Name: Iced Thai Tea Concentrate
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 4 h 30 min
Yield: 6 cups
Cuisine: asian
Ingredients: 6 cups 1500ml water; 1 small red beet, quartered (optional for color); 2 whole cinnamon sticks, about 3 inches long; 4 whole star anise; 4 whole cloves; 1 teaspoon cardamom seeds; 8 teabags black, green, or rooibos (or about 8 to 10 teaspoons of loose tea in a very large tea ball or muslin tea bag); 1 tablespoon vanilla extract; 2 teaspoons orange flower water; 1/2 cup coconut sugar (or other sweetener to taste, or leave unsweetened if you prefer)

Making your own Vegan Thai Iced Tea Concentrate is easy. All you need is some tea, a few spices, and little time. You can make it with sweetened condensed coconut milk to make it in the traditional style or make it sugar-free with just some unsweetened nondairy milk. The choice is yours!

How Do You Make Vegan Thai Iced Tea Concentrate?

The concentrate isn’t hard to make and the ingredients aren’t as unusual as you might think. My homemade version doesn’t have is artificial colors like the Thai tea mixes have. Instead, my concentrate uses beets to give it that red color.

I have two sets of directions so you can make it in your slow cooker or on the stove top.

Can Vegans Drink Thai Iced Tea?

If you go to a Thai restaurant, chances are the iced Thai tea will not be vegan. Typically it’s made with sweetened condensed milk.

Some places will use regular canned coconut milk in its place, but my favorite one does not. But that’s okay it’s easy enough to make my own.

What is Thai Iced Tea Made Of?

You can buy Thai tea at the Asian market, but it usually has artificial colors and sometimes even artificial flavors. You can make a vegan Thai iced tea even just using brewed plain or vanilla black tea, but my recipe adds a few spices too.

The tea is important but the sweet creamy part is what turns the tea into a milky Thai tea. I have a recipe to make a sweetened condensed coconut milk that really is rich and makes it as far as I’m concerned.

Iced Thai Tea Concentrate

Yield: 6 cups

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Additional Time: 4 hours

Total Time: 4 hours 30 minutes

This is much easier to clean up if you put the spices in a re-usable muslin tea bag. It takes more work to get all the cardamom seeds out without it. You can throw the whole bag into the slow cooker and it's easy to take out.

Ingredients

6 cups 1500ml water
1 small red beet, quartered (optional for color)
2 whole cinnamon sticks, about 3 inches long
4 whole star anise
4 whole cloves
1 teaspoon cardamom seeds
8 teabags black, green, or rooibos (or about 8 to 10 teaspoons of loose tea in a very large tea ball or muslin tea bag)
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons orange flower water
1/2 cup coconut sugar (or other sweetener to taste, or leave unsweetened if you prefer)

Instructions

Stove-top Method

Put water, beet and spices in a large pot. Bring to a boil, then turn heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes.
Add the tea bags and steep for 5 minutes. Remove tea bags and strain tea.

Slow Cooker Method

Put water, beet and spices in the slow cooker. Cook on low for 4 hours.
Remove spice bag and beets. Add in tea bags to the slow cooker and turn to high. Let steep 5 minutes. Remove tea bags and add vanilla, orange flower water, and sweetener.
Store in the fridge for 1 to 2 weeks. Use about ½ concentrate and ½ non-dairy milk (less if you are using the condensed coconut milk).

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Nutrition Information

Yield 6 Serving Size 1
Amount Per Serving Calories 79 Total Fat 0g Saturated Fat 0g Trans Fat 0g Unsaturated Fat 0g Cholesterol 0mg Sodium 19mg Carbohydrates 19g Fiber 1g Sugar 17g Protein 0g

Nutrition information is provided from nutritionix.com as a close estimate. If you have specific health issues please put the recipe information, including the exact ingredients you use, into the nutritional calculator your Dr. recommends.

Can You Make Your Own Sweetened Condensed Coconut Milk to Use in Vegan Thai Iced Tea?

Back in the old days there was no other way but to make it yourself. You can buy premade Sweetened Condensed Coconut Milk, but it’s still cheaper to make your own.

Look below this for my easy recipe to make your own. It just used two ingredients coconut milk and coconut sugar.

The other recipe I’m giving you today is for a vegan sweetened condensed coconut milk. While you can substitute any sweetener for the coconut sugar, be aware that it will thicken more with sugar rather than stevia or monk fruit.

It’s delicious in iced coffee and has enough caramel undertones that it’s at home over your vegan ice cream too.

Is There a Way to Make This Without Sugar?

If you want to avoid sugar, you can get evaporated coconut milk and use it or full fat canned coconut milk to make your Thai Iced Tea.

Sweetened Condensed Coconut Milk

Yield: 16 servings (1 tablespoon)

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes

This is vegan liquid gold! Sweet, rich, and creamy this homemade sweetened condensed milk substitute is perfect for a vegan Thai tea or a Vietnamese coffee.

Note: You can now buy this in many health food stores, but it is still cheaper to make.