One of the first things done every morning in the Arab home, after early morning prayers, is to make coffee. This is a ritual which has been practiced for years, although today the coffee is made then stored in a vacuume flask (dalla gah-wa) until the family is ready to drink.
Traditionally, fresh green coffee beans were roasted in a frying pan (ta-waa) over a direct fire. Then they were pounded by hand in a mortar with a pestle until they reached a medium sized grain, then boiled.
Today the beans can be bought ready-roasted and ground from the supermarkets or coffee shops, or, bowing to tradition, the housewife still roasts and grinds her beans at home.

1/4 cup green coffee beans
2 cups water
1/2 teaspoon saffron threads
pinch ground cloves
1 1/2 teaspoons rose water
1 level teaspoons cardamom

Roast beans over the fire in a small frying pan (ta-waa) or roast in an oven until lightly golden brown.
Traditionally, after roasting, the beans are pounded in a brass mortar (min-haz) and pestle (r-shad), but usually today the beans are ground in an electric coffee grinder. Either method will bring good results.
Add the ground beans to the water and boil rapidly for three to five minutes. in the meantime, place the saffron, cloves, cardamom and rosewater in a large flask, pour hot coffee over this and leave to steep for 30-40 minutes.

From the book "The Complete United Arab Emirates Cookbook"
by Celia Ann Brock- Al Ansari
Copyright © 1994 by Celia Ann Brock-Al Ansari