Hong Kong Iced Tea (香港凍檸茶)

Sweet and refreshing, this homemade version of Hong Kong Iced Tea is so easy to make with a few simple ingredients. Just like what you’d get at a Hong Kong cafe, this lemon iced tea is the perfect drink with any meal!

If you’ve been to a Hong Kong cafe or diner (茶餐廳) or even an Asian supermarket that carries Vitasoy Lemon Tea Drink, then you’ll recognize this iconic Hong Kong style iced tea. It’s a classic drink that is a staple during the summer but it’s perfect year-round.

 

A 茶餐廳 or a cha chaan teng is a type of restaurant commonly found in Hong Kong, Macau, and parts of Guangdong. In English, it translates to pretty much Hong Kong Style Cafes. In a way, they were like the OG fast food as the food was viewed as “cheap western food.” This iced tea is a staple and I always see it on the menu as an add-on or part of a combo.

Recently, I’ve been spotting them on menus for my local bubble tea spots too so of course, in an effort to save myself $6-7 per drink, since I’m not close to any HK cafes, I decided to make it myself. HK cafes usually sell them for under $2 so the jump to $6-7 at a boba shop is going to be a hard pass for me. It’s relatively easy to make and quite cheap.

Ingredients You’ll Need

• oolong tea — when I was at Tiger Sugar, they had the option of selecting black tea or oolong tea. I prefer oolong for this Chinese iced tea but you’re welcome to experiment! I like using black tea for HK style milk tea instead. Recipe for that coming soon!
• brown sugar — I like using muscovado sugar or dark brown sugar for Hong Kong lemon tea as it’s much sweeter than regular or light brown sugar. I’ve tried this with light brown sugar and it requires a lot more to get the same amount of sweetness that the diners have.
• lemon — it must be fresh lemon. Part of the fun is using a straw to poke at the lemon slices as you drink to release more lemon flavour!

How to Make Hong Kong Iced Tea

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• Steep a oolong tea bag in 2 cups of boiled filtered water for 10 minutes. Allow the tea to cool to room temperature naturally or help speed it up by transferring it to the fridge after steeping.
• Meanwhile, combine the dark brown sugar with 6 tablespoons of filtered water and simmer until the sugar has fully dissolved. Simmer for 2 to 3 minutes before setting it aside. Again, you can allow the simple syrup to cool to room temperature naturally or in the fridge.

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• In a glass, add in a handful of ice cubes and half of a lemon, sliced.
• Add half of the tea to the glass. Then add half of the brown sugar simple syrup.
• Stir to combine and repeat with the second glass!

Recipe Tips and Notes

• If you would like to double or triple the recipe, I recommend adding an additional tea bag.
• If you only loose leaf tea, usually it’s 1 teaspoon loose leaf tea = 1 tea bag.
• To make this ahead of time, you can combine the steeped tea with the simple syrup and keep in it an airtight container in the fridge (such as a large mason jar). Add the drink to a glass of ice and lemon the next day.
• I don’t think oversteeping the tea for this lemon iced tea to be an issue. I’ve forgotten my tea steeping for a while as I cooked lunch and it tastes strong but good. However, if you don’t want this to be overly strong, step an alarm and stop steeping after 10 minutes.
• Feel free to skip the ice if you don’t want the drink super cold.
• Keep in mind that if your tea or syrup is too hot, the ice cubes will melt immediately and dilute the drink.
• For another cafe classic, try my Hong Kong milk tea!

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