Thai Iced Tea with Lime (Cha Ma Nao)

Course Drink

Cuisine Thai

Keyword cha ma nao, easy recipe, iced tea, lime, party drink, summer drink, Thai iced tea, Thai iced tea with lime

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 10

Rest Time 3 10

Total Time 3 25

Servings people

First, prepare the simple syrup. In a small pot, add water and sugar. Bring to a boil. Stir to melt the sugar. Keep boiling for 1 minute. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature. Keep in the fridge in an airtight container.
In a tea pot, tea press, French press or a bowl, add tea mix. Pour in boiling hot water. Let steep for 3 minutes, then strain into a glass or heatproof container. If you’re doing in a bowl, use a clean cheese cloth on a sieve to strain out tea leaves. Cool at room temperature for 10 minutes and chill in the fridge until cold, at least 3 hours.
When ready to serve, squeeze lime juice into a small bowl. Mix 1 tablespoon lime juice (not all) and ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons simple syrup (not all) into the cold tea. Add ice cubes into serving glass. Pour the tea over. Taste and adjust with more lime juice or syrup if needed. Serve cold.

There are a few Thai tea mix out there. The most common brand is Pantai. You can get it from some Asian supermarkets and Amazon. The one I used this time is Cha Tra Mue. I got it from Amazon.
It’s best to have an extra lime just in case. Some limes may not be as juicy.
If you don’t want to make a simple syrup separately, you can add sugar directly into the hot tea after straining. For 2 servings, use ¼ cup sugar. But you won't be able to adjust the sweetness at the end.
I actually have simple syrup at our home all the time. Bryan uses it to make cold brew coffee and we use it to make cocktail sometimes too. It’s something good to have around. We usually do 1:1 sugar and water ratio. We keep the syrup in a mason jar in the fridge. It can last easily for a month.
One thing I want to remind you that Thai tea mix has food coloring, so it’s best to use glass or certain ceramic containers when you’re making the tea. That way, you don’t get any orange stain in any container later.