What is kaffeost?

Kaffeost (pronounce caf-fe-ust) or "coffee cheese" is a cup of coffee containing pieces of cheese and sometimes reindeer meat. It originates from the Sámi people — the indigenous people of northern Scandinavia.

A diagram of a wooden cup containing 160ml of brewed coffee, small pieces of cheese and cured reindeer meat.

In Sweden, kaffeost often just refers to the cheese itself, since it's the cheese you have with coffee. The cheese originates from Finland where it is either called juustoleipä or leipäjuusto.

Juustoleipä (pronounced YOO-stoh-LAY-pah) or leipäjuusto (pronounced LAY-pah-YOO-stoh) literally means "bread cheese."

The cheese has lots of similarities with bread. It is dried and baked. It's dry and crumbly, and it's often served with jam.

Traditionally juustoleipä would have been made from reindeer milk but nowadays it is commonly made from goats or cows milk.

A french press, a pack of moomin troll coffee, a moomin troll mug, and a plate of sliced cured reindeer meat.
I was originally introduced to coffee with reindeer meat by a friend in Sweden. I thought she was pranking me at first. Somehow I managed to miss the cheese element of the experience. I did however, bring back cured reindeer meat, which we had in coffee. It received mixed reviews.

Origins of Kaffeost

The tradition of putting cheese and meat in coffee seems to have come from necessity. Food in Northern Scandinavia would freeze and need to be defrosted before being eaten.

This was typically done by boiling it, resulting in a nice hot cup of cheese bread and meat. Perfect for keeping you going on a long day of reindeer herding in the freezing cold.

Once coffee was introduced in the 1700s it went in the same pot.

So, why mix cheese, meat, and coffee?

Why not? It tastes nice and it's simpler to cook and consume than two separate brews. It's only from our homogenous modern perspective that it seems odd.

Kaffeost ingredients

While there are only two (or three) ingredients to Kaffeost, they can be difficult to procure outside of Scandinavia.

  • Coffee
  • Juustoleipä (cheese bread)
  • Sliced cured reindeer meat (optional)

How to make Kaffeost

Traditionally Kaffeost would have been brewed in a pot using coarsely ground coffee (like cowboy coffee), but today it is usually made in a drip coffee machine.

Drip coffee machines are typical in Scandinavian households.

  1. Brew a strong drip coffee in your coffee machine
  2. Pour into a cup (one carved from a birch burl if possible)
  3. Put juustoleipä (cheese bread) in it
  4. Optionally add cured deer meat