️

It’s incredibly flavorful. Cinnamon, cloves, and piloncillo give this coffee a warm, spiced flavor you won’t get from regular coffee.
It’s naturally sweet. Piloncillo adds a deep, caramel-like sweetness that makes every sip special.
It’s easy to make. You don’t need a fancy coffee maker. Everything comes together in one pot.
It’s a taste of Mexico. Café de Olla is a beloved traditional Mexican beverage with a long history and a special place in Mexican cuisine.
It’s delicious hot or iced. While Café de Olla is traditionally served hot, it also makes a refreshing iced coffee.

-Maggie

A collage showing how to make Café de la Olla.

Instructions

Add water to a stock pot.
Add piloncillo, Mexican cinnamon sticks, and cloves.

Piloncillo — an unrefined cane sugar — is traditional in this recipe, but if you can’t find it, you can use dark brown sugar.

Traditionally, Café de Olla is made in an olla de barro, or clay pot, over an open flame. That’s where the coffee gets its name. I’m showing you how to make it in a regular stock pot, which is much more practical for everyday cooking.

A pot with the piloncillo, cinnamon, and cloves covered with water.

Bring the water up to a boil.
With your spatula, break up the piloncillo.
Fully melt the piloncillo before proceeding to the next step.

Not everyone uses cloves, but whole cinnamon is essential for this recipe. Stick with the stick. None of that powdered cinnamon stuff.

How to Adjust the Sweetness

Piloncillo is raw sugar cane and extremely sweet. For a less sweet version: Use a smaller piloncillo cone, or break up a large one and only use half.

A stock pot with a hot piloncillo water cooling down next to cinnamon sticks and ground coffee.

Once the piloncillo has melted, remove the stock pot from medium heat.
Let sit for 5 minutes.

No one likes bitter or burnt coffee. Letting the mixture cool for a few minutes before adding the coffee helps prevent the coffee from developing a bitter or burnt flavor.

Additions

Some people will also add other spices like star anise or anise seeds. If you have some on hand, they make a great addition to this recipe. Some people will add an orange peel to the pot.

What Type of Coffee to Add

For this recipe, skip the instant coffee. Use freshly ground dark-roast coffee, like the kind you’d use in a coffee maker or French press.

Ground coffee sitting inside the piloncillo mixture on top of a white kitchen towel.

Add the coffee grounds.
Steep for 5 minutes.
Don’t let it steep too long, or the coffee can become over-extracted and bitter.

A strainer over a pot removing the cinnamon stick and ground coffee.

Strain the coffee, cinnamon stick, and cloves.
Serve immediately next to Chorizo con Huevos or Papas con Huevos.

🧊 How To Make Iced Coffee

Let the coffee cool completely.
Add ice to a glass.
Pour coffee over the ice.
Add more ice if necessary.

You can also add milk if you like. Traditionally, Café de Olla is served hot and without milk, but when you’re making it at home, it’s up to you!

🙋🏻‍♀️ Frequently Asked Questions

What is Café de Olla?

Café de Olla is traditional Mexican coffee made by steeping dark-roast ground coffee with piloncillo, cinnamon, and sometimes cloves or other spices. It is typically served hot and sweet.

What does Café de Olla taste like?

Café de Olla has a rich coffee flavor with warm notes of cinnamon and cloves and a deep sweetness from the piloncillo. It tastes very different from plain black coffee because of the spices and unrefined cane sugar.

Do I have to use piloncillo?

Piloncillo is traditional and gives Café de Olla its distinctive caramel-like flavor, but you can substitute dark brown sugar if you can’t find it. For a less-sweet coffee, simply use less piloncillo.

Can I make Café de Olla without a clay pot?

Absolutely. While Café de Olla is traditionally made in a clay pot, you can make it in a regular stock pot at home. That’s how I make it most of the time.

Can I use regular coffee instead of dark roast?

Yes. Dark-roast coffee gives Café de Olla its rich, bold flavor, but you can use another roast if that’s what you have. For the best results, use freshly ground coffee rather than instant coffee.

Why do you let the piloncillo mixture cool before adding the coffee?

Letting the mixture sit for about 5 minutes keeps the coffee from being added directly to boiling sugar water. This helps prevent the coffee from developing a burnt or bitter flavor.

Don’t you mean Cafe de la Hoya?

No. Café de Olla is the traditional spelling. Olla means “pot” in Spanish and refers to the clay pot traditionally used to prepare the coffee. You may see Café de la Olla used occasionally, but Café de Olla is the name I use for this recipe.

A decorated clay mug filled with a dark liquid, garnished with two cinnamon sticks, sits on a wooden surface—evoking the comforting warmth of traditional Mexican Cafe de Olla.

Serve With

Café de Olla has been one of my favorite traditional Mexican drinks since I first tasted it at my aunt’s house in Mexico City. There’s something special about that combination of strong coffee, piloncillo, and warm spices.

Serve it with Torrejas or Pan Dulce for a special breakfast or brunch. Or simply make a pot when you want something a little sweeter and more comforting than your everyday cup of coffee.

Make a pot, pour yourself a cup, and enjoy a little taste of Mexico at home. ❤️

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