One of those beverages that one could either be fussy about or very relaxed is coffee. While some people prefer to have their coffee roasted, brewed in some ways, others do not mind anyhow the coffee is made. If you belong in the category of those that are not fussed by coffee and you probably brewed your coffee in a large quantity, making you have leftover against the following morning or you don’t want to brew fresh coffee every morning and you wonder how you can store your coffee so you can enjoy later.
To refrigerate coffee isn’t usually the best thing to do because removing it in and from the refrigerator could cause condensation that will eventually spoil the coffee. The question you might want to ask is whether or not it is recommended to freeze your brewed coffee. Brewed coffee can be frozen. Previously, it was not recommended because a lot of people are of the idea that it is not a very good idea just the same reason why refrigerating your coffee should be avoided. However, the opinion has started to change with more people preferring to freeze coffees.
We advise you to continue reading this article to get the best method you can use to freeze your brewed coffee and get to enjoy that fresh coffee flavor without actually freshly brewing it.
Freezing Brewed Coffee
In our opinion, the best method to freeze brewed coffee is to try to make the coffee ice cubes and this is one of the most popular reasons why people try to get their coffee frozen. You could use the coffee ice cubes to cool drinks of ice coffee without trying to use water ice cubes to dilute the drink and you can successfully enjoy your coffee on a very hot day. Check below for how you can make your coffee ice cubes:
- You must have brewed your coffee using whatever method you want.
- Pour your coffee inside your ice tray.
- Use a lid to cover your ice tray. You should use your sealable lid’s ice tray to prevent some other flavors or odors from getting into the coffee cubes.
- Your coffee cubes should be allowed to freeze for around five hours until they are solid or you can leave them inside your freezer till you want to make use of them.
You can create various coffee ice cubes by using some variations, check out some of them below:
Vietnamese Coffee Ice Cubes: You will use your measuring cup, you will then combine sweetened condensed milk and coffee. Proceed to whisk your liquid together until they combine and then pour the liquid into your ice cube tray to be frozen.
Caramel Macchiato Ice Cubes: You will use your measuring cup, you will then combine milk, caramel, and coffee. Proceed to whisk your liquid together until they combine and then pour the liquid into your ice cube tray to freeze.
Mocha Ice Cubes: You will use your measuring cup, you will then combine chocolate milk, milk, and coffee to the ratio you prefer. Proceed to whisk your liquid together until they combine and then pour the liquid into your ice cube tray to freeze.
The other option you can use is to pour your cooled brew coffee into an air-tight container, endeavor to seal the container properly, and put it inside your freezer. In case you are worrying about how much of space that will take, after your coffee has cooled, carefully pour it into your sealable plastic bag (freezer-safe) and you can then lay the bag flat inside your freezer and you can place more coffee bags on it. It is either you reheat the coffee later or you use it in a wide range of other drinks like coffee granita and smoothies as well as in desserts.
Ensure that you label the plastic bag or freezer container with the coffee’s brewed date and frozen date in order to know when you can use it. Your coffee will stay fine in your freezer for about two months. Though you might take your coffee after this stipulated time, it would have lost much of the quality and flavor. You must ensure the coffee is properly stored in your freezer and that it is well protected from some other flavors and odors within the freezer. It will not be nice when you smell the flavor of chicken curry in your coffee just because they were both frozen beside each other.
Thawing Frozen Coffee
The method to use to thaw your coffee depends on how to use the coffee. It is not recommended to thaw coffee ice cubes. All you have to do is to drop them into your drink and you can enjoy it from there. You can also decide to allow your coffee to defrost inside your fridge overnight for you to enjoy it the following day. The coffee will naturally thaw this way and it will not go beyond the temperature offered by the fridge. You can also thaw your frozen coffee in the microwave if you don’t wish to be delayed by the thawing time it will use overnight. All you need is to put it in your safe container before turning your microwave to defrost function. After the coffee has turned to liquid, proceed to use the microwave’s heating function to warm it. There are a series of ways you can use to thaw your coffee but those ways all depends on how it will be used and also how soon it will be used.
Things To Do With Frozen Coffee
In case there are some frozen coffees in your freezer and you are not sure of how to use them, check below for some ideas of how to use your coffee without allowing it to waste.
Watering Your Plants
Coffee can be used to water your acid-loving plants including azaleas and orchids to give them an awesome growth-boost. Use diluted coffee to water the plants every week or two to give them extra nutrition. If, however, the leaves begin to turn brown or yellow, this could be that the soil may be too acidic.
Coffee Smoothie
You could take your coffee with a healthy smoothie in the morning. All you need to do is to blend milk, one cup of yogurt, bananas, coffee ice cubes together to get some tasty treat. Add vanilla, cocoa powder, or cacao nibs for some extra flavor.
Baking With Coffee
Coffee can be used as a replacement for water when you are baking. You can try to use coffee in the brownie mix and a cake. Coffee gives a deeper and richer flavor than what water will give. Coffee can also be used in frosting and icing for cupcakes and cookies. We have so many recipes of dessert that you can use coffee in and having your coffee stored in your freezer makes that very easy.
Cooking With Coffee
You can use your coffee to marinate your steak. You can also cook the early morning oats that you will eat in some coffee if you want to be more adventurous. You can also use coffee as your substitute for some acidic ingredients like vinegar and you can also use your coffee in making yourself a caffeinated barbecue sauce or some chili.
Related Questions
Freezing Brewed Coffee
You are safe to freeze your brewed coffee and it depends on how you want to use later use the coffee. The best possible way to get your coffee frozen is to proceed to pour it inside your ice cube tray. The cubes could be used by adding to a drink for a rich flavor of coffee or to make your iced coffee. Ensure to tightly seal your coffee inside your freezer to prevent flavors and odors from some other foods stored inside the freezer. You could be creative with how you use the frozen coffee.
Can you place hot coffee in the fridge to make iced coffee?
It is a bit easy to make iced coffee and it can be made ahead so that it will be convenient for you. All you need to do is to brew your coffee and pour it in a pitcher. Leave it inside the fridge overnight or for a few hours. You could also decide to pour your leftover in ice cubes before you use the frozen cubes later in your drink to add you a flavor of coffee and to also cool your drink without using water to dilute it.
Can I keep coffee grounds in the fridge?
This is a very big topic to examine when considering coffee. For you to be on a safe side, keep your coffee grounds inside your pantry and not the fridge. Though you are to keep coffee grounds somewhere cool, allowing it to be in the fridge or freezer may create a bit much moisture inside the package and this could destroy the coffee grounds’ quality completely.
Can I refrigerate brewed coffee?
You are not advised to refrigerate your brewed coffee. However, you could try it if you want but ensure that the coffee is kept in your tightly sealed airtight container. You will do this to make sure that your coffee is not contaminated by other flavors within the fridge. Brewed coffee should only be kept in your fridge for about one week before you throw it way.
