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Two glasses showing the best iced coffee recipe with milk swirls and a cold brew jar on a light oak wood table.

Cold Brew Iced Coffee Recipe

This Cold Brew Iced Coffee is incredibly smooth, less bitter than regular iced coffee, and ready to drink all week. Just coarse ground coffee + cold water + 12 hours. The smoothest iced coffee you will ever make at home — no machine needed.
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Prep Time 5 minutes
Steep Time 12 hours
Total Time 12 hours 5 minutes
Servings: 4 glasses
Course: Beverage, Drink
Cuisine: American
Calories: 75
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Cold Brew Concentrate
  • ¾ cup Coarse ground coffee 85g — medium roast Arabica — coarse as sea salt
  • 4 cups Cold filtered water 960ml — cold or room temperature
Simple Syrup (Make Ahead)
  • ½ cup Granulated sugar 100g
  • ½ cup Water 120ml — heat until dissolved, cool
For Serving
  • ½ cup Milk of choice Barista oat milk or whole milk — best options
  • 1–2 tbsp Simple syrup To taste
  • Coffee ice cubes Fill glass — see Notes for how to make

Equipment

  • 1 Large mason jar 32oz or larger — or use cold brew pitcher
  • 1 Fine mesh strainer For straining grounds
  • 1 Paper coffee filter Burr grinder — coarse setting
  • 1 Ice cube tray For coffee ice cubes — make night before
  • 2 Tall glasses For serving

Method
 

Make the Cold Brew
  1. Brew and Freeze: Brew a regular pot of coffee using your coffee maker — any roast or strength works perfectly. Let the coffee cool to room temperature for about 30 minutes, then carefully pour it into an ice cube tray and freeze overnight. These coffee cubes replace regular water ice in your glass — as they melt, they add coffee instead of water, keeping your drink perfectly strong until the very last sip. Zero dilution, every time!
    Prep for an easy iced coffee recipe showing frozen coffee cubes in a plastic tray on a light oak wood table
Make the Simple Syrup
  1. Dissolve the Sugar: Combine ½ cup of sugar and ½ cup of water in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir constantly until all the sugar is completely dissolved and no white granules remain — about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat, let it cool to room temperature, then transfer to a sealed jar and refrigerate. Never add granulated sugar directly to cold coffee — it simply sinks to the bottom without dissolving and every sip tastes different!
    Clear simple syrup in a glass jar for a cold coffee recipe on a light oak wood table.
Make the Cold Brew Concentrate
  1. Combine Coffee and Water: Add ¾ cup of coarsely ground coffee into a large mason jar or cold brew pitcher. Slowly pour 4 cups of cold filtered water over the grounds from the top. Gently stir to make sure every single ground is fully wet — check the bottom of the jar and stir any dry grounds you find there.
    Water and coffee grounds mixing in a mason jar for a cold brew iced coffee recipe on a light oak wood table.
  2. Steep: Seal the jar tightly with a lid or cover with plastic wrap and place it directly in the refrigerator. Let it steep for 12 to 24 hours depending on how strong you want it — 12 hours for a light mellow flavor, 16 hours for the standard balanced strength, and 20 to 24 hours for a strong concentrate that needs more dilution before serving. Do not shake or stir the jar at any point during steeping!
    A cold mason jar steeping an iced coffee without machine recipe on a light oak wood table.
Strain the Cold Brew
  1. Filter Carefully: Set a fine mesh strainer over a large bowl or pitcher and line the strainer with a paper coffee filter. Slowly pour the entire cold brew — grounds and all — into the strainer and let it drip through naturally. This takes about 5 minutes — be patient. Never press or squeeze the grounds. Pressing forces bitter compounds into your finished cold brew and ruins the smooth, mellow flavor you worked 12 to 24 hours to achieve. Transfer the strained concentrate to a clean sealed jar and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks.
    Dark cold brew dripping into a glass pitcher for the best homemade iced coffee on a light oak wood table.
Serve Your Iced Coffee
  1. Build the Glass: Fill a tall glass completely with coffee ice cubes — all the way to the top. Pour cold brew concentrate over the ice — use half a glass of concentrate and half a glass of barista oat milk or whole milk for the perfect balance. Add 1 tablespoon of simple syrup, stir well, and taste. Want it stronger? Add a little more concentrate. Prefer it lighter? Add a splash more milk. For a finishing touch, dust a small pinch of cinnamon over the top and serve immediately.
    A tall glass showing an iced coffee with milk swirling over frozen cubes on a light oak wood table.

Notes

  • Coarse grind is non-negotiable. Fine grounds over-extract during the long steep and produce bitter, muddy cold brew. Grind as coarse as sea salt. If using pre-ground coffee, buy specifically labeled "cold brew grind."
  • Coffee ice cubes — make the night before. Brew regular coffee, cool, freeze in ice cube trays overnight. Use instead of water ice — zero dilution as they melt.
  • Simple syrup only — not granulated sugar. Sugar does not dissolve in cold liquid. Simple syrup (equal parts sugar and water, heated until dissolved, then cooled) blends instantly into cold coffee.
  • Dilution ratio: Concentrate is strong — dilute 1:1 with cold water or milk before serving. For a stronger drink, use less dilution. For lighter, add more water.
  • Barista oat milk gives the creamiest non-dairy result. Regular oat milk separates in cold coffee.
  • Medium roast Arabica gives the best cold brew flavor — fruity, smooth, low bitterness. Dark roast works but can taste harsh cold.
  • 3 strength levels: Light (½ cup grounds + 4 cups water, 12 hrs). Standard (¾ cup grounds + 4 cups water, 16 hrs). Strong concentrate (1 cup grounds + 4 cups water, 24 hrs).
  • 4 methods are covered in the full article above — Classic, Cold Brew, Japanese Flash Brew, and Instant. This card covers Cold Brew only.
  • UK/Australia: "Mason jar" = kilner jar. "Barista oat milk" = same term used globally. "Fine mesh strainer" = sieve.
  • Nutrition values are estimates based on cold brew with barista oat milk and 1 tbsp simple syrup.