Hong Kong Style Iced Tea - Make a cup today

Photo by Tao

It is Spring and we are having heat waves reminiscent of summer.  The last two days in the bay area have hit record highs...82 degrees on a spring day yesterday.  These hot days are perfect for iced coffee, frozen yogurt or iced tea.  Since I'm not really a coffee drinker, and I don't have a frozen yogurt machine, I thougth I could at least do a nice iced tea recipe.

I typically take a tea bag, add some agave sweetener or honey, drop in the ice cubes and call it a day.  BUT today, I was inspired to search for a real nice iced tea that was also simple and stumbled upon this Hong Kong Style tea from Tao in Seattle.  click on that link for his original recipe.  Below is my variation.

You will need:

2 orange pekoe tea bags (or other type of tea - orange pekoe for authentic Hong Kong Style tea; 2 tea bags for the heavyweight caffeine lovers - it is very strong!  1 tea bag for regular peeps)

1 cup boiling water

5 ice cubes

1 teaspoon sweetened condensed milk (evaporated or regular milk will work too)

1 teaspoon honey (add more sweeteners if you have a sweet tooth)

Directions

1. Steep the tea bags in hot water until the color turns dark red, about 3 to 5 minutes. Discard the tea bags and let the tea cool.
2. Combine the ice cubes, sweetened condensed milk, and honey in a glass or cocktail shaker. (Here's a creative use for your martini shaker!!)  Pour in the tea and mix well. (If the tea is still warm, the ice may melt; add more ice if desired.) A strong, flavorful milk tea is ready for you to enjoy.