The Unconventional Ingredient To Bring Cheap Coffee To Life

They say that life is too short to drink bad coffee but the people who say that probably haven't had to make do with the cheap instant coffee packets in hotel rooms, stale drip coffee at diners, or even just a bad batch of beans for at-home espressos. Sometimes, you just can't splurge on a pricey bag of coffee for that matter but does that mean that you pinch your nose and gulp down the bad java simply for its caffeine? Certainly not.

There are several clever ways to liven up cheap coffee starting by diluting it with water to smoothen out its punchy acidic flavor (via Barista Joy). The sweetness of milk, cream, and sugar can mask the not-so-pleasant flavors of bad coffee and there's always the option of using chocolate and flavored syrups to make the cheap coffee taste, well, not like coffee. Modernist Potions also suggests going the iced route when it comes to brewing cheap coffee and recommends adding a pinch of salt as it tends to suppress bitter flavors from coming through and enhances sweet flavors instead.

There's one other ingredient that can do wonders to make not just cheap coffee, but any coffee, taste better, especially if you plan to have the coffee over breakfast. It's not a syrup, sweetener, or spice, rather, it's another beverage (via Food & Wine).

The co-founder of several Panama-based coffee companies, Manuel Barsallo, tells Food & Wine that orange juice can be quite the savior when you're staring at a bad cup of coffee. "My go-to is mixing it with cold orange juice and tonic water to make it a signature drink. Still get the caffeine minus the awful flavor," he says, adding that even other fruit juices can be swapped in place of orange juice in a pinch. It turns out Barsallo isn't the only one to think that the two breakfast drinks work wonderfully in one.

As with most unconventional ideas, the combination of orange juice and coffee popped up on TikTok, notes Sprudge. A TikToker posted a video claiming, "I have not seen one person who likes espresso and orange juice not like them together." The espresso and OJ combination has since received a thumbs up from Redditors.

While the combination may certainly not be everyone's cup of tea, the sweet and citrusy flavor of orange pairs well with the bitter and acidic flavors of not just cheap coffee, but any coffee for that matter (via Your Dream Coffee). As a bonus, the juice will even add a creamy texture to the drink. The only thing to be cautious about, Coffee Affection says, is to hold off the milk and cream as they may curdle with orange juice in the coffee.