When it is 35 degrees outside, a hot mug of coffee is the last thing you want. Iced coffee made the quick way can taste harsh or watery. Cold brew solves both. You make it the night before, it keeps in the fridge for days, and it is smooth enough to drink black over ice. All you need is a jar and some patience.
What cold brew is
Cold brew is coffee steeped in cold or room-temperature water for many hours instead of brewed hot for a few minutes. Because the water is cold, it pulls out flavour slowly and leaves much of the bitterness and sharp acidity behind.
The result is a concentrate that is rounder and sweeter than hot coffee. You dilute it with water, milk or ice to drink.
It is not the same as iced coffee. Iced coffee is hot coffee cooled down. Cold brew never sees heat at all. If you want a glass in five minutes, see our guide to the quicker method. If you can plan a night ahead, cold brew is worth it.
What you need
- A large jar or jug with a lid
- Coarse-ground coffee
- Cold filtered water
- A fine strainer, plus a paper filter or a clean cotton cloth
- Space in the fridge
A French press works well as the jar and the first strainer in one.
The grind
Cold brew needs a coarse grind, like rough sea salt. Finer coffee turns muddy and is hard to strain, and it can come out bitter even when brewed cold. If you are ordering ground coffee, ask for coarse. Our post on choosing the right grind explains why grind size matters so much.
The overnight recipe
This makes a concentrate. You dilute it before drinking.
- Measure. Use about one cup of coarse coffee to four cups of cold water. Adjust next time if it is too strong or weak.
- Combine. Put the coffee in the jar, pour in the water, and stir until all the grounds are wet.
- Cover and wait. Put the lid on and leave it in the fridge for 12 to 18 hours. Overnight is ideal.
- Strain. Pour it through a strainer to catch the grounds, then a second time through a paper filter or cloth to catch the fine sediment.
- Store. Keep the concentrate in a sealed bottle in the fridge and use it within a few days.
Steep it in the fridge, not on the counter - in a Karachi kitchen the room is too warm to leave it out overnight.
In cooler climates people steep cold brew at room temperature. In a hot, humid kitchen it is better and safer to keep it in the fridge the whole time.
How to serve it
Cold brew concentrate is strong. Start by mixing it one part concentrate to one part water or milk, then adjust.
- Black: concentrate, cold water, plenty of ice.
- With milk: concentrate and cold milk, half and half, over ice.
- Sweet: stir in a little condensed milk or sugar syrup. Sugar does not dissolve well in cold liquid, so make a simple syrup by dissolving sugar in hot water and cooling it.
Because there is less bitterness to cover, you may find you need less sugar than you would with hot coffee.
Which coffee to use
Cold brew softens acidity and brings out sweetness, which makes fruity coffees taste wonderful.
Ethiopia Sidamo is a standout. It tastes of blackberry, orange and chocolate and is fuller than people expect from an Ethiopian coffee. Cold, the fruit comes through as something close to a dark berry drink, without the sharpness it can have hot.
Colombia, with its orange and plum notes, makes a clean and bright cold brew. For a rich, chocolatey glass to drink with milk, Brazil Rio Minas is nutty and low in acid. If you want it as strong as possible, Vietnam is a Robusta coffee and will give you a heavy, earthy cold brew that stands up to condensed milk.
Troubleshooting
It tastes weak
Use more coffee, brew it longer, or dilute it less when you serve it.
It tastes bitter or muddy
The grind may be too fine, or it brewed too long. Stay under 18 hours and order it coarse.
It tastes flat
Hard water can dull coffee. Karachi tap water is hard, so filtered or bottled water makes a real difference, especially when the coffee is drunk black. Stale coffee also makes flat cold brew. See our post on keeping coffee fresh in Pakistani heat.
Make a jar tonight
Put it together before bed and you have cold coffee ready for the next few hot mornings. To try it with a coffee that shines cold, order Ethiopia Sidamo, coarse ground for cold brew. It is delivered across Pakistan, cash on delivery.