kopiko coffee candy

A packet of Kopiko sweets.

I grew up with Kopiko, the strong and rich coffee candy from Indonesia. I have fond memories of road trips with the family where we sucked on Kopiko to distract ourselves from the long ride - it was particularly useful for my dad, the designated driver, as it helped keep him from falling asleep at the wheel!

The sweets are individually wrapped, and apparently 4 - 5 of these original Kopiko candies are equivalent to a cup of espresso. If you're after something less potent, there is a milder "Milko" or "Cappucino" version, which contains milk powder and is lighter on the coffee extract. But today's review is about the original, as pictured.

Individually wrapped Kopiko coffee candy.

If you're interested in the list of ingredients, here it is: sugar, glucose syrup, vegetable oil (palm oil or coconut oil), coffee extract (4.9%), butter, salt, emulsifier (soy lecithin 322), colour (caramel 150d), salt, natural coffee flavour.

A hard candy, it presents itself as a small rectangular slab with a dark, shiny appearance and smooth, crunchy texture. The taste is charmingly bittersweet. If you like coffee, and if you like hard, brittle candy, you'll probably enjoy Kopiko.

You've got to admit, it looks pretty sleek and seductive...

The dark, shiny appearance of Kopiko candy - it's smooth, hard, and crunchy.

Related coffee candy products that you may covet:


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camalina dried pomelo peel

Camalina dried pomelo peel.

I bought this tin of local dried pomelo peel by Camalina of Healthhealing Products on a recent trip to Thailand, at a bazaar in Lamphun town. The stall seller offered me a taste and I liked this tangy, sugared citrus product immediately - but, bearing in mind that we didn't have much luggage space to spare, I bought only one 100g tin for 35 baht.

Now? I kick myself for not taking up her offer to buy 3 tins for 100 baht. I've been slowly savouring this delicious candied pomelo peel ever since I got back from my holiday - it's firm, sweet, with a hint of astringence, and those little square-cut cubes are so easy to pop into the mouth that they are really quite addictive. The packaging is also nice enough that it would make a good gift idea.

The ingredients are comprised of pomelo peel, sugar, citric acid, and sulfur dioxide as a preservative. My only gripe is the presence of sulfur dioxide, but it is so common in dried fruit products anyway, so regardless of that, I'd happily buy more of this dried pomelo peel - if only I can get my hands on it! Maybe when I next visit Thailand again, whenever that is...

Pieces of the candied pomelo peel.

Other pomelo products that you may find interesting:


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