Cold-brewed coffee is all the rage this summer – not chilled, creamy, sickly sweet iced coffee of large coffee-shop chains, but coffee brewed slowly in cold water. The slower brewing process means the coffee has a sweeter flavour and is deliciously refreshing. Cold-brew your coffee in a big batch, store in the fridge and serve over loads of ice. It’s delicious black, but add a little sugar and a dash of milk or cream, if you prefer. Here’s a ‘how to’, which doesn’t require buying anything to cold-brew yourself – you’ve got all the equipment in your kitchen already!
Cold-brewed coffee
Instructions
Set your coffee grinder to its coarsest setting and grind your coffee beans to a consistency similar to that of breadcrumbs. If you don’t have a coffee grinder, blitz your coffee beans in a blender.
Place your coffee grounds at the bottom of a large sterilised jar. Cover with cold water with a 1:8 ratio of coffee to water.
Gently stir until the water and coffee grounds are combined, pop the lid on and refrigerate to steep for 24 hours.
After the coffee has brewed, strain into a large bowl through a sieve to remove the larger grounds. Discard these and line the sieve with a muslin cloth or a few sheets of paper towel. Strain the coffee back into the jar.
Repeat three times until there is no murky residue at the bottom of your jar. If you can’t sift out all of the residue, it means that your grind setting was probably too fine. Practice will make perfect!
Serve over ice with milk or a dash of cream and a little sugar, if desired. You can keep the brew in your fridge for up to a month, so serve whenever you’re in the mood!