Cold Foam

sidra_naz · May 10, 2022, 6:35am

Cold foam is nonfat milk that has been frothed to provide a foamy topping for cold coffee beverages such as iced coffee, cold brew, iced cappuccinos, and nitro coffee. Frothy toppings like those on lattes and cappuccinos are replicated here, but they’re kept frozen so they don’t melt when they touch the drink.

cold Foam

What is Cold Foam?

When it comes to cold foam, it’s a hot beverage trend right now, but if you’re a little late to the party, you could be feeling a little dizzy and confused—and not just because you’re under-caffeinated.

To begin, let us go back to the beginning: Because the frothed milk used to form lovely images and give lattes a smooth, creamy texture doesn’t work well with cold coffee, the genesis of this popular new coffee topping may be explained. This made iced drinks envious…until the arrival of cold foam.

What precisely is “cold foam,” and how is it used? Cold foam is just milk that has been frothed to a hard yet oh-so-fluffy foam (imagine stiff peaks) without the use of steam or any other type of heat.

This “wizardry,” you question, “what is it?” Both cold foam and microfoam are made by stirring milk’s naturally occurring proteins, causing them to separate and create bubbles. Aerating milk with steam creates microfoam, while the cold foam is made by vigorously shaking the milk. The two are quite different in terms of temperature.

How to Make Cold Foam?

Making cold foam at home couldn’t be easier with these comprehensive instructions. Here are three simple methods you may manufacture your own so you can enjoy it in your favorite cold brews! It’s a lot simpler than you would expect!

Make Cold Foam with a Hand Frother

It’s a breeze to use a hand frother! A portable frother may be used to froth milk or a dairy-free replacement in a glass measuring cup.
Just a few minutes of frothing may make a big difference in the milk’s height in this before-and-after comparison.
Fill the glass measuring cup halfway with milk or a dairy-free substitute.
For 2-3 minutes, use a hand frother to froth the milk.
Pour it over a cup of iced tea or a cup of your favorite cold beverage.

Make Cold Foam with a French Press

Although it requires more effort, this is probably my preferred approach even though it is just as quick and easy as using a portable frother.
Making a French press coffee is as simple as pouring in your milk or a dairy-free substitute and replacing the lid. Once foamy, pump for another minute or two.
Using a french press, add milk or an alternate dairy-free product.
After approximately 1 minute of pumping, the french press should be at your preferred frothiness.
Pour it over a cup of iced tea or a cup of coffee.

Make Cold Foam with a Milk Frother

Because I possess a milk frother, this is the approach I utilize most often. Using this method is simple, and the results are consistently excellent. Use your milk frother to froth your milk or a dairy-free substitute.
Press the Start button after setting the dial to “cold foam” or “cold stir” and turn it to the desired setting. It’s done!
In the milk frother, add milk or a dairy-free substitute.
Press the start button after setting the dial to “cold foam” or “cold stir.”
Fill your favorite cold beverage with it.

Summary:

Making Starbucks cold foam at home requires a unique tool: a portable milk frother. It’s the ideal tool for generating rich, fluffy foam for just $10.90. If you don’t have a milk frother, a French press is your next best option. In a tall cup, froth skims milk and simple syrup.

What’s the Taste of Cold Foam?

If you like the luscious smoothness of a well-frothed whole-milk latte, you may be disappointed with chilly foam. First of all, the stuff doesn’t mix well with cold drinks (hence the layered look), so it won’t make the drink taste milkier.

Unless you like nonfat milk, you probably won’t like it all that much. It’s watery and doesn’t taste like much (despite its sumptuous appearance).

When it comes to making cold brew, you’re better off using half and half instead of nonfat milk if you think it’s an abomination (raises hand). Despite this, an iced latte with whole milk and cold foam may be enjoyed by anybody.

The cold foam only adds a posh aspect to the drink. If you like your coffee with soy or almond milk instead of dairy milk, we’re sorry to say that there is no cold foam for you.

Why Do We Need Cold Foam?

If you like frothed milk, a simple experiment will show you quickly what cold foam is for. Try adding that deliciously thick and creamy steamed milk to your cold brew and watch what happens.

It’s not latte art, though. Steamed milk’s microfoam will dissolve into a cold beverage just like ordinary milk, so the layered texture you get from a latte or cappuccino will be gone.

Cold foam is a workaround that makes it possible to put a dollop of foam on top of an iced drink. This creamy topping won’t mix with the coffee, but it can be enjoyed on its own, and people who like it will tell you that it looks good and has a nice texture.

What Will You Need In Making Cold Foam?

Ingredient	Explanation
Coconut Milk	If you’re lactose-intolerant, I enjoy Thai Kitchen’s carton of coconut milk! Whole milk has the fattest content, so that’s the best choice if you’re using it, although dairy-free cream or this carton of coconut milk works wonderfully!
French Press	The French press maybe my favorite approach. A similar one may be seen here!
Hand Frother	Use a portable milk frother like this one to make your milk frothy! It’s cheap and simple to use.
Milk Further	This is the milk frother I’ve been using for a few years now. If you use it every day instead of going to a coffee shop, I believe it’s worth the price!

Starbucks Cold Foam

The Reserve Roastery in Seattle, which opened in 2014, was the first Starbucks location to offer cold foam. The coffee-spiced foam was originally served on top of the Americano Con Crema wine.

For an additional 50 cents, Starbucks now provides cold foam as a topping for several of its beverages. Among Starbucks’ cold foam beverages are the following:

Brews that are best served cold
Nitro cold brew
Lattes with ice cubes
Mochas iced with whipped cream
A cup of iced coffee
Espresso iced over ice.
Latte options include Iced London Fog tea and chai matcha tea, as well as the more traditional Iced London Fog tea and matcha.
The dragon drink, the purple drink, or the pink drink

Drinks Made with Cold Foam

Any iced tea or coffee may be frothed up with cold foam! To add some sweetness to your drink, top it up with some thick and somewhat sweet foam:

Coffee iced
Cold-brew coffee
Cappuccino with ice
A cup of coffee with a straw (tastes like nitro coffee)
Vanilla latte or latte with ice cream
Iced mocha or iced white chocolate mocha
Chai latte in an iced form
Espresso iced over ice.
Matcha latte in an iced form

Is It Only Starbucks that Offers Cold Foam?

There are several areas across the globe including in the United States where foamy milk is served over iced coffee or espresso. Some people call them “iced cappuccinos,” a beverage that wouldn’t be conceivable if it weren’t for the presence of cold frothy milk.

There are several iced drinks at Costa Coffee, the world’s second-largest coffee chain, that is topped with “whipped milk.”

And it’s just becoming more popular. Cold foam cappuccinos with ice are becoming more popular in small coffee shops around the US, from Sycamore Grounds Coffee House in Texas to Sweet Habit in Astoria, New York, run by Greek immigrants.

There is a “milk froth” on top of Gong Cha’s teas consisting of whipped milk and cream and butter according to one account. Of course, the foam-optimizing lid is absent in the majority of these models, which rather negates the point of the design.

Cold Foam Starbucks Recipe

Here’s the Starbucks recipe for a frothy topping for iced coffee and cold brew:

Ingredients

A quarter-cup of skim milk
1 tbsp. of pure sugar
The vanilla extract, 1 dash (optional)
Using a French press or a milk frother is an option.

Instructions

If you’re using vanilla extract, add it to the milk and simple syrup in a pitcher or small container. Take care not to immerse the milk frother any further than necessary.
Using a frother, begin to froth the milk until it begins to thicken, and then gently move the wand toward the milk’s surface. The foam should be thick and stable after 15 to 20 seconds of frothing. Mix in with your iced coffee or cold brew.

Outline:

For the cold foam to be as thick and creamy as possible, Starbucks baristas use a special blade to combine nonfat milk. If you want to make your own flavored cold foam beverages, you may add flavoring to the milk before it’s frothed.

What is the Best Milk for Cold Foam?

Full-fat milk may seem like the best option for creating the creamiest, richest cold foam. Whole milk or heavy cream may be used in several home-cooked meals.

Then what happened? Cold foam made with skim milk is the thickest and strongest. That’s because it has a higher protein content than 2 percent whole milk.

For a latte, on the other hand, whole milk is the ideal option. Why? When it comes to microfoam texture in the latte art, the lipids maintain the bubbles tiny enough for the greatest results.

This means that any recipe for cold foam that calls for heavy cream or whole milk should be avoided at all costs. The best option is to use skim milk.

How to Serve Cold Foam?

Serve over a cup of iced tea or coffee. We enjoy it with our cold brew or this delicious iced matcha latte!
Before preparing your cold foam, you may add a teaspoon of vanilla extract and a sweetener of your choice (maple syrup, honey, or simple syrup).
To find the finest dairy-free creamer for you, you’ll have to experiment with several brands and determine which one works best for your needs. This bottle of coconut milk has always frothed beautifully for me.

Hot Milk Made with Cold Foam

Frothed milk is used in a lot of coffee and tea drinks. Once you know how to do this, you can make these drinks like a barista:

Hot Drinks	Cold Foam method
Latte	The traditional coffee drink! Try this perfect latte from the cafe.
Cappuccino	Just the right amount of milk foam and bitter espresso.
Mocha or Cappuccino with Mocha	It’s chocolatey and has a fluffy milk foam on top.
Macchiato	The best drink is a shot of espresso with a layer of foam on top.
Good Tea Latte	In 5 minutes, you can make a tea latte that tastes just like the ones at your favorite coffee shop.
Chai Latte or a Vegan Chai Latte	Everyone’s favorite, made with spices from masala chai.
Vanilla-Café Chai	A warm drink with vanilla flavor and just the right amount of foam.
Dark Chai Latte	A shot of espresso is added to a tea latte.

Frequently Asked Questions

Here are some FAQs related to cold foam:

1. What’s the deal with cold foam?

Low-fat milk is used to provide a texture and stiffness to the foam. This milk produces the finest froth and retains the milkiest texture. The froth may be found in a variety of cold brews and iced coffee beverages.

2. How similar is cold foam to whipped cream?

Unlike heated steamed milk froth, the cold foam may be poured and is like a cold variation of the froth that is used in lattes. Compared to regular whipped cream, whipped cream is denser and may be molded into any desired form. That’s not what I thought it was. Both are produced by inhaling small bubbles of air into milk or heavy cream.

3. What is the effect of cold foam on a beverage?

Iced tea lattes, for example, taste excellent with the cool foam as a creamy garnish. Cold foam is best made using nonfat milk since it has a greater protein content than full-fat and two-percent milk.

4. What does it taste like to drink cold foam?

Because it’s an official Dunkin’ drink, you may ask for “The Charli Cold Foam” while ordering. “The Charli Cold Foam” is a caramel-flavored cold brew coffee topped with cinnamon sugar and delicious cold foam. This drink, unlike “The Charli,” has no milk in it since the chilly foam represents the dairy.

5. Can almond milk be used to make cold foam?

There are 40 calories and an abundance of taste in this non-dairy, almond milk cold brew-topped beverage from Starbucks.

6. Is cold foam better for you than whip cream in terms of nutrition?

In contrast to whipped cream, Cold Foam is made using nonfat milk. Because it doesn’t include the calories and sugars of typical whipped cream, the texture is reminiscent of a delicate meringue.

7. Is it ok to drink cold foam?

Even though they are tasty and a pleasant treat, they have just whipped cream and some flavor, which is not the healthiest option. In addition, adding cold foam to a drink adds $6-$7 to the final cost.

8. Is the cold foam at Starbucks sweet?

While it doesn’t include any cream, it has a creamy, somewhat sweet taste, and floats to the top of the cup interestingly. Cold foam drinks are supplied with a unique top without a straw so that you may get the most froth out of every sip.

9. Do you know how to slurp cold foam?

You get a taste of the chilly foam in each sip since it rests at the top of your drink. It’s not going to work if you want to sip your iced coffee and cold foam with a straw. Starbucks is launching a new cover specifically designed for the cold foam to guarantee that you receive the full creamy experience as intended.

10. What about hot coffee with cold foam?

Adding cold milk froth to hot coffee poses no danger. Coffee connoisseurs warn against diluting freshly made coffee with cold milk since it might dilute the taste. Milk should be warmed regardless of whether it has froth or not, according to their advice.

Conclusion

Cold foam is delicious and pleasant to savor. To give hot espresso and coffee beverages more body and taste, frothy layers are sometimes added. However, adding steamed milk to chilled drinks elevates their warmth, raising the potential for bacteria growth. Because of this, many coffee shops will refuse to create iced cappuccinos for customers. Iced cappuccinos and frothy iced lattes are made feasible by cold foam.