7 DIY Coffee Hacks To Help You Focus And Ace Your Exams

In between admiring detailed latte art and savouring subtle flavour notes, you’re likely creating a hole in your wallet with each cuppa joe that’ll cost you about $50 in a week. For the days when you just need a quick fix to get you powering through the exam period, why not save on that money and make your own instant coffee instead! The best part about making your own coffee? You can easily use your instant coffee to whip up cafe-like drinks that are just as tasty and tailored to your own tastes. Follow our handy guide for ideas on DIY instant coffee hacks and learn what are some of the best instant coffee brands in Singapore to try!

Barista-level coffee hacks for the best instant coffees

1. Enjoy flavourful iced coffee after the ice melts

If you regularly drink iced coffee, you’ll likely be sipping away at flavourless, room temperature coffee once the ice melts. One way to avoid this is to use coffee cubes! By freezing the instant coffee ahead of time, you can readily add them to any room temperature beverage to enjoy it ice cold. While normal ice cubes will water down your coffee and cause it to lose flavour, these coffee ice cubes add to the coffee’s richness and preserve its overall flavour!

Best instant coffee for this hack: Thanks to its inclusion of robusta coffee beans, Nescafe 3in1 Less Sugar (available on S-Mart by Shopee Official Store) is an obvious choice for coffee ice cubes! When compared to their arabica counterparts, robusta beans have a less acidic taste profile. By combining its rich coffee flavour with its lowered sugar content, using Nescafe instant coffee for your ice cubes ensures that you get an aromatic and chilly coffee fix without turning your coffee into a sour mess when they’re fully melted.

2. Add a little #SaltBae action

Reaching for that sachet of sugar? Try adding a pinch of salt to your instant coffee instead! Thanks to its sodium component, science has it that adding salt negates bitter flavours. Time to take a cue from #SaltBae and try sprinkling a little salt into your morning cuppa — and yes, tag us in your Insta-story if you include his signature hand action as well!

Best instant coffee for this hack: Love full-bodied cups of java but can’t deal with the bitter aftertaste? Why not use this handy coffee hack on Starbucks Dark Roast Instant Coffees (available on Starbucks at Home Official Store)! Although it’s renowned for its bold and smoky Latin America blend, this combination might prove to be too much for newer coffee drinkers. Neutralise the bitterness with a pinch of salt to make this the best instant coffee in Singapore!

3. Fire away with bulletproof coffee

Need some extra armour to power through exam week? The premise for bulletproof coffee is simple — more fat equals more energy! Instead of sugar and creamer, butter is used to make whatever best instant coffee you’re drinking taste infinitely better. In addition to supercharging your brain with increased energy, this ketogenic coffee will also keep you fuller for longer if you’re fasting intermittently.

Best instant coffee for this hack: Due to its pure 100% arabica content, Super’s Essenso MicroGround Black Coffee (available on S-Mart by Shopee Official Store) is perfect as the foundation for any bulletproof coffee. Besides letting you stick to the original recipe, arabica beans tend to have a sweet and chocolatey aftertaste! This further enhances the taste of your bulletproof coffee, giving it extra hints of sweetness.

4. Stomach friendly cold brew

Any diehard coffee fan will get that overly indulging in coffee can lead to increased acidity in your tummy. This excess acid can result in issues like heartburn and indigestion. Luckily, for coffee fans with more sensitive stomach, the existence of cold brew means they can enjoy their java without triggering stomach discomfort. As the instant coffee grounds don’t get exposed to high heat, the end result is certainly less butter and acidic than traditionally brewed coffee!

Best instant coffee for this hack: Other than being one of the best 3 in 1 coffee in Singapore, Nescafe Gold (available on NESTLÉ Official Store) wins our pick because it includes a balanced mix of arabica and robusta beans. This makes Nescafe Gold one of the best instant coffees to prepare cold brew with as the robusta’s lowered acidity and arabica’s sweetness combine to offer the best of both worlds. So wait no longer and enjoy your cuppa joe by steeping these instant grounds — cold brew style.

5. Personalising your coffee with homemade syrup solutions

Wondering why your best instant coffees brewed at home don’t taste as good as their cafe counterparts? That’s because they’re lacking the key component — syrup. To level the playing field, try crafting your own syrups! Simply follow the instructions above and create a thickened sugar solution. Then, add your preferred flavouring like earl grey or cinnamon to personalise your instant coffee.

Best instant coffee for this hack: To get the most out of your syrup solution trials, you’ll need two things from your coffee — them being black without additives and them being affordable. As one of the most affordable brands around, Kluang Coffee’s Kopi-O Kosong (available on KluangCoffee Official Store) offers value for money and a classic taste thanks to its traditional roasting method. This makes Kluang Coffee’s offerings the ideal testbed for all your sugary concoctions. From hazelnut cappuccinos to vanilla lattes, the coffee brewing possibilities are endless.

6. Happy hour coffee cocktail

Tired of your usual coffee-flavoured beverages? Why not treat yourself by giving your coffee an alcoholic kick! Irish coffees are classic cocktails that involve spiking your coffee with an extra whiskey pick-me-up. The end result is a smooth-tasting beverage that benefits from a creamy mouthfeel and immediately warms up your body thanks to the one-two punch of caffeine and whiskey.

Best instant coffee for this hack: According to experienced bartenders, the key to a solid Irish coffee is perfectly proportioning coffee, whipped cream, brown sugar and Irish whiskey. That’s why your choice of beans for Irish coffee should be a medium or dark roast. Fortunately, Hook Coffee’s Variety Pack (available on Hook Coffee Official Store) perfectly fits this description! Rather than overpower your beverage with the strength of an espresso, Hook Coffee’s instant drip coffee is far less harsh. This lets you fully enjoy the coffee while your taste buds go into a frenzy with its fruity notes.

7. Make your caffeine rushes last twice as long

Pulling an all-nighter and need the extra energy? Why not draw out your coffee energy boosts with grapefruit juice (available on QQ Trading F&B Official Store)! Due to the naturally present naringin chemical, your digestive system won’t be able to break down certain drugs in your body. This results in the coffee’s caffeine lasting longer as it builds up and remains more effective for prolonged periods! For maximum results, we suggest having some grapefruit with high caffeine concoctions like cold brews or espressos.

Best instant coffee for this hack: If you’re seeking the maximum caffeine kick from any of our best instant coffees, you’ll certainly want to consider instant espressos from King Coffee (available on TNI KING COFFEE OFFICIAL STORE). To help prolong the intense energy boost offered by espressos, you can combine it with a grapefruit snack. This allows you to effortlessly stay awake for longer as the caffeine lingers unprocessed in your bloodstream.

Easy hacks and the best instant coffee to boost your productivity

From improved brain functions to extended caffeine boosts, we hope you’ve benefited from this newfound knowledge on how to improve your simplistic best 3 in 1 coffees in Singapore. Didn’t find your favourite brand here? Explore our diverse selection of coffees that’ll delight the most hardened coffee drinkers. Want to brew cafe-grade coffee at home? Get started with these best coffee machines. Alternatively, if you’re more of a tea aficionado, you’ll love our guide to unique tea flavours.