How to Make Thai Milk Tea

Name: How to Make Thai Milk Tea | Cha Yen
Prep time: 2 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 12 min
Cuisine: Thai
Ingredients: 5 c. water; 3/4 c. Thai Tea Mix; 2/3 cup (or to taste) sweetened condensed milk; Sugar to taste (optional); 2 cups (or to taste) of your favorite milk: evaporated milk is traditional in Thailand, but our fav is using whole milk; ice

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Love drinking Thai milk tea at your favorite Thai place? Make it at home! Easier, more affordable and tastes even better!

Thai Milk Tea (Cha Yen) is sweet, creamy, cold, and refreshing — perfect for sipping on a hot day or whenever you’re missing Thai street food. The best part? You can easily make it at home with just a few ingredients!

And if you are looking for another Thai drink, Cha Ma Nao, aka Thai Lime Tea is the zingy cousin to Thai Milk Tea, and just as fun, but dairy-free!

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

If you’ve ever had Thai Milk Tea at a restaurant and thought, “Wow, I could drink this every day!” now you actually can! Here’s why this recipe is a keeper:

Easy to make – Just brew, sweeten, chill, and serve.
Authentic flavor – No powdered mixes here. Just real Thai tea leaves.
Customizable – Make it creamy or strong, sweet or mild — totally up to you.
Cheaper than takeout – Skip the $5 café version and make it cheap at home!

Ingredients You’ll Need

3/4 cup Loose leaf Thai tea mix – Look for Pantai or Number-One ChaTraMue brands
2/3 cup Sweetened condensed milk– How it gets that classic sweet, creamy flavor you love!
2 cups milk of choice – Evaporated milk is traditional, but we like to use whole milk.
Sugar (optional) – If you like it extra sweet
Crushed ice

Step 1: Brew the Tea

Bring 5 cups of water to a boil. Remove from heat. Stir in ¾ cup of Thai tea leaves and let steep for 4 minutes.

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Step 2: Strain

Pour the tea through a fine mesh strainer or tea sock into a heat-safe pitcher.

Step 3: Sweeten

While the tea is still hot, stir in ⅔ cup of sweetened condensed milk until fully mixed.

Step 4: Add Milk

Pour in 2 cups of your preferred milk (evaporated milk, whole milk, half and half, or a dairy-free option).

Step 5: Chill and Serve

Refrigerate until cold. When ready to serve, pour over a tall glass filled with crushed ice.

Additions and Substitutions

Evaporated or Whole Milk substitutes: Oat milk, almond milk, or even half and half for extra creaminess.
Sweetened condensed milk substitute:
– Dairy version: Simmer 1 cup whole milk with 1/3 cup sugar for 30–40 mins until thick.
– Dairy-free version: Simmer 1 can coconut milk with ½ cup sugar until thickened or buy sweetened condensed coconut milk.
Thai Tea Mix substitute: Any bold black tea like Assam, or Ceylon.
Hot or Iced: Traditionally served iced, but it’s just as tasty served warm on a chilly day.

Tips for the Best Thai Iced Tea

Add boba! Add your favorite boba to your Thai tea. My fav easy method is using microwavable boba that takes 1 minute!
Use loose leaf Thai tea mix, not instant packets. You’ll get much better flavor and control over sweetness.
Make a batch and keep it in the fridge. It keeps well for several days.
Strain thoroughly. You don’t want gritty leaves in your glass.
Play with the ratios. Like it creamier? Add more milk. Like it strong? Use less.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are Thai iced tea ingredients and where can you buy them?

The main ingredients in Thai iced tea are: loose leaf Thai tea mix, sweetened condensed milk, milk of choice (whole milk, oat milk, almond milk, etc.), sugar (optional), and crushed ice.

You can find loose leaf Thai tea at most Asian grocery stores, usually in the tea aisle or on Amazon. Look for brands like: Pantai or Number-One ChaTraMue.

Where does Thai milk tea come from?

It likely originated in the mid-20th century. Some credit Pibul Songkram, a Thai leader who embraced Western influences, for popularizing the idea of adding milk to tea, which is unusual since Thais typically don’t have dairy in their cuisine.

What makes Thai milk tea orange?

That vibrant orange color comes from artificial food coloring added to the tea leaves.

One origin story suggests that when tea was first introduced to Thailand in the 1800s by British and other foreigners, Thai workers would make tea for the British, and then rebrew used tea leaves for themselves.

To enhance the weak color and flavor, they began adding food coloring and spices — a tradition that stuck and evolved into the Thai tea mix we use today.

Does Thai milk tea have caffeine?

Yes, it contains 30–60 mg of caffeine per serving, since it’s made with black Ceylon tea. That’s less than coffee (about 95 mg per cup), making it a good choice if you want a little energy boost without the jitters.

How healthy is Thai milk tea?

It’s typically high in sugar and calories due to the sweetened condensed milk and optional added sugar. You can make it healthier by using less sweetened condensed milk, skipping added sugar, swapping in a plant-based milk and controlling portion size.

Are Thai tea loose leaves or instant Thai tea mix better?

I recommend loose leaf Thai tea because you can control the sweetness and milk. Instant Thai tea mixes usually contain added sugar and milk powder, which means less flexibility and often a more sweet flavor.

Behind the Recipe

My drink of choice in Bangkok when I lived there was usually Thai Milk Tea or Chao Ma Nao, aka Thai Lime Iced Tea, or iced Thai coffee. I would get at least one of these magical drinks a day, and now when I visit it’s often Thai Tea Green Tea since that’s the newer to the Thai Tea scene, and one of my new favs.

I hadn’t tried making it in America until we’d been back in America a few years. I was at the Asian market when I spotted loose leaf Thai Tea Mix hiding on a shelf.

And not just the instant Thai Milk Tea packet with sugar, milk, with some powdered tea in it Thai tea packets, but the actual loose Thai tea leaves. So I bought it, and couldn’t wait to make it. And once I did, I was astonished at how crazy easy it is to make at home.

Thai Hubby thought I was weird, as usual. He had never made Thai Milk Tea at home in Thailand using loose leaf Thai tea.

Like most Thais, he thought, why make Cha Yen at home when you can buy it on the street made by an expert for a dollar?

But this is America where you can’t buy it on the street, and when you buy it in a restaurant it’s $5 and not that amazing.

But when you don’t live in Thailand, and make it at home, while you smell it steeping and take your first sip, for a moment it feels like you’ve escaped to the Bangkok streets while standing in your kitchen!

Yes please!

After you make it, share your pic with me on Instagram @thaifoodie, I wanna see!

What to Eat with Thai Milk Tea

Sweet, creamy Thai Milk Tea pairs perfectly with bold, spicy Thai dishes! Here’s what we love to serve it with:

Massaman Curry with Chicken: This rich, comforting curry has warm spices and a hint of sweetness that match beautifully with the smooth flavor of Cha Yen.
Vegetarian Thai Fried Rice: Light, savory, and packed with veggies, this fried rice is even more satisfying alongside a cold glass of Thai Milk Tea.
Pad See Ew Beef: Tender beef, heart-warming noodles, a savory-sweet sauce—perfect contrast with the creamy sweetness of Thai Milk Tea.

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