Thai Tea Recipe {Make this Now}
Easy Thai tea recipe tips are below. Also, we’ve updated this Thai iced tea recipe with an organic tea bag option and with coconut milk!
Thai Tea in Restaurants
During one of the conference days in Chicago, we escaped out to lunch at a local Thai restaurant to explore more of the city’s culinary offerings. As always, we’ll try to order something new and different. When we’re at a Thai restaurant, it normally involves ordering our favorites. This includes a curry dish, one noodle dish and an appetizer. On top of that, we must always have Thai iced tea. Because how can we NOT have Thai iced tea when we eat Thai food? It’s one of those decant “dessert” drinks that helps soothe the burn when we overload on too much of Thai spice.
Authentic Thai Tea Recipe
Years ago, my Auntie Chung was telling me how easy it was to make Thai iced tea. She had worked in an Asian restaurant and one of the most popular items on the entire menu was Thai iced tea. She proceeded to tell me exactly how to make it and how profitable it was for restaurants to make. I didn’t care too much about the profitability of Thai iced tea. But rather, I’m more interested on how easily it was made and why we didn’t make it more often. The version we have is as authentic as what most Thai restaurants in America are making. Our version really does taste like what we have ordered at most Thai restaurants.
Watch the video for making Thai Iced Tea:
Fast forward about 7 years later as I’m sitting in Chicago eating Thai food and sipping my Thai iced tea. My brain light bulb pops on: “We need to make Thai tea! Auntie told me how easy it was to make and why haven’t we made it before?” Here you have it. All I can say is that if you’re a fan of Thai iced tea at $3.25 a pop, then you must make this now.
Save Money by Making Thai Tea at Home
Not only will you be saving a big wad of cash on a yearly basis, but you’ll also have a bottomless pitcher of Thai tea. This huge party pitcher will allow you to savor, sip and share with friends. This Thai iced tea recipe is so easy. Pretty much every YouTube video you see uses the same brand and shows the same steps. As far as the creamy layer goes, many people use different ingredients such as half and half or whole milk. Other options include coconut milk, sweetened condensed milk and even low-fat milk. Choose your creamy poison.
How to Make Easy Thai Iced Tea. Photos in Recipe Box Below:
How to make Restaurant Thai Iced Tea at Home
The only difference in our Thai tea recipe when compared to most restaurant versions is that we’re using a little less sugar. But really, once you get the basics down on making Thai iced tea you can customize the flavors and concentration the way you like. It’s one of those recipes that is great no matter how you make it because it’s just so decadent and satisfying.
One of the key factors in making it like the restaurants is using authentic Thai tea mixes. These Thai tea mixes are normally dyed with yellow food coloring (look on the package) and that’s what gives it it’s bright orange color. Also, Thai tea has a vanilla aroma to it. So if you want to have the brilliant orange color and flavors like most of the Thai restaurants, then this is one of the brands of Thai tea to buy: Cha Thai Tea Mix.
There’s other brands of Thai tea mixes to buy, some we’ve loved, and others seemed a bit flat. Because they are imported, and it seems like everyone is having supply issues, sometimes we have to switch between what’s available. We’ve tried as many as we can get our hands on to find you the best Thai tea mixes to buy, Here’s another great one we love: Cha Tra Mue Brand (Number One) Thai Tea Mix.
Best Cloth Tea Filter
Here’s a re-usable cloth tea filter that can also be helpful as well. We usually make large batches, so we just simmer the tea leaves in the hot water.
How to Make All-Natural or Organic Thai Iced Tea
Using organic black tea bags instead of the Thai tea mix: We also tested another version with pekong black tea bags and the flavor was still great. Only thing missing was the brilliant orange color and the subtle hint of sweet vanilla. If you want an all Natural Thai tea blend, here’s one we’ve found.
Either way, find your way into the kitchen to make yourself a batch of this restaurant style thai iced tea that’s homemade. Make yourself a big batch asap. We’re not joking. Make this now and let us know what you think. And remember, make it your own and play with the different levels of sweetness and creaminess.
Thanks Auntie Chung for the homemade Thai iced tea inspiration.
-diane
What if Thai Tea is too Bitter?
Sometimes the thai tea mixture can be too bitter for some peoples taste. Everyone has a different level of taste sensitivity and thus, the astringency of the tea can be overwhelming. So how to make thai tea less bitter? It’s easy. Here’s a few suggestions:
- Perhaps you over-steeped it. This means that the leaves were soaking in the hot water for too long. We suggest steeping the leaves for about 30 minutes but not longer than 1 hour. Most of our readers have had lots of success with this recipe and timing!
- If you’ve already made the mix, then add a little more water to the mix until it tastes more balanced.
- Or if you’re going to brew the mixture, use about 30% of the tea leaves.
- You can add a little more of the half/half or cream to soften the astringency. You’ll have a creamier thai tea drink, but that’s still quite delicious.
- Add more ice to water down the drink.
Best Mixes & Tools
Number One Tea Mix. This is the mix we commonly find in Asian store around us. It is another delicious option.
Cha Thai Tea Mix. This is our current go-to Thai iced tea mix. Make you Thai tea just like the restaurants!
Reuse-able Cloth Filter. Go traditional with this Thai Tea Filter. Get a second one for coffee too!
Other Tea Favorites
We love a good chai. Steep a bag of this goodness, add some steam or warmed milk and you’ll be in Chai heaven.
Our absolute house favorite black tea. We found this French tea years ago at Dean & Deluca and have been hooked since.
Another Thai tea mix. These are individual bags. Quick & Simple.
Thai Iced Tea Recipe
Ingredients
option #1 – thai tea mix ingredients:
- 1 cup (80 g) Thai Tea Mix
- 4 cups (960 ml) water
- 3/4 cup (150 g) granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup (180 ml) half and half (approximately), (some folks also use coconut milk, whole milk, sweetened condensed milk)
- ice
option #2 – using organic tea bags ingredients:
- 4 cups (960 ml) water
- 4 organic black tea bags
- 3/4 cup (150 g) granulated sugar
- 2 anise stars
- 1 green cardamom pod , smashed
- 2 whole cloves
- 3/4 cup (180 ml) half and half (approximately), (some folks also use coconut milk, whole milk, sweetened condensed milk)
- ice
Equipment
Instructions
option #1 – thai tea mix directions:
- Bring water to boil and add the thai tea mix. Add sugar and gently stir to completely dissolve sugar. Gently boil tea for about 3 minutes. Remove from heat.
- Allow tea to steep for at least 30 minutes and allow it to cool. The more concentrated the tea flavor, the better the Thai tea tastes.
- If you are using the Thai tea mix, strain the tea leaves (we love using these reusable cloth filters). Set finished Thai tea aside to cool. You can make this ahead of time and have the Thai tea chilling in the fridge. We usually like to make this tea mix one day ahead.
- Fill glasses with ice and pour in Thai tea leaving enough room to fill in your half and half (or other creamer). For an 8 oz. glass we like to add about 2-3 tablespoons of half and half for a creamier flavor.
option #2 – using organic tea bags directions:
- Bring water to boil and add the tea bags, sugar, star anise, cardamom pod and cloves. Stir until all the sugar dissolves. Gently boil tea for about 3 minutes. Remove from heat.
- Allow tea to steep for at least 30 minutes and allow it to cool. The more concentrated the tea flavor, the better the Thai tea tastes. We prefer to allow the tea bags to seep for about 2 hours for maximum flavor. During this time, the thai tea can cool.
- Remove the tea bags and spoon out the star anise, cardamom pod and cloves (or strain to remove). If tea is still warm, we will refrigerate it so it can be chilled. You can make this ahead of time and have the organic Thai tea chilling in the fridge.
- Fill glasses with ice and pour in organic Thai tea leaving enough room to fill in your half and half (or other creamer). For an 8 oz. glass we like to add about 2-3 tablespoons of half and half for a creamier flavor.
Video
Nutrition Information per Serving
Update! Here’s a Vietnamese Iced Coffee Recipe for all you iced coffee fans!
How to Make Sugar Free Thai Iced Tea Keto?
If you’re on a sugar free or keto friendly diet, you can still enjoy thai tea without all the sugar. By using sugar substitutes you can still have a delicious batch of this drink without sacrificing flavor. Here’s a recipe that we have for sugar free thai tea at best recipe box.
More Easy Recipes:
- Love Boba Milk Tea? Here’s our popular homemade boba milk tea recipe here.
- Pistachio Olive Oil Mini Tea Cakes
- Low Carb Zucchini Noodle Pad Thai
- Sour Cream Dried Onion Dip
So I’m actually sitting here boiling water about to dump this tea in, and I happened to look at ingredients on this Panthai mix.. “Green tea” and dyes. That’s it? I thought it was supposed to be Ceylon tea? We’ll see! I may have to experiment with other brands.
I bought the tea and followed the recipe line for line. The tea flavor was a bit stronger than what I’m used to (I’m assuming it’s because it’s better for stores to water it down or something!) so what I did that made it tastes exactly like a restaurant bought thai iced tea was add a tiny bit of water (maybe 1-2 fl. oz.) with about a teaspoon or two of sugar to the already chilled tea. Because the tea had already chilled, I used boiling water to allow the sugar to dissolve. Next time when I’m making the drink I’ll add more sugar so that when I’m pouring the tea I’ll just have to add some water to water it down a tiny bit (if that makes sense!). This tastes amazing.
I have to say when I made this with black tea bags it was fantastic. I’ve had Thai tea in restaurants and I love it. But when I tryed using the pantia tea mix It didn’t taste right. It didn’t taste sweet and had this weird flavor. I think I’m doing something wrong but I’m not sure. I’ve done it twice. Any suggestions.
This recipe is amazing! Definitely my go-to and the best part is I get as much drinks as I want without having to spend a fortune at restaurants or bubble tea shops. I had one of the worst thai teas last night at a ramen restaurant so it only makes sense I put theirs to shame and make a bunch of my own. Thanks so much!!
Thank you for introducing me to Thai iced tea!
I have played a bit with your recipe and made some tweaks to make it lemony Thai iced tea using a very English tea, because that’s what I had. It’s delicious!!!
I linked to your blog in my blog post as well! 🙂
Thank you for posting this recipe! I went immediately to Amazon and purchased it. But I have one question, if you don’t gently boil and accidentally boil too much is there a way to burn the tea and it tastes bad? Thanks!
Hi Sem, we’re not sure about the taste if you burned the tea. If it does boil too much then maybe you might get a bitter taste? If so, add a little more sugar or cream!
I make this tea all the time and I have noticed that it can have a little bit of a bitter taste. I use a coffee pot to make mine, about 3 heaping tablespoons makes about 5 cups of tea, then I add about 1/2 cup of sugar and sweetened condensed milk to taste, about 2 oz usually. I’ve found that if you add a little extra water to the finished tea it helps cut the bitter taste, or you can add more sugar. Totally personal preference.
The Republic of Tea just came out with a Thai Iced Tea that is in Cost Plus World Market. It has no artificial ingredients or artificial colors. It comes in large pouches so you can steep a quart of iced tea at once.
Thank you so much for this post. Have tried at home with different jasmine teas unsuccessfully. Didn’t know it was a mix. I know what I am doing today 🙂
Can anyone tell me if the taste is extremely different if you use black tea or pantai tea?
Can you use fat free half and half?
I don’t drink black or green tea, so I’m wondering what sort of herbal approximation I can reach. Perhaps a mate-rooibos blend steeped for a while with some vanilla extract? What do you think?
Late but I use Numi Roobios bags- its spot on.for the flavor, but weak
Where do I buy the Thai tea at ?
You can find it in your local Oriental supermarket or on Amazon
Found this brand today. Came home added truvia instead of sugar. Half and half. Yum yum. This is definitely what I have been tasting at the restaurants. Thanks for the recipe. If I hadn’t read this first, I wouldn’t have known when I found it that I struck gold.
I loved it. Beats paying $4.00. No Thai place where I live, I had missed it alot. Didn’t know it was soooo easy. Someone gave me Thai tea mix and I didn’t know how to make it… the sock to drain it makes it so simple. My favorite drink now. Thank you soooo much!!!!
I never thought that it’d be this simple to make thai ice tea! I’m going to have to try it! Thanks for sharing!
WOOHOOOOOOOO!!! Thanks so much for the recipe! Went to the Asian store and found the Pantai with no problem!! I made it as soon as I got home. At first I thought the ratio of tea to water was way off. Although it was quite dark and strong for my husband’s taste, I thought it was perfect!! I like my coffee and tea strong anyway, but the appearance was a lot stronger than the taste. I’ve seen other recipes that called for 1 tablespoon per cup but I think that would be way to weak. Instead of regular sugar, I used Splenda. I used half & half and it tasted exactly like the one I get from my favorite Thai restaurant. Next time I will experiment on evaporated milk…what is your preference as far as the cream goes?