Coffee, Unsweet Ice Tea Recipe

1. Combine coffee and water

In a large jar or pitcher, add 1 cup coarsely ground coffee. Pour 4 cups cold filtered water over the grounds, ensuring all grounds are saturated. Stir gently to combine.

2. Steep

Cover the jar and let steep at room temperature or in the refrigerator for 12–18 hours, depending on desired strength. Longer steeping produces a stronger concentrate.

3. Filter

After steeping, strain the coffee through a fine mesh sieve lined with cheesecloth, a coffee filter, or a fine paper filter into a clean container. Press or rinse the grounds to extract remaining liquid, then discard grounds and filter.

4. Dilute to serve

The resulting cold brew is a concentrate. For an unsweet iced coffee, dilute concentrate with cold water 1:1 (equal parts concentrate and water) or to taste. Chill before serving if not already cold.

5. Brew

Bring 4 cups water to a full boil. Remove from heat and add 4 black tea bags (or equivalent loose-leaf in an infuser). Steep 4–5 minutes for a standard-strength tea; steep 6–8 minutes for a stronger brew suitable for iced tea.

6. Cool quickly

Remove tea bags or strain out leaves. To avoid dilution, cool the tea quickly by placing the pot in an ice bath for 10–15 minutes or transfer to a shallow container and refrigerate until cold.

7. Adjust and chill

Taste the chilled tea and adjust strength by adding a little cold water if too strong. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.

8. Fill serving glasses with ice (about 1 cup ice per glass). For iced coffee: pour diluted cold brew over ice. For iced tea: pour chilled black tea over ice. Garnish with optional lemon wedge for tea. Serve unsweetened; provide sweeteners separately if desired.