Iced coffee recipe: brew it over ice without a watery cup
Jack Donnell
At a glance
Make one glass of iced coffee by brewing hot coffee over a measured amount of ice. Get coffee and water quantities, pouring steps, and dilution tips.
Iced coffee is brewed coffee served cold over ice. This single-glass method brews a concentrated hot pour-over directly onto measured ice, which chills and dilutes the coffee together. It avoids adding an unmeasured handful of ice to an already full-strength mug.
This is a hot-brewed iced coffee, not cold brew. A paper filter and a heat-resistant server are useful because the recipe combines hot brewing with rapid cooling.
Iced coffee recipe
Yield: 1 drink · Prep: about 2 minutes · Cook/brew: about 3 minutes · Total: about 5 minutes
Use these quantities as home starting points and adjust to taste. Times are estimates; allow extra time for an espresso machine to warm up. US volume measures are approximate metric conversions.
Equipment
Pour-over dripper and filter, kettle, scale, heat-resistant server, and a 12–16 fl oz serving glass.
Ingredients
- 20 g medium-ground coffee (weigh for a repeatable result)
- 3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon (200 ml) hot brewing water
- 120 g ice, plus extra ice for serving if needed
- 2 tablespoons (30 ml) milk, optional
Instructions
- Prepare the filter. Rinse the filter in the dripper with separate hot water, then discard that rinse water. Put the measured 120 g of ice in a heat-resistant server beneath the dripper.
- Start the brew. Add the ground coffee to the filter. Pour about 40 ml of the measured brewing water over it to wet all the grounds, then pause for about 30 seconds.
- Finish the pour. Add the remaining 160 ml water slowly in two or three pours. Let it drain onto the ice, following your brewer’s normal technique.
- Mix and serve. Swirl the server to melt and distribute the ice. Pour into the serving glass, add fresh ice only if needed, and stir in the optional milk.
Tips and adjustments
Ice melts immediately?
Use the weighed quantity and a heat-resistant server. Extra ice at the end is fine, but a large unmeasured addition changes the concentration.
Brew runs very slowly?
Check the grinder setting and filter placement. Grinding much finer to compensate for less hot water can stall some drippers.
Want sweetness?
Dissolve a teaspoon of sugar in the hot brewed coffee, or stir syrup into the finished glass. Granulated sugar takes longer to dissolve after chilling.
Common questions
Can I use leftover coffee?
Yes, chilled brewed coffee can be served over ice, but it is a different method from this measured hot-brew-over-ice recipe. Expect different dilution.
How is iced coffee different from an iced latte?
This recipe uses brewed coffee and optional milk. An iced latte uses a small espresso base with a larger measured milk portion.
More coffee recipes
- Iced latte recipe with espresso and cold milk
- Vietnamese iced coffee recipe with a phin filter
- Coffee frappe recipe
Browse all coffee recipes or return to our recipe collection.
Illustrative stock photo: Pexels, used under the Pexels license.