Cold brew coffee is a lower acidity, less bitter version than it’s hot brewed coffee counterpart … but it can get expensive to always buy at the grocery store. So, we started making it at home and it is SO easy! Just follow our easy instructions below to make your own cold brew coffee as strong as you want. I have been making my coffee this way for YEARS (yes, I heat it up in the winter) and I absolutely love it.
What About Tea, Can that be Cold Brewed?
Absolutely! Just check out our Cold Brew Tea – perfect for summer!
Cold Brew vs. Hot Coffee vs. Iced Coffee
- Cold Brew coffee is made by brewing roughly ground coffee beans in cold water for a long period of time (at least 24 hours) – steeping is generally done in the fridge.
- Hot Coffee, the stuff you are probably most accustomed to, is brewed by pouring hot water over finely ground coffee in a very short period of time.
- Iced Coffee, on the other hand, is simply hot coffee poured over ice.
Key Ingredient + Kitchen Tools
- coffee beans – any variety of coffee beans will work to make cold brew – light roast, dark roast, espresso beans, even decaf coffee beans!
- coffee grinder – we love our trusty electric coffee grinder! It is worth the investment to not have to buy cold brew at the store.
- mason jars – for years we have used large mason jars for this process, but you can use other storage containers too.
- fine mesh sieve – to strain the cold brew, you will need is sieve with a reusable cheesecloth, thin paper filters, reusable coffee filters, or something similar.
How to Make Cold Brew at Home
How Long Should Cold Brew Sit in the Fridge?
It should chill for a minimum of 24 hours. Typically anywhere from 24-48 hours will result in a medium strength cold brew. For a stronger cold brew, let it steep for longer.
Pro Tip
I would recommend straining it a couple of times to ensure you get out as much of the grounds and residue as possible.
Storage
Homemade cold brew coffee can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 1-2 weeks.
Best Ways To Enjoy Cold Brew Coffee
This is entirely up to your personal preference. It can be enjoyed the same way you enjoy regular hot coffee. Option to learn how to make cold foam or sweet cream cold foam to enjoy on top. Add a splash of your favorite creamer, like our cashew coffee creamer or any store-bought options.
Recipe FAQs + Tips
- Why cold brew is less acidic? When regular, hot coffee is brewed the hot water going through the fine coffee grounds allows more acidity to be present in the final product. A higher acidity level can be harder on your stomach, especially if you are prone to acid reflux.
- Can I make cold brew in a french press? Yes! Just use the same water to coffee ratio and follow our tutorial on how to make cold brew in a french press.
- How to make cold brew concentrate? Simply use a 4:1 ratio of water to coffee beans and follow the same instructions. Don’t let it steep for too long or it will start to get some bitterness coming through.
- Best storage options: 60oz glass beverage carafe, 1 gallon glass mason jar beverage dispenser, or a 2 qt pitcher with lid.
Cold Brew & Whole30
It is also an awesome addition to any Whole30, which limits what you put in your coffee to tame the bitterness (think – creamer). Cold brew is less bitter and easier to drink black than hot coffee – I highly recommend cold brew if you are starting a Whole30! But I also have this awesome Whole30 Vanilla and Cinnamon Creamer you can try too!
Made this recipe and loved it?!
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How to Make Cold Brew Coffee
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Refrigeration Time: 24 hours
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 24 hours 5 minutes
- Yield: 8 cups 1x
- Category: Coffee/Tea
- Method: Refrigerator
- Cuisine: American
Description
A simple step-by-step tutorial on How to Make Cold Brew Coffee in your own home – no fancy equipment necessary!
Ingredients
- 1 cup whole coffee beans (medium to dark roast)
- 8 cups filtered water
Instructions
- Grind the Beans: Use a coffee grinder to roughly grind up your coffee beans.
- Mix: Place the coffee beans and water in a large, clean jar. Secure a lid on top and give it a good shake to mix everything up.
- Refrigerate: Let it sit in the refrigerator for 24-48 hours. Option to let it chill longer for a stronger cold brew.
- Strain: Put a mesh sieve or strainer on top of another large jar or bowl and place a piece of cheese cloth on top of that. Pour the cold brew mixture through the cheesecloth and strainer. Repeat this process a couple times, if needed to remove any coffee bean grounds.
- Serve/Store: Serve immediately or store in refrigerator for several weeks.
Notes
- How to Coarsely Grind Coffee Beans: I simply place mine in my coffee grinder and pulse a few times. Don’t get too hung up on how they look – as long as they are somewhere between whole beans and finely ground you will be just fine!
- Small Batch: Your can cut down the ratio to 1/2 cup roughly ground beans and 4 cups of water.
- What Works for You: You will also figure out what ratio works best for you (everyone has their own personal preference) – but this is a very “typical” ratio. From here determine if you like your cold brew stronger or weaker. To make it stronger, allow it to brew longer, use more grounds/less water, use a stronger type of bean. To make it weaker, use more water/less grounds.
- Can you heat it up? Yes! Just because you are brewing it in cold water doesn’t mean you cannot heat it up later. The acidity level will remain the same! To heat up, simply place in a small saucepan or teapot and warm up to the desired temperature.
- Can you use decaf beans? Yes! You can definitely use decaf coffee beans instead of regular.
- Can you use finely ground coffee beans? In short, yes, you can use finely ground coffee beans BUT you may run into an issue with filtering out all the grounds during the straining process. Keeping the beans more coarsely ground will help prevent that.
- Caffeine: Here is a great article on whether cold brew has the same amount of caffeine as regular coffee.
- Cold Brew Coffee Concentrate: simply make a stronger batch with 1 cup roughly ground coffee beans (medium to dark roast) and only 4 cups filtered water.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 0
- Sugar: 0 g
- Sodium: 0.6 mg
- Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 0 g
- Protein: 0 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
Originally published on June 7, 2018 – updated with new photos on July 7, 2021.
Laurie says
How are you coming up with 12g carbs for this? lt’s just coffee beans and water.
Erin says
Hi Laurie! Ah thanks for catching that – just an error when we put “ground coffee beans” into our nutrition calculator – for whatever reason. Just fixed it – thanks!
Nelly says
Can I use a coffee filter to strain if I don’t have a cheesecloth?
Teena says
Is that just a quart sized jar?
Chantel says
This is a great easy recipe to use! I just made my first batch, but the water looks more like tea. What do you recommend? Thank you for sharing this recipe that will save me some $$.
Erin says
Hi Chantel! So figuring out how to get your own perfect combo/ratio can take a little experimentation 🙂 If you like a darker cold brew you can use a different kind of coffee bean, increase your amount of coffee grounds and you can also lengthen how long you leave the coffee in the water before straining! Hope that helps!
Norman Ernest Krauss says
Haven’t tried it yet…but I will…looks tasty! Also battling with acid reflux…this way is gentler like you said…can’t wait…want to add some good sweetened heavy cream to it…will be like a fancy dessert to start the day with…thanks!)
Darina Panicharova says
Does cold brew contain as much caffeine as the same amount of normal coffee?
Erin says
Hi Darina! Such a good question! The answer is – it depends 🙂 Here is a great article from The Kitchn that goes into the science of it! https://www.thekitchn.com/does-cold-brew-coffee-have-more-caffeine-than-hot-coffee-221222
James says
Your coffee pictures look decadent! Love this recipe!!! Thx for sharing, I’ll definitely try it this weekend!
Erin says
Thank you!!
Lindsey says
Do you warm up the cold brew on the stove in a tea pot? Or what is your method for doing so? Thanks!
Erin says
Hi Lindsey! I usually just put it in a little sauce pan and heat it up on the stove top!! A tea pot would work too though!!
Emmi says
So my biggest question is, why not use reusable steeping bags for this process?
Especially since your whole beans are roughly chopped or smashed, not really “ground” at all.
I plan on using a reusable large tea steeping bag, so I don’t have to spend so much extra time pouring so much cold steeped coffee through a bunch of messy cheese cloth. Maybe run it through cheese cloth after extracting the steeping bag, to ensure a smooth grittiness end result.
Many if not All cold brew recipes I have run across seem to all use cheesecloth, which is great, but also extremely messy if I choose to make a large batch of cold steeped coffee.
Shawn Marsteller says
Hi🙂You can buy “nut bags” on Amazon to make, say almond milk, but I use them to make cold brew. Very handy, are already beige and have a drawstring at the top.
Lanny says
Hi Erin,
Thks for the recipe. I was given a bag of finely ground coffee by a friend and I have no idea what to do with it as I do not drink coffee at home. But seeing yr post tempts me to try this cold brew.. I wonder if I can use finely ground coffee for this method? Thank you
Erin says
Hi, Lanny! So short answer – yes, you could use finely ground coffee BUT you might end up struggling to remove all the little grounds, even after straining through a cheesecloth. So just be aware of that – maybe double or triple strain it through the cheesecloth to try and remove as much as possible! Hope that helps! 🙂
Ashley Judd says
I love making homemade cold brew; it’s in my weekly meal-prep routine!
Erin says
Yay!!! So glad to hear that, Ashley!! 🙂
Lani says
This is such a great idea! I’m going to try it today. As a GERD sufferer, this could be life giving. Thank you for all your excellent work.
Erin says
Yay!!! Hope it helps!!! :). Thank you!!
Lisa says
Where did you get the glass pictured? I’d love to get one! Thanks!
Erin says
They are from Crate and Barrel!
Athena says
I don’t feel as bad now when I see your ground coffee looks as irregular as mine…lol. I’ve just been using my little french press, but your Mason jar looks so much cooler. I’ve been doing 1/3 cup coffee and 1 1/2 cups water but I do like my coffee strong. I just made my first successful dairy-free ‘bulletproof’ frappuccino analog today!
Erin says
Yay!! Yes, don’t worry about what those coffee grounds look like! And I love how you have found a mixture that works for you!!!😊
Ben says
Great guide to making coldbrew at home! We spent some time making a guide for serving suggestions, feel free to add it if you think it would be helpful to your readers!
Some of the mixed drinks on there are delicious!
Erin says
Thanks, Ben!
Tom says
A must try!
Erin says
It definitely is! Let me know how you like it!!