Cold brew, also known as “toddy” coffee could quite possibly be the best American invention that no one uses. This method produces coffee that tastes great more than a week after brewed, has 60% less acidity than traditional brewed coffee. And once finished, this takes less than 30 seconds to make into a savory iced or even hot drink.
Amazing right? And once you try iced coffee prepared using cold brew, you will completely understand why my friends & I use this as a primary means of coffee during the summer. Take 10 seconds to grab coffee from the fridge, another 15 to add creamer and sugar, and bam – the most heavenly drink in seconds.
To start: you take 1 pound of coffee ground for drip brew (or courser if you want to get wild). Then you place the grounds in 1 gallon of filtered room temperature water. Let that steep for 12-24 hours (I think 18-20 is perfect). After draining, using below method, and you then refrigerate. This honestly takes about 2-4 minutes of actual work.
It’s easiest to purchase a Toddy Press to drain and store cold brew. They’re around $30 (available on COFFEEwithChuck.net) and come with drain-able plastic container, filter, and a glass jar for storage. But if you’re cheaper than lazy – you can just put the grounds in a clean pillow case, tie a not, and place that in a pot or container. Although, it will be a pain-in-the-butt the next day when you’re holding the pillow case for 10-15 minutes above the container to drain. (Not that I have ever – er – tried this method!)
Lastly: pour that beautiful dark concentrated coffee over ice, add Trader Joe’s Soy Creamer (my favorite because it is naturally sweet and slightly nutty) and a little Monin cane sugar.
For proof, visit me any day this summer, especially right after lunch. This great American tradition hasn’t actually become an American tradition. Yet. But it should be.
The Semi is the weekly school paper for Fuller Theological Seminary. Please let me know what you think, and what topics you’d be interested in for future articles. I love suggestions!