Iced Mocha

The creamy, chocolaty iced mocha latte is one of the most refreshing coffee drinks around! Here’s how to whip one up at home.

Here’s a coffee drink that’s chocolaty, refreshing, and absolutely irresistible: try the Iced Mocha! This one is so deliciously easy to make at home, you’ll never need to go to a coffeeshop again. Just four ingredients make a frothy, creamy drink that’s luxuriously sippable, balancing bitter espresso with real chocolate chips and frothy milk. Even better: it’s easier than a classic hot mocha to make at home! Let’s get brewing.

Variation: Try the ever popular Iced White Chocolate Mocha!

What’s in an iced mocha?

An iced mocha is a coffee drink made with espresso, milk and chocolate, served over ice. It’s a variation on the hot mocha or mocha latte, a drink made with espresso, steamed milk and chocolate. There are various ways to add chocolate into an iced mocha. The Starbucks iced mocha uses a chocolate syrup.

In our recipe testing, we found that purchased chocolate syrup can taste artificial and not chocolaty enough. So why not use…real chocolate? This iced mocha features chocolate chips with creamy milk and simple syrup. Here are the ingredients you’ll need:

• Espresso
• Milk (use oat milk for vegan or dairy-free; it’s the best non-dairy milk for frothing)
• Simple syrup
• Chocolate chips

How to make the espresso

The most involved part of an iced mocha? Making the espresso! There are several ways to make a great cup of espresso at home. The best tasting is an espresso machine, but not everyone has one of those! Here are the next best options:

• Espresso machine: The flavor of the espresso with a countertop espresso machine is the best there is. Go to How to Make Espresso.
• Manual espresso maker: The next best option? A small manual espresso maker: it’s cheaper and portable!
• French press: Making French press espresso is a great option using a tool you might already have on hand.
• Moka Pot (Bialetti): Try Moka Pot coffee for a dark, espresso-like coffee: it’s like a mix between drip coffee and espresso, and works well here.

How to make an iced mocha: in a jar!

The iced mocha is easier to make at home than a standard mocha, because you don’t have to steam the milk. Instead, you can simply froth the milk by shaking it in a jar! The jar shaking method also works for melting the chocolate. Here’s an outline of what to do (or jump to the recipe below):

• Shake the hot espresso and chocolate chips in a covered jar. This melts the chocolate into the coffee. Pour it into the ice-filled glass.
• Shake the milk and simple syrup in the same jar. Rinse it out first, then shake the milk and syrup until frothy.

That’s it! The jar makes a genius tool for whipping up a killer iced mocha at home. Let us know if you try it and what you think! (Also let us know your favorite homemade espresso method.)

More mochas and iced coffee drinks

There are so many tasty espresso drinks similar to the iced mocha, including variations on the mocha! Here are a few to try:

• Try our master method for How to Make a Mocha, or opt for a Mocha Cappuccino
• Go for an icy Mocha Frappe or Frozen Coffee
• Make a simple Espresso Tonic
• Opt for a Perfect Iced Latte or Iced Vanilla Latte
• Try an Iced Cappuccino or the Starbucks special, a Iced Brown Sugar Oat Milk Espresso

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How to Make a Mocha

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Mocha Frappe

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Perfect Iced Latte

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Frozen Coffee

This iced mocha recipe is…

Vegetarian and gluten-free. For vegan, plant-based and dairy-free, use oat milk.

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