How to Make Iced Coffee

2016-06-26

I'll lead with the fact that I'm not picky about my coffee, in flavor, type, or preparation. This is just a simple setup that I found works pretty well and thought I'd share, in particular because it is low effort and has timely results.

Requirements: You'll need a metal water bottle with cap, as well as a coffee maker. The bottle can be stainless steel or aluminum. You'll want to have a kitchen towel handy as well.

  1. Make sure everything is clean. Especially if you're taking photos.
  2. Make coffee. If you're not sure how much, fill the water bottle and then empty into a measuring cup.
  3. Pour into the bottle using proper safeguards or techniques; my device pours directly into the bottle, so I use a thick kitchen towel to hold it without burning my fingers. You can of course pour directly into the bottle, or use an intermediary (measuring cup, funnel, etc.).
  4. Place the bottle in the sink and tighten the cap. Run cold water so that it hits as much of the bottle as possible. Simple physics at work: we're letting the heat escape through the metal and get pulled quickly away by the cold water. Let it run for a few minutes and it should be slightly cool to touch. The coffee temperature by now should be below room temperature.
  5. You can either store the bottle in the fridge for later use, or pour it now over ice in a glass. You can also make coffee ice cubes with them, usable in iced coffee to avoid watering down the drink, as well as with milk shakes (e.g. with some chocolate ice cream and/or banana).

Related Posts