Name: Easy Cold Brew Coffee
Prep time: 2 min
Total time: 12 h 2 min
Yield: 8
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 cup espresso ground coffee; 8 cups water

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I don't know why it took me so long to start making my own cold brew coffee. It was probably because all the artics I read were so technical! The ratios, equipment, and time were endless!

Let me put your mind at ease. Making your own cold brew coffee does not need to be complicated. Coffee can be as complicated or as easy as you would like to make it. If you like complicated coffee then more power to you, but as a mom of three I needed an easy cold brew coffee!

This easy cold brew coffee takes seconds to whip up and with just a little bit of time will be ready to strain and enjoy! Add cream, ice, and flavoring to spruce up your coffee concoction.

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Most of the internet is going to tell you that you need whole-bean coffee, a coffee grinder, perhaps a cold press, and more.

I even saw a recipe advocating for the use of a hand-cranking coffee grinder! Now truthfully, I may have added this one to my Amazon shopping cart as a birthday gift for myself, but it was mostly because I thought it would look great at my coffee nook.

Back to the point; I am going to provide you with a simple, easy, and memorable recipe that still will taste like a great cup of cold brew from Caribou or Starbucks. You certainly can use the method with whole-bean coffee, but this one is easy to whip up when you only have coffee grounds around or need something that is similar.

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Ingredients
Instructions
Equipment
Variations
Storage
Top tip
FAQ
Related
Easy Cold Brew Coffee

Ingredients

Before we go any further, I want to emphasize that the 'right' way to do cold press is with whole beans that are ground coarsely. This article is not for those who want to do it the 'right way'.

This recipe is for the busy mom who has screaming little ones, diapers stuck on the ceiling, and a pile of laundry always waiting for her. This is for the mama that can't turn on the coffee grinder because it will wake up a sleeping baby in another room!

This recipe is for the person that wants a little bit of 'coffee heaven' without waking up the entire house with a coffee grinder!

How do you get that? You use espresso roast ground coffee which will give it just the right flavor punch to get away with using pre-ground coffee!

Espresso roast ground coffee
- This is what makes the 'easy' part truly easy! If you use an espresso roast coffee the flavor profile will be just strong enough to let you get away with pre-ground coffee.
Filtered water
- Filtered water will give you the best-tasting cold brew. Tap water tends to have too many extra minerals.

See the recipe card for quantities.

Instructions

Add your water and coffee grounds into a pitcher and stir well. Your coffee should look sludgy. Easy cold brew coffee

Add your water and ground coffee into a pitcher and stir well. Your coffee should look sludgy.

Let sit for 12 hours with a lid on. Stir or shake occasionally.

Strain the coffee through a cheesecloth or strainer.

Enjoy over ice!

Hint: the longer you leave the coffee sitting in the water the better. Especially when you are using this method of pre-ground coffee, you will want it to sit for the full 12 hours, if not longer.

Equipment

Remember how I said there was no equipment needed? There's not all you need for your coffee, two jars, and something to strain the coffee through. However, if you want to get a bit fancy. Here are a few things that I have used and enjoyed to spruce up my cold brew experience.

You can find all my kitchen favorites by visiting my Amazon storefront or Like to Know Shop.

Variations

You can vary the flavor of your cold brew by adding a few different optional items.

Add a cinnamon stick to the extraction process. 1 or 2 sticks will give it a nice spicy flavor.
Use creamer in the end result. I love having my sugar-free Nut Pods around or using my simple coffee creamer recipe.
If you have an espresso machine you could even add a shot of espresso to really give it an extra punch of caffeine.
Add flavor using extracts to create your own personal cold press experience! These extracts from THM are my favorite.

Storage

Cold brew will store well in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. After two weeks (or even as soon as about 10 days) you will notice a sharp decrease in the quality. It is best to use up cold brew pretty fast within the first 3 days.

I recommend that you store it in the refrigerator with an airtight lid.

Top tip

I've said it before, but this one is so important that it needs to be shared again! Don't skimp on letting that brew sit! In order to get that true cold brew taste, it needs to sit for at least 12 hours.

FAQ

What is the perfect ratio for cold brew coffee?

You can vary the ratio to fit your taste buds. However, a common rule of thumb is 1:8. In the case of this recipe I used 1 cup of ground espresso roast coffee to 8 cups of water. You can use this same method if you choose to grind coffee beans.

Can I make a cold brew with regular coffee?

The espresso roast ground coffee is the way to go if you are going to use pre-ground coffee. If you want to use a different type of coffee, I recommend you go with beans.

What grounds to use for cold brew?

For this recipe, I am using an espresso roast to achieve the flavor profile of a cold brew coffee. If you choose to grind your coffee from beans, you can really use any type!

How long does to soak coffee grounds for cold brew?

12 to 18 hours is ideal to get the optimal flavor, caffeine, and color. When you use the cold extraction process you will get less bitter compounds and instead have a smoother and more velvety coffee flavor.

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