When it comes to coffee, I’m more of a sugar and milk type of person. I was intrigued to find out what people from different parts of the world add to their coffees. Despite being skeptical, I gave some of these a try and I’ll be honest with you, they’re surprisingly… palatable.

Butter and Coconut Oil

This coffee fad started many years ago by Dave Asprey, an American author and entrepreneur. He was inspired after trying yak-butter tea drinks on his trip to Tibet. He named this combination bulletproof coffee. Since then, many people have made and consumed similar renditions of bulletproof coffee and claim that it helps them stay satiated longer and feel more energised – especially after having it in the morning.

Charcoal

The practice of adding a red-hot piece of charcoal into coffee originated in Indonesia. It’s locally known as kopi joss. It is believed to neutralise the coffee acidity and absorb toxins.

Salt

After learning about people adding butter and charcoal to their coffees, putting salt in coffee suddenly sounds like a casual Tuesday morning. Although generally, it’s still not the usual condiment you reach out for when making a cup of coffee. Still, many people claim that adding salt to coffee reduces the bitter taste and enhances the coffee flavour.

Cheese

Kaffeost is a northern Scandinavian tradition whereby cubes of cheese are added to coffee, it’s both a drink and a meal in one. It does have an oily, rich, almost buttery taste. It is recommended to have the drink hot otherwise the taste is very different.

Egg

Adding an egg, and I mean the whole egg (including the shell), to coffee is a way of enjoying coffee in Sweden. It apparently gives the coffee a less bitter taste and makes it real smooth. For those of you coffee enthusiasts out there who are keen to give this a try yourself, you can check out a recipe for this drink from The Spruce Eats

Writer’s Pick: For my less adventurous taste buds, I do prefer the salt coffee of the above. The cheese coffee is a close second.