Iced Thai Tea

I love Thai Tea.  The warm and spicy vanilla-y aromas, creaminess, and delicious taste make Thai Tea very distinct and super refreshing.  Thai Tea will also definitely cool down your burning mouth when indulging in super spicy Thai food.

The issue I have when buying Thai Tea is that it is usually wayyyy too sweet for me.  I generally dilute it down with water to make it less sweet, but I feel like it compromises the quality and weakens the tea taste.  A few weeks ago, I was browsing through the tea aisle of my local Asian Grocery store and was drawn to the smell of the Pantai Thai Tea Mix bags that were hanging from the shelves.  The Thai tea mix was super inexpensive so I threw it in my shopping cart, picked up a small container of half and half, and picked up a can of grass jelly..because…why not?  I experimented a few times and played with the measurements and found that it was super easy to make and I was able to control the amount of sugar to make the Thai Tea perfect for my family and me.  It also made the kitchen smell really good like a vanilla and pumpkin-spiced scented candle has been gently burning in our house for hours.

For this Thai Tea recipe, I added some herbal grass jelly for added texture and taste for the kids to have a milk tea experience at home.  It is also the perfect summer drink/snack for the entire family.

Ingredients (Makes 4 cups):

1 1/4 cups of Pantai Thai Tea Mix
4 cups of boiling water
1 cup of half and half
1/3 cup of granulated sugar
8 ounces of canned grass jelly, finely diced
ice

Steps:

Brew Thai Tea – In a large heatproof measuring cup or stockpot, add Pantai Thai Tea Mix and boiling water.  Stir and steep for at least 30 minutes.  After 30 minutes, strain the tea leaves into another large heatproof measuring cup. Add sugar and mix until the sugar is dissolved.  Cool tea for an additional hour.

Make Iced Thai Tea – Fill a 16-ounce or 20-ounce glass cup with 8 ounces of tea.  Add 2 tablespoons of diced grass jelly.  Pour in 1/4 cup of half and half.  Fill the glass cup with ice.

Tips:

• You can substitute boba/tapioca pearls for grass jelly.
• You can leave grass jelly if you don’t want it in the drink.
• I like Thai tea less sweet, but if you want the tea to be sweeter, use 1/2+ cups of sugar.