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Salep

Saloop (Salep) is a thick, warm drink made from ground orchid root powder simmered in milk until it reaches a smooth, slightly elastic consistency unlike anything else in the modern hot drink canon. It arrived in England from the Ottoman Empire in the late 17th century, became the dominant street drink of working class London for nearly a hundred years, sold from pre-dawn stalls for a penny a cup to chimney sweeps, dock workers, and market porters before coffee and tea pushed it off the streets entirely by the 1840s. While London forgot about it completely, the Middle East never stopped drinking it, and today it is still sold by street vendors in Istanbul, Egypt, Lebanon, and Syria in the same form it has taken for centuries, finished with cinnamon and served piping hot in winter. This is the drink that ruled London's mornings before anyone had heard of a flat white.
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Prep Time 2 minutes
Cook Time 8 minutes

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IngredientsMethodNotes

Ingredients
  

  • 1 pint whole milk
  • 1/2 oz salep powder sourced from a Turkish specialty supplier
  • 2 tbsp sugar or to taste
  • 1 tsp rose water or orange flower water optional
  • Ground cinnamon for topping

Instructions
 

  1. Pour milk into a small saucepan over medium low heat and warm gently until steaming, do not let it boil
  2. Whisk in the salep powder gradually, a little at a time, to prevent lumps
  3. Stir continuously as the mixture heats, it will begin to thicken within 4 to 5 minutes into a smooth, glossy, slightly elastic consistency
  4. Stir in sugar and rose water or orange flower water if using, taste and adjust sweetness
  5. Pour into a cup and finish with a generous dusting of ground cinnamon
  6. Serve immediately while hot

Notes

  • Do not let the milk boil. Salep powder in boiling liquid can seize and go gluey rather than smooth. Keep it at a gentle steam throughout and stir continuously.
 
  • Source your salep powder from a reputable Turkish supplier. Heavily diluted or low quality powder will not thicken properly and the texture is the entire point of this drink. Cornstarch will thicken a liquid but it will not give you the same slightly elastic, glossy consistency that makes saloop what it is.
 
  • The drink is best served immediately. It continues to thicken as it cools and becomes less pleasant to drink once it drops below a certain temperature, which is probably why the London street vendors sold it from heated brass urns that kept it warm and fluid throughout the morning.