Thai Iced Tea

Submitted by Sharlene~W

"There are almost as many ways of making Thai tea as there are Thai restaurants. I love the richness the cardomom, cloves and cinnamon add. You can also skip the sugar and use sweetened condensed milk in place of the half-and-half. No other tea will substitute for Thai tea--you can find Thai tea in Asian markets, or if you are really lucky, in the Asian section of your grocery store. Prep time does not include chill time."

 

• Ready In: 20mins
• Ingredients: 7
• Yields: 7 cups
• Serves: 6

ingredients

• 6 cups water
• 1 cup thai tea leaves
• 4 cardamom pods, crushed
• 1 whole clove, crushed
• 1⁄4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup half-and-half

directions

1. Bring 6 cups of water to a boil.
2. Stir in tea leaves, cardamom pods, crushed clove and cinnamon.
3. Cover.
4. Remove mixture from heat and let steep 5 minutes.
5. Pour tea through a fine wire-mesh strainer into a pitcher, discarding tea leaves (caution--don't pour hot tea into a glass pitcher as it may break).
6. Add sugar, stirring until dissolved; cool.
7. Cover and chill 2 hours.
8. Serve in a glass over crushed ice.
9. Top with 3 to 4 tablespoons half-and-half.

Reviews

[HeatherFeather]

Wonderful! This exactly the same tea I have been served in Thai recipes and have tried to duplicate for some time. Really delicious and unique. The color is gorgeous - the orangey color of the tea topped with the creamy half n half makes a striking presentation in a clear glass. Note: Only Thai tea leaves will produce the unique color and taste. I found mine in an Asian market in a giant bag, but have also seen them for sale in online asian markets.

 

[meganmcartwright]

Very good. I would recommend making twice the default amount listed here (6 servings), as it'll be consumed very quickly. I had great results with substituting sweetened condensed milk, ~2.5 Tbs. per serving, and reducing the sugar to ~5 Tbs. for six servings. This drink is absolutely necessary to survive Tom Yum Gai or Koong, the famous Thai Hot & Sour Soups.

 

[shimmerchk]

Just a little note, intead of adding sugar and half and half, a lot of Thai cooks (including my mom) just top this with sweetened condensed milk. I don't add cinnamon to my recipe, but otherwise it is the same as this one and is really DELICIOUS!

 

[Jonathan Melendez]

I used strong black tea as one reviewer had suggested and it was amazing! It's a great recipe that I can't wait to make again.

 

[Thai Iced Tea]

Very detailed recipe. Here's another video recipe of Thai Iced Tea http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OlxX6jQ84Q0