Today’s “Home Brew”- Secret to great iced coffee without great expense
I love my coffee, especially when its strong and rich with a bold flavor minus the acidity which, in my mind, detracts from the flavor.
Now for those of you not from ’round here, the South is said to have four seasons: Almost Summer, Summer, Still Summer, and Christmas. Based on this, you can imagine that there are times of the year when a iced coffee is relished far more than hot.
If you’ve ever tried to make iced coffee at home, you know that its not as easy as pouring coffee over ice. You end up with a watered down version of coffee which becomes even more watered down and weak when you add milk or sugar. Still, there has to be a better option than heading out and paying someone $5 for a few minutes of divine caffeinated pleasure – and there is. ~smiles~ Cold Brew Coffee Concentrate.
I’ve been making this “home brew” for over two years now, much to the delight of myself and Mama. She recently started making her own but until then I’d brew up extra and share my “special recipe” with her as well. I can only imagine what the neighbors thought when Mama’s car pulled up to my driveway and I’d run her out a mason jar and send her on her way. Come by either of our houses at any given time and you’ll find pint sized mason jars of “the recipe” in our refrigerators ~giggle~. I feel just like one of the Baldwin sisters….
Cold brew coffee is brewed in cold water on your counter top for a period of about twelve to fifteen hours, depending on the strength you prefer. Coffee brewed using this method has significantly less acidity and far more full bodied flavor than coffee brewed with the traditional hot method.
One of the pitys of coffee for me has always been that it never tastes as decadent as it smells. Cold brew brings you closer to this flavor than any other method I have come across. Whats more, cold brew coffee made at home rivals anything bought in a coffee house at a tiny fraction of the price – I actually like my cold brew better!
This concentrate is not just for iced coffees though, you can easily use it to make hot coffee in the morning without the fuss of brewing. This is perfect for those who have problems with traditional coffee being too harsh on their stomachs. Simply mix equal parts concentrate and water (or vary proportions to taste), heat and go!
This concentrate will easily keep a month or more in your fridge with no change in flavor and you know if I’m showing you how to do it, you aren’t going to need any fancy schmancy equipment either.
You likely have all you need at home already. I prefer to grind my beans fresh but you can certainly use pre-ground coffee. However, if you’re looking to amp up your coffee experience, I strongly suggest buying beans and grinding it fresh before each brewing, be it cold brewing or hot. You’ll find the difference is extraordinary! A grinder such as this one can be picked up for around thirty dollars or so. This is my Hamilton Beach one, of course!
I use a quart sized (32 ounces) canning jar to brew my coffee in and then store it in pint sized jars. You can use a plastic pitcher or container for this as well if you prefer. I like to brew mine in glass as there isn’t the risk of tainting my coffee with another flavor this way.
- Container to brew coffee grounds in
- Strainer
- Coffee filters (largest size you can find)
- Coffee beans and grinder or pre-ground beans
- Bowl to strain coffee into
You’ll need 1 cup of ground coffee.
Place grounds in jar
Fill jar with water.
I leave about an inch of head space at the top.
Place lid on jar and give it a little shake to make sure all grounds are wet.
Now just sit the jar on your counter for at least twelve hours.
Once the time has passed (I usually brew mine at night and strain it in the morning), place your strainer over a large bowl. You can also use a collander for this if you prefer.
Line strainer with a coffee filter. These are the type for twelve cup coffee makers, the largest I could find.
Pour coffee in the filter and let it strain through a little at a time.
This is after I’ve strained about half of my concentrate. I usually go through two filters when I do this. Throw your first filter away and replace with a clean one before pouring the remainder of your concentrate. It will take some time for all of your concentrate to strain out. I usually let it sit for about half an hour before pouring the remainder so it takes me about an hour to have my concentrate all strained and ready.
Using this method, a quart sized jar yields about a pint and a half of concentrate. Now mixing it up is purely a matter of taste but I am going to show you how I make mine purely as a point of reference.
Four ounces of concentrate…
Four ounces of milk…
Skim, Whole, 2%, whatever cranks your tractor.
Fill with ice and add three packets of Splenda and I’m a happy gal!
Honestly, this beats any iced coffee I’ve ever had away from home. Its rich, flavorful, and completely decadent.
Cold Brew Coffee
- 1 Cup ground coffee
- 32 ounce container (1 quart)
- Strainer
- Large basket type coffee filters
Place ground coffee in container, fill with cold water. Cover and let sit for twelve to fifteen hours. Place strainer over large bowl and put coffee filter inside. Slowly pour over about half of the coffee and let sit until strained. Replace filter and repeat.
To make regular coffee: place equal parts coffee concentrate and water in cup and heat.
To make iced coffee: Place equal parts concentrate and milk in glass. Add ice, sweetened as desired. You may find my preference for iced coffee a bit strong for you so leave room to add some water to weaken it if need be!
Print This Recipe
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This has been a very busy week at home with the kids and their activities. I hope to get caught up on emails and comments this weekend! Thank you all and have a fabulous Friday!
Gratefully,
Christy 
A truly happy person is one who can enjoy the scenery while on a detour.
Posted by Christy Jordan
on Mar 27 2009. Filed under Beverages.
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Hi! I have been making coffee concentrate with this method for some time and have found an easier way! I have a French Press that is designed for the making of hot brewed coffee, but it works well with cold brew also. Buy the largest French press you can (mine is a Bodum) to yield larger amounts of concentrate. The pressing strainer eliminates the need for the coffee filter. It’s friendly for the environment too, and reusable for years. I follow your same method, but use a chopstick to stir the grounds in the press before putting the lid on. In the morning, press the grounds, pour off the concentrate… and enjoy!!
Great post!
I agree with Donna in Joliet’s suggestion about a coffee press (also know as a French press). If you own a French press (we have 3 that we found at various yard sales), the presses have a built-in filtered plunger top and work like a filtered carafe. So one could skip the step about using a strainer and/or coffee filter by brewing the coffee in a French press instead.
kfischer: I assume you are using the 1qt Borkum press? I am looking at a few on e-bay and want to make sure I get one that will work good. Is there much problem with the additional coffee grounds with the cold brew formula?
Any more hints? I am fed up with trying to strain the brew in the morning… it just takes too long!
I’ve made one batch already, and will have another batch “brewing” tonight! This is really great coffee. We had a new WinCo Store open and coffee beans are $4.85/lb. right now, so of course I bought quite a bit.
I like it with simple syrup and milk.
I added this to my blog with a link back to yours.
Thank you for sharing this process.
Cottonpickinfarm
Thank you so much for this recipe, I can’t wait to try it! My mom will love you for it, too. I’ve also been wanting a French press for a few years now, but have had a difficult time justifying it since my husband bought some fancy coffee machine. Now I have the perfect excuse. YIPPEE!
Thanks for your wonderful blog! I really enjoy reading it and appreciate your great sense of humor.
Put the filter and grounds in your compost pile or in your garden. Good addition to the soil. The filters will break down and earthworms like coffee too 8-). Done this with tea, but not with coffee. Will give it a try. Good way to make coffee while camping using a water bottle and not have to wait for the coffee to perk, only have to wait for it to heat up.
YUM! This is a fantastic idea. Thank you so much for sharing. I’m going to try it.
I just found your blog on wefollow.com and am following you on Twitter now.
Please stop drinking Diet Dr. Pepper. It can give you breast cancer. I drank Diet Coke for years but stopped 3 years ago when I got pregnant.
http://myaspartameexperiment.com/
Can’t wait to try this coffee — thanks again!
I WILL DEFINATLY TRY THIS RECIPE SINE MY HUSBAND AND I LOVE ICED COFEE AND ALL OF OUR FRIENDS ENJOY IT AS WELL .. I JUST HAVE 1 QUESTIONS WHAT TYPE OF COFEE DO YOU USE ?
Can I just say – WOW!! I have enjoyed this recipe to the max, thank you – now to only allow myself 1 cup a day of this special brew.
This is sooooo good!!!!! I am addicted to it. My fingers can’t keep up with my brain after I have had my fix!
Thanks for the recipe!
Christy, I found this recipe on Divine Caroline and commented there that I’d have to try it as I’m a true coffee addict (hot and iced). Having now done so, here’s my opinion: This is the ONLY way to make iced coffee! Deep, rich, delicious, and no tummy problems from the acidity. I’ve made two slight modifications: I double the recipe, because I go through the coffee so quickly
and I bought a $12 french coffee press which I use in place of the bowl/sieve/filter. Ever so much quicker than waiting for the liquid/grounds mix to go through the filter/sieve, and no more buying paper filters (saves a few trees)!
Oh, and BTW, if you want a decadent dessert while still minimizing calories, add 1/4 to 1/2 cup of vanilla ice cream to to iced coffee in your glass. YUMMY!
Thanks so much for this recipe!
I found you on Twitter and have loved reading your website for inspiration and connection to my *southern roots*.
And now I have finally been able to re-create my mother’s Sweet Tea and the iced coffee idea/recipe is fantastic!
What a great place to visit and you can bet I’ll have my mason jar iced coffee sitting on my desk as I check back in often to relax and get inspiration.
Such a great find!
These are so delicious! I posted about them today on my blog and linked back to you. I have been drinking them pretty much every day this summer.
Thanks Christy for another great recipe. I just talked with my sister-in-law, who is a coffee fanatic, and promised to send her the recipe as well. Using the strainer is great idea, but I think I will first try making the concentrate with my French Press. Off to the kitchen I go…. Judy In Texas
This is the BEST iced coffee ever. Ever. I am completely addicted (as if I wasn’t before) to this yummy elixir.
I have always loved the smell of ground coffee……or coffee when it is brewing. The smell is wonderful especially in the mornings.
Since the French Vanilla Creamer hit the dairy case, I have enjoyed a cup of coffee even more. The other flavored syrups are good as well. I have even put pumpkin pie spice in the basket of grounds before brewing. Yum !!
Your special “Home Brew” has been a great hit this summer. My husband and I have enjoyed sitting out on our little patio, chuggin’ coffee from our pint jars, watching the birds and the antics of the squirrels stealing the sunflower seeds from the feeders.
Doesn’t take much to make us Southern Folks happy……
I haven’t been able to drink coffee since my second child was born due to the acid-but I LOVE coffee and miss it so much. I am getting out the materials to do this today and look forward to trying a cup of this tomorrow. Thanks for another GREAT idea!
Oh this looks great. I just recently saw another mention of cold brewed coffee someplace (darned if I can remember where) and went searching out the “how to”.
I have to say this seems to be much much easier than what I found – and it doesn’t make a HUGE amount, so it is manageable. The one I found uses 9 cups of water and a pound of coffee ……
Thanks so much – I’m going to have to try this very soon (maybe tomorrow) if I have a container available, I think I have a quart Ball jar that isn’t being used.
Love your recipes and insight into so many things. Keep writing and I’ll keep reading (and trying)
Just made my first batch of this last night, and got it all filtered this morning. Yum! Now to keep myself from ODing on it!
Oh My! Bless your heart! I love iced coffee but try to watch my spending. I have not had iced coffee in a while until I tried this.
*I think my coffee maker is going in the yard sale* lol Thank you so much for this idea. I just love getting your emails! I find something useful, exciting and delicious in each one!
Huggles, Brenda
I made some last night and I LOVE LOVE LOVE it!! Thanks so much for sharing this! I only found your site recently and I am having a ball wandering through all your posts. Keep it up, your site it a blessing
Thanks so much for this recipe! I can’t wait to try it, and I can’t believe it is so simple-who knew!!
P.S. Loved your reference to the Walton’s (my favorite show from the past)!
Christy this is just great, but is there a easier way to strain it?
Would a french press work better then waiting for it to go through the filter?
[...] Today’s Home Brew. The secret to great iced coffee without the expense! [...]
I’m trying this tonight. I LOVE LOVE LOVE coffee. The only problem I’ve run into so far is that after I put a cup ground coffee in the quart size mason jar I can’t fill the jar up to where the directions say. Am I doing something wrong??
I just tried this! how awesome! and here’s a trick for anyone with a french coffee press… Mine holds a little more than a quart, so i just made mine in that and let it set…then you don’t need the filer, just press the coffee down and voila!!
For those who were wanting a frappuccino:
4 oz ‘cold brew’
3 oz sweetened condensed milk
flavorings (I used vanilla and coconut extracts)
ice
milk
In a blender, combine all ingredients except milk. Pour about a cup and half into a glass, then top off with milk. This will make about 2 servings depending on the amount of ice and milk used.
Hope this helps!
I have to give u hige thanks for this iced coffee recipe! It is better than the coffee house where I usually get them. Making it at home now means ill always get it made the way I want it! I am one happy girl this morning! Big hugs!
This is SOOOO good! Gee Christy…what would we do without ya?
A great addition to ice coffee is a drop or two of vanilla essence to taste.
We used to go and pay our $5 a glass for the best ice coffee in town, but eventually the place shut down.
When it shut down we asked the lady what the secret was. Since we’d been good customers she shared her secret – vanilla essence!!
Give it a try I reckon you’ll like it!
I wasn’t a coffee person until I had a free coupon from McDonalds and decided to try a mocha frap. Wow, I was hooked, couldn’t sleep the first night, but soon learned how much I could get done with a morning cup. Now I make my own, but I use instant coffee. I can’t wait to try this recipe! thanks.
Made the coffee last night and had a delicious iced coffee this morning! It does taste as good as the coffee shops. I’ve just found your site a few weeks ago and love it, have fun at the book convention, can’t wait to see your cook book.
I love making my own iced coffee. I do mine a little differently. Instead of using disposable coffee filters, I use the reusable one that came with my coffee machine – that way there’s no waste
I also mix 1/2 water before I add milk because other wise its too strong for me.
[...] tried both of the iced coffee blends using the cold brew method (click here for an easy way to do that) and have been in coffee paradise ever since! I have been keeping a two quart pitcher filled with [...]
[...] pour over about half of the coffee and let sit until strained. Replace filter and repeat. Source: Today’s “Home Brew”- Secret to great iced coffee without great expense | Southern … Author Notes To make regular coffee: place equal parts coffee concentrate and water in cup and [...]
Oh my gosh, this is just what I’ve been looking for. Now if I can just find the lids to my mason jars I’m ready to go! I’m a iced coffee feind! I drink it year round well except during that Christmas season, then it’s a cup of hot brewed mocha or peppermint tea with milk.
Hugs from Texas
This really is amazing! Now I’m an iced coffee snob but this is better than DD or Starbucks! I still ujse sweet n low like my gramma did, its cheaper too! Its unhealthy but hell, its delicious!
[...] go with what I’ve been craving most here lately that has saved me a ton of money. My post on how to make iced coffee at home teaches how to cold brew coffee, so that it won’t have that acidic after taste or vary in [...]
I love iced coffee when it’s hot – and here in Texas hot is the norm! I like to add brown sugard to my coffee before adding milk and ice. The brown sugar gives the coffee a wonderful, caramelly flavor!
Denise in Dallas
I will try this this weekend! I love iced coffee, and live in a small town where McDonald’s is the only source. Arghh! I have never gotten it just right at home! I don’t want to buy any special equipment right now, but I do have loads of mason jars and coffee filters. Thanks!
I’ve been brewing cold coffee for a couple of years now and absolutely love it! The only problem is that without all that acid I can drink so much more! The way I like it is with a helping of no sugar added Hershey’s Chocolate syrup added to the milk and splenda and mixed in before you add ice. It’s delicious thrown in the blender to make your own frappuccino too. Christy, I love everything you have done. Southern Plate is my favorite place to come home to.
Wonderful…mixed up the coffee last night…strained it this morning…well worth doing…the best ice coffee I have had. Thanks so much!!! I have learned so much from your website…can not wait for the cookbook…please keep up the great work!!!! Thank you thank you thank you!!!
Thank YOU so much Charlotte! I was talking to my mother on the phone this morning while she was having iced coffee, too! I think between you and her someone is trying to tell me that I need to make myself some!
I’ll keep doing this as long as sweet people like you are reading it!
Gratefully,
Christy
I just made this cold brew and am enjoying my first glass right now. We had already ground our coffee fine for our Keurig coffee maker so that did make straining a bit more difficult. Next time I will leave the coffee more coarse ground. I also made a simple syrup for it. This is better than Starbucks any day of the week!
I am going to try this today, sure sounds good.