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Tea: Overnight Thai Milk Tea

Source of Recipe

From "The Honeysuckle Cookbook" by Dzung Lewis


Recipe Introduction

"Whenever I walk into a Thai restaurant, I immediately think of my favorite Thai meal combo: pad thai with a creamy Thai iced tea. That glowing, bright orange elixir is completely hypnotic and a treat every time. When I create Thai tea at home, I do my best to leave out the artificial food coloring and flavor additives that some places use. Steeping black tea with cloves, star anise, cinnamon, and cardamom produces a softer amber color while also generating all the natural, complex flavors that make this drink unique. Almond or coconut milk works as a dairy-free substitute for the half-and-half."

List of Ingredients

◦ 6 tea bags of strong black tea, such as Assam, Darjeeling, or Ceylon
◦ ⅓ cup sugar
◦ 3 whole cloves
◦ 2 star anise
◦ 2 cinnamon sticks
◦ 2 green cardamom pods
◦ About 4 cups boiling water
◦ Ice
◦ About 1 cup half-and-half or milk of your choice, to taste


Recipe

In a 32-ounce jar or pitcher, combine the tea bags, sugar, cloves, star anise, cinnamon sticks, and cardamom pods. Add boiling water to the top of the jar and let steep for 2 hours.

Remove the tea bags and the spices, give this mixture a quick stir, and let cool to room temperature. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Fill four 16-ounce glasses with ice, divide the spiced tea among the ice-filled glasses, and top with half-and-half.
Stir and enjoy!

Makes four 16-ounce drinks