Thai Tea

Tomorrow is the first day of Fall, which here in the South means that we'll finally start to get some relief from the oppressive summer heat, but that doesn't mean that the weather won't still be perfect for a cool refreshing drink. Last weekend, I took my dog to the north GA mountains to do a little hiking. It was a gorgeous day, but by the end of our hike I was beyond parched. I carry plenty of water so technically I wasn't thirsty, I was just craving something more. The one thing that kept coming to mind was a huge glass of ice cold Thai tea. I've had a bag of tea mix in the pantry for months now so I decided to get home, make some, and share it here. 

I first had Thai tea at a local boba tea shop called Tiny Bubbles. It's an awesome little shop in the Marietta Square that my husband & I have been frequenting for about 2 years now. At first we started out making "safe" choices, being sure to only pick flavors that we knew we would like; then I began branching out to see what the other options were like and that's how we found Thai tea. It has such a unique flavor, unlike any other drink I've ever had, and the bright orange color is so fun and appealing.

The easiest way to make this at home is to buy the mix instead of trying to combine the black tea with the spices to get the flavor just right. Plus the orange color comes from the correct combination of food dye, which is hard to replicate at home. I bought THIS mix on Amazon, which seems to be the easiest place to find it. I also had some green tea tapioca pearls that I found at an Asian grocery store that I decided to add. THESE are the same brand that I found at the store if you want to order them online. You will also need extra wide STRAWS for the pearls.

INGREDIENTS

Thai tea mix

water

sugar

sweetened condensed milk

whole milk

optional

tapioca pearls

honey

INSTRUCTIONS

1) Follow the instructions on the package of tea mix. Boil water and steep tea for about 10 minutes.

2) Strain tea. It may needed to be double strained if sediment falls through the first time.

3) While tea is still hot, add sugar. Roughly 1 tablespoon per 2 cups but amount will depend on your desired sweetness level. 

4) If adding tapioca pearls, follow the instructions on the package to cook & sweeten. I used honey. 

5) When the tea is cooled to room temperature, slowly add in sweetened condensed milk. Pour gradually and taste as you go. 

6) At this point you can add in some whole milk or even heavy cream to get a thicker milky consistency. If you like it thinner just leave as is. 

7) Add pearls to the bottom of a tall glass then top off with ice.

8) Pour tea over the ice & use an extra wide straw for sucking up the tapioca. If desired, drizzle a bit more sweetened condensed milk over the top.