Overview

Ever wondered how instant coffee is made? It starts with roasted coffee beans, which are brewed into a concentrated liquid and then dried using either spray-drying or freeze-drying. The result is the powder or granules that dissolve in your cup. In many South Indian blends, chicory is also added to create a fuller, more familiar coffee character.*

It Starts with the Beans

The instant coffee manufacturing process starts with something very familiar: coffee beans.

The beans are sourced, roasted and ground before they ever become instant coffee. And just like with any other coffee, where those beans come from matters. Growing conditions, bean variety and sourcing can all influence the flavour you eventually taste in your cup.

For instant coffee, the beans are then prepared for large-scale brewing. This is where the journey from bean to jar or sachet really begins. Understanding how instant coffee is made starts with these early stages of sourcing, roasting and grinding.

Brewing the Coffee Concentrate

Here's a part of the instant coffee-making process that many people don't expect: instant coffee is actually brewed before it becomes instant.

The roasted and ground beans are brewed in large quantities to create a concentrated coffee liquid. The process follows the same basic principle as making coffee at home, but everything happens on a much larger scale and under controlled conditions.

The aim is to extract the soluble parts of the coffee while maintaining consistency from one batch to another. That concentrated liquid then moves on to the most important stage of how instant coffee is made: drying.

How Instant Coffee Is Made: Spray-Drying vs Freeze-Drying

Once the coffee has been brewed, you can't simply leave it as a liquid. It needs to be dried so that it can be stored, transported and dissolved again when you make your next cup.

There are two main approaches used in instant coffee powder making: spray-drying and freeze-drying.

Spray-drying turns the concentrated coffee liquid into fine droplets that are exposed to hot air. The moisture evaporates quickly, leaving behind fine coffee powder. It is an efficient and widely used method for producing instant coffee.

Freeze-drying takes a different route. The concentrated coffee is first frozen, and the ice is then removed under vacuum. This leaves behind small, porous granules that dissolve easily in water.

Both methods have the same basic goal: remove the moisture while retaining as much of the coffee's flavour and character as possible. The process used can influence the final aroma and taste, but the quality of the beans and the overall formulation matter too. This helps explain why how instant coffee is made can influence the character of the final product.

What Is Instant Coffee Made From, Including Chicory?

So, what is instant coffee made from?

At its simplest, it is made from brewed coffee that has been dried. Some blends, particularly those designed around South Indian coffee preferences, also contain chicory.

Chicory can be incorporated at different points in the process depending on the producer. It may be brewed along with the coffee or added later as an extract or dried component. The exact process varies from one manufacturer to another.

This is also why checking the coffee-to-chicory ratio can tell you more than a label simply saying "strong" or "premium." A blend with 80% coffee and 20% chicory is noticeably different in composition from one with 60% coffee and 40% chicory. Knowing how instant coffee is made can also make it easier to understand where these ingredients fit into the finished blend.

Once the coffee has been dried and blended, it is ready to be packed. Depending on the product, it can go into a jar, tin or individual sachet. The packaging is sealed to protect the coffee from moisture, helping preserve its quality until it reaches your kitchen shelf.

From Coffee Factory to Your Cup

By the time you tear open a sachet or scoop the best instant coffee packets into your cup, quite a lot has already happened.

The beans have been roasted and ground. The coffee has been brewed into a concentrate. That concentrate has been dried, blended where required and carefully packaged. All you have to do is add hot water or milk.

That's essentially the appeal of instant coffee: the complicated part has already been done for you. The entire journey shows how instant coffee is made, from the original beans through to the finished product in your kitchen.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is spray-dried or freeze-dried instant coffee better?

Neither method is automatically better for every coffee drinker. Freeze-drying is often associated with better retention of some flavour characteristics because it avoids the higher heat used during spray-drying. Spray-drying, meanwhile, is efficient and widely used. The quality of the beans and the overall formulation still play a major role in the final cup.

Is chicory added before or after drying?

It depends on the producer and the specific manufacturing process. Chicory may be brewed along with the coffee before drying, or a chicory extract or dried component may be blended with the coffee afterwards.

Does the process of how instant coffee is made remove caffeine?

No. Drying primarily removes moisture; it does not simply remove caffeine. The caffeine level of the finished product depends on factors such as the coffee beans used and, in a coffee-and-chicory blend, the proportion of coffee to caffeine-free chicory.

Choose Your Blend

Levista keeps the choice simple by clearly defining what's in each blend. Classic is 100% coffee, Premium is 80% coffee with 20% chicory, and Strong is 60% coffee with 40% chicory.

That means you don't have to guess what a label like "strong" actually means. You can choose based on the flavour profile you enjoy, whether that's the cleaner taste of 100% coffee or the fuller, more traditional South Indian character of a chicory blend.

Levista uses beans sourced from the Coorg region and brings close to seven decades of experience to its coffee. So, the next time you make a cup, you'll know there's a lot more behind that little sachet than just hot water and coffee powder.

If you're looking for the right everyday blend, explore the range at Levista and choose the one that fits your routine.