What Is a Pingado Coffee? Brazil’s Bakery Coffee With Milk

Walk into a Brazilian padaria (bakery) on a weekday morning and you will see people standing at the counter with a small, ridged glass of milky coffee and a slice of hot, buttered bread. That glass is a pingado. So what is a pingado coffee? In Brazil it is mostly hot milk with a pour of strong coffee, usually filtered coffee, served in a small glass and often sweetened. The name comes from pingar, to drip: the coffee is dripped into the milk.

That surprises visitors who expect the opposite. Here is how the drink works, why the name causes confusion and how to make one at home.

Key takeaways

• A Brazilian pingado is a glass of hot milk with a little strong coffee added, often sweetened.
• It is a bakery breakfast classic, typically served with pão na chapa, French bread toasted on a griddle with butter.
• Ratios vary by bakery and by person; the debate over the perfect pingado is part of the fun.
• Do not confuse it with Portugal’s pingo, which usually means an espresso with a drop of milk.

What is a pingado coffee in Brazil?

The Brazilian recipe site TudoGostoso describes pingado as a full glass of hot milk with just a drop of coffee, while the language site Speaking Brazilian defines it as a lot of milk and a little coffee, served in the small glass Brazilians call the American cup (copo americano). In practice, most bakeries pour enough coffee to give the milk a caramel color, and regulars often say exactly how they want it.

The coffee itself is usually café coado, filtered coffee brewed strong, the same style as the Brazilian cafezinho. Some bakeries make it with espresso instead. Sugar is common, and Tasting Table describes the pingado as a combination of steamed milk and sweetened coffee.

A drink with its own campaign

The pingado is so tied to Brazilian bakery culture that in 2010 a voluntary movement called Eu adoro pingado (I love pingado) was launched to promote it, with an official seal that bakeries and fans could use. Brazil’s coffee industry association, ABIC, announced it would create a pingado day. The campaign described the drink as the top-selling morning drink in good bakeries, and noted that everyone has an opinion about the secret: the coffee, the milk or the exact amount poured.

Pingado, média, café com leite: Brazilian coffee vocabulary

Pingado vs Portugal’s pingo

Portuguese and Brazilian coffee words overlap, but not always in meaning. In Portugal, a pingo usually means an espresso with just a drop of milk, closer to a macchiato. In a Brazilian bakery, a pingado is the milky one. If you are traveling between the two countries, describe what you want rather than relying on the word alone.

The perfect partner: pão na chapa

A pingado almost always comes with bread. The classic is pão na chapa: a Brazilian French roll (pão francês), crusty outside and light inside, cut in half, pressed on a hot griddle and served with butter. Some people add cheese, ham or jam. Many dunk the bread straight into the glass. It is fast, cheap and eaten standing at the counter on the way to work, which is a big part of its charm.

How to make a pingado at home

Ingredients (1 glass)

• 2/3 cup (150 ml) whole milk
• 1/4 cup (60 ml) strong filtered coffee or 1 espresso shot, hot
• 1 to 2 teaspoons (4 to 8 g) sugar, optional

Steps

1. Brew strong coffee. For filter coffee, use about 1 tablespoon (6 to 7 g) of coffee per 1/4 cup (60 ml) of water, roughly twice your usual strength.
2. Heat the milk until steaming but not boiling, in a pan or a milk frother. A little foam is welcome but not required.
3. Fill a small glass with milk, about three quarters full.
4. Drip in the coffee until the color looks right to you, from pale beige to deep caramel.
5. Sweeten to taste and serve with toasted, buttered bread.

Ratios to try

Want it dairy-free? Oat milk is the closest match for sweetness and body. See our guide to the best milk for coffee for how each plant milk behaves with heat.

Which coffee to use

A pingado is mostly milk, so you want a coffee with chocolate and nutty notes that stay recognizable through dairy. Brazil is the natural choice: our Brazil Santos is a balanced medium roast with cocoa, roasted nuts and low acidity, ideal for this drink. Our Breakfast Blend, a smooth medium roast of South American beans, is another easy morning option. Choose Standard grind for a drip machine or Espresso grind for an espresso machine or moka pot. For more on the country behind the cup, read our guide to Brazilian coffee.

Pingado FAQ

What does pingado mean?

It comes from the Portuguese verb pingar, to drip. The coffee is dripped into the milk.

Is pingado the same as a latte?

Not quite. A latte is espresso with steamed milk and foam, closer to a Brazilian média. A pingado is often made with filtered coffee, served in a small glass and frequently sweetened.

Is pingado strong?

Usually mild, because it is mostly milk. You can ask for more coffee, or make it stronger at home.

What is the glass a pingado is served in?

Traditionally a small, ridged glass Brazilians call the copo americano, or American cup.

What do Brazilians eat with pingado?

Pão na chapa, a griddled and buttered French roll, is the classic pairing, sometimes with cheese or ham.

Sources

1. Pingado, expresso, curto: conheça os principais tipos de café, TudoGostoso.
2. Coffee Vocabulary Used in Brazil, Speaking Brazilian.
3. Baggio Coffees adere à campanha Eu adoro pingado, Revista Cultivar, 2010.
4. The Brazilian Breakfast Tradition That Pairs Coffee and French Bread, Tasting Table.

Facts checked in October 2026.

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