Cold brew coffee
Cold brew coffee seems to be all the rage these days. However, while many in the West view it as a new concept, it has actually been around in Japan since the 17th century! With all the attention it is getting, we just had to investigate it for ourselves.
To be clear, we’re not talking about iced coffee or a frappe, but a drink that essentially consists of coffee beans steeped in cold water for 12-24 hours. There are gadgets and specialist equipment available, but we wanted to find a way of using only a few household basics to create this drink, and have been experimenting with different ways of preparing it. Let’s start you off with simplest one. We don’t believe it will replace the ‘cup of hot Joe’ anytime soon, but cold brew coffee is a delicious and refreshing drink in its own right. The cold brew produces a higher caffeine concentration (so it should definitely be diluted) and a sweeter drink with lower acidity levels.
Ingredients
- 50g coarsely ground coffee beans
- 200ml filtered water
Method
50g coarsely ground coffee beans
200ml filtered water
Mix the coffee with the water in a jug
Cover with cling film and keep at room temperature for 12-24 hours (we kept ours for 16 hours)
We filtered the coffee through nylon, but bag and also a coffee filter
Dilute with water 50/50
You can serve over ice or with milk (we used almond milk, which was delicious) and you can sweeten with agave nectar or sugar
The drink can be kept in the fridge for a few days without going rancid.