How to Make Cold Brew Coffee Concentrate
Making cold brew coffee concentrate at home is so much easier than you think. As a retired barista, these are all of my tips and tricks for making the best cold brew with just a few simple kitchen tools (or even a French press!). This concentrate is my go-to way to make batched iced coffee for brunch parties, holidays, or casual weekday sipping!
Ingredients
- 125 grams coffee beans
- 1 liter filtered water
Equipment
- Coffee grinder
- Coffee scale (or kitchen scale)
- Large jar, pitcher, carafe, or Chemex
- Fine mesh sieve
- Large coffee filter
Instructions
Brew the cold brew concentrate
- Using a burr coffee grinder or manual coffee grinder, grind the coffee beans until they are medium-coarse. The coffee grounds should be about the size of Kosher salt.
- Pour the ground coffee into a Chemex, large jar, pitcher, or carafe. Gently shake the container to evenly distribute the grounds.
- Place the container on a scale and zero it out. While stirring constantly, pour 1 liter of filtered water over the ground coffee. Stir the mixture very well until there are no more dry spots.
- Cover the container and refrigerate for 14-20 hours. I recommend starting at 16 hours and adjusting as needed.
Filter the coffee concentrate
- Once the concentrate is fully brewed, place a coffee filter into a large sieve. Rinse it with water for about 30 seconds to get rid of any paper taste.
- Place the sieve over a large container like a liquid measuring cup. Strain the concentrate through the filter-lined sieve. Work in batches, if needed. Let the cold brew strain completely - this can take up to 1 hour so be patient! If the cold brew stops dripping through, stir the mixture or use a spoon to remove any big clumps of coffee grounds.
- After the cold brew has mostly filtered through, there might be a small amount of sludgy liquid at the bottom of the filter. Discard the filter and coffee grounds. (Or compost them!)
Dilute the cold brew
- Pour the cold brew coffee concentrate into a pitcher or carafe. (There should be about 1 liter). Add an equal amount of filtered water. Taste and add more water, if desired. If you like a very strong cold brew, you can reduce the water to 500 grams (1/2 liter).
French press instructions
- Add the ground coffee to a French press. Then, add the filtered water while stirring constantly. Stir well until there are no more dry spots. Depending on the size of your French press, you will need to adjust the amount of coffee and water you use. Just keep the 1:8 ratio of 1 gram of coffee for every 8 grams of water. For example, my French press holds 240 grams of water, so I used 30 grams of coffee.
- Cover the French press and brew the coffee in the fridge for 14-20 hours. I recommend starting at 16 hours and adjusting as needed.
- After the coffee has brewed, push the plunger to filter the coffee concentrate from the grounds. The French press will leave some of the solids behind making a concentrate that has a bit more texture and body. For a smoother cold brew, strain the concentrate through a fine-mesh sieve lined with a rinsed coffee filter.
- Pour the coffee concentrate into a carafe and dilute it with an equal amount of filtered water. Taste and add more water, if desired.
Notes
If you don't have a coffee grinder, check your local grocery store or coffee shop. Grocery stores usually have a coffee grinder for you to use. Or, for the best flavor, visit a local coffee shop! Just ask the barista to grind the beans for cold brewing.
For a consistent grind, I like to calibrate my grinder. Before I grind all of the coffee, I will run a few pinches of coffee beans (about 2 teaspoons) through the grinder. This helps the burr adjust.
Pre-ground coffee will not work for this recipe. The grind size is too fine for cold brewing and you will end up with bitter coffee. It's super important that you buy whole coffee beans and grind them until the beans are medium-coarse.
Make sure you wash your tools very well before brewing! Bacteria loves sugary food (like coffee) and you don't want to ruin a perfectly good brew. Give everything a good wash and let the tools air dry before you get started.
It's important to use filtered water for a smooth cup of coffee. Impurities in water can negatively affect the taste of the coffee.
If you like a super smooth brew, use a coffee filter to strain the concentrate. But, if you prefer a brew with texture and body, use cheesecloth which lets more of the solids through.
For extra smooth coffee, filter the concentrate twice. I find that once is usually enough but if it's still a bit heavy for your tastes, filter it once more.
Steep the concentrate in the fridge. Some recipes call for brewing it at room temperature on the counter. But to keep bacteria from growing, I play it safe and brew it for a longer time in the fridge.
If you have old coffee laying around, this is a good time to use it. Cold brew actually does a great job at masking the flavor of stale beans! As long as the beans aren't moldy, they're good to go.
Serving: 1cup, Calories: 1kcal, Sodium: 1mg, Potassium: 8mg, Calcium: 1mg
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