A simple, super easy recipe for Cold Brew Tea that uses only two ingredients to produce a mild, sweet, clean tasting, less bitter tea.

Want to save this recipe?
Enter your email & I'll send it to your inbox. Plus, get great new recipes from me every week!
What is cold brewing?
Cold brewing utilizes cold or cool water to extract flavor (eg. coffee or tea) slowly over a period of time.
It is also known as cold pressing or cold extraction.
Using cooler temperature water reduces the amount of tannins (the polyphenols that give tea its bitterness) that are extracted, which gives the tea a milder, sweet, less bitter flavor, similar to making cold brew coffee.
Unlike tea espresso which uses hot water and pressure to extract the tea quickly, cold brewing tea is a gentle process of extracting the tea flavor slowly.
Why you'll love this recipe
This recipe for Cold Brew Tea is:
Easy to make: just combine two ingredients together and let it steep over time in the fridge.
Uses only two ingredients: your choice of tea leaves and cool temperature water or cold water.
Requires no heat: no kettle, no boiling required!
Versatile: you can do this with any type of tea, blend of teas, herbal/floral teas, and with loose leaf tea or with teabags, which makes this method of brewing tea truly accessible!

Ingredients you'll need
- loose tea leaves or tea bags: your choice
- water: you can use room temperature or cold water; not hot water as we're not doing a hot brew tea.
Equipment you'll need
- mason jar or glass vessel for storing the tea: I prefer glass as it is inert and doesn't absorb any odor, however, you could also use a stainless steel pitcher
If you have a tea infuser, you can use that, but it is not entirely necessary. However, if using loose leaf tea, you'll also need a small sieve or strainer.
How to make cold brewed tea
Add the tea bags or looseleaf tea into a mason glass jar or vessel.
Pour the water over the tea, cover with a lid and give it a little shake.
Place the jar into the fridge and let it steep for a minimum of 12 hours or overnight.

Types of tea to cold brew
You can do this with many types of tea, including:
- black tea
- oolong tea
- green tea
- herbal/floral tea (eg. osmanthus, chrysanthemum)
Tea bags or loose leaf?
Tea bags are convenient since you can easily remove and discard them afterwards.
With loose leaf tea, you will need to strain the tea through a sieve before enjoying.


Water temperature
The temperature of the water will correlate to how long you'll need to steep the tea.
Brewing tea with hot water = quick, 1-3 minutes steeping time.
Colder water = longer steeping time, so if you're using cold water, plan for at least 12 hours or overnight.
Room temperature water = 8-10 hours or longer.
Ways to use cold brew tea
Use the cold brew tea in iced tea drinks such as Iced Lavender Blueberry Jasmine Tea, jasmine milk tea, or bubble tea.
Or use cold brew green tea as a base for jasmine tea sorbet, shaved ice or poached pears.
Add a little sparkling water for fizziness and fruit such as strawberry and lychee for a refreshing fruit tea.
How to store
Store the cold tea in the fridge for up to 1 week.
Freeze the tea into ice cubes for iced tea.
Expert tips
The cold brew process won't apply to powdered tea, such as matcha or hojicha tea as those teas are technically fine particles that are suspended in water and should be prepared just prior to serving.
For even more stronger tea flavor, you can freeze the cold tea into ice cubes, and then add the frozen tea into your cold brew tea to make cold brew iced tea.
Don't throw out the tea bags/tea leaves -- re-steep the same leaves (cover with cold water) for another round of extraction, although it will be less strong.
You'll want to brew the tea stronger than how you'd typically enjoy it -- I prefer mine on the stronger side as I usually add ice, but you can adjust the amount of tea to your strength preference.
Easily scale up the amount to make more and keep it in the fridge for up to 1 week.
Other tea recipes you may like
Did you make this recipe?
Let me know if you try out this recipe -- I love seeing your creations! Tag me on Instagram @siftandsimmer and be sure to leave me a comment/rating below!
Cold Brew Tea
For accuracy and precision in baking recipes, use weight (metric) measurements when available.
Ingredients
- 3 tea bags or 3 tablespoon loose leaf tea if you prefer less strong tea, reduce the amount
- 2 C cold water
Instructions
- Add the tea bags or looseleaf tea into a mason glass jar or vessel.
- Pour the water over the tea, cover with a lid and give it a little shake.
- Place the jar into the fridge and let it steep for a minimum of 12 hours or overnight.
Nutrition
The nutritional information provided should be considered as approximate and is not guaranteed. Please use your best judgment to ensure food is safely prepared and/or a good fit for your diet.
Dawn
Only two ingredients? That's awesome! Such a refreshing drink to enjoy this summer when I want tea but something cold! I could see me making this on repeat over the next few months. 🙂
Michelle
Thanks Dawn, it really is a fool-proof way to make tea!
Raymund | angsarap.net
Michelle, I love how simple and versatile this cold brew tea recipe is, plus its perfect for those hot summer days.
Michelle
Hi Raymund, it is so refreshing for hot summer days, and love that it is so hands-off! 🙂
Tasia
I always love the idea of iced tea, but find most too bitter for my taste. This cold brew tea is perfection!! Not bitter at all. Thanks for introducing me to a new one Michelle!
Michelle
It's the perfect way to make a less bitter tea! Thanks Tasia 🙂
David @ Spiced
Interesting! I'm familiar with cold brew coffee, and I've made batches on several occasions. However, I've never tried cold brew tea. I'll have to try this for summer! A good mint sweet tea tastes great on a hot day...so we'll try it cold-brew style next time.
Michelle
Yes, mint sweet tea sounds so delicious! Thanks David, it'll be your go-to method for summer 🙂