AI-generated image
Hong Kong milk tea
Gong shi naai cha: strong, silky black tea with evaporated milk, 'silk stocking' style
Hong Kong milk tea is the daily fuel of the city's cha chaan teng, poured hot in thick cups at breakfast and over ice in the humid afternoons. Tea masters brew a blend of strong black teas, strain it again and again through a long cotton bag (the stained 'silk stocking'), and mix it with evaporated milk for a smooth, almost velvety drink. Chef's tip: let the tea simmer for a few minutes rather than just steeping it; Hong Kong milk tea is meant to be strong and slightly astringent, or the milk drowns it.
- Total time
- 15 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 2
Ingredients
- ⅜ oz loose-leaf black tea (Ceylon, or a strong breakfast blend)about 4 tbsp
- 2 cups water
- ½ cup evaporated milk
- 2 tbsp sugar or condensed milkto taste
Shop this recipe on Amazon
What you'll need
Spices & pantry
Fresh ingredients (1)
Links open Amazon in a new tab. As an Amazon Associate, WhatToEat.Today earns from qualifying purchases.
Method
0/4 doneStep 1: Bring 2 cups water to the boil in a small saucepan, add ⅜ oz loose-leaf black tea (Ceylon, or a strong breakfast blend), lower the heat and simmer for 3 minutes.
5 minStep 2: Take off the heat, cover and steep for 5 minutes, until the tea is very dark, almost brick-red.
5 minStep 3: Strain through a fine cotton tea sock or a fine sieve lined with a coffee filter into a jug. Pour it back through the leaves and strain again twice, pouring from a height, so the tea gets smoother and slightly frothy. Common mistake: using a teabag and boiling water once; you get thin, plain tea that tastes milky, not the strong, smooth cup this should be.
3 minStep 4: Put ½ cup evaporated milk and 2 tbsp sugar or condensed milk into two cups, pour in the hot tea and stir. For iced milk tea, cool the tea, then pour over a glass full of ice with the milk and sugar.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 120 kcal
- Protein
- 4 g
- Carbs
- 18 g
- Fat
- 4 g
- Fibre
- 0 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does hong Kong milk tea take?
- About 15 minutes in total: 2 minutes to prepare and 13 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 2 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of evaporated milk?
- Oat, soy or almond milk, same amount (use unsweetened for savoury dishes).
- What can I use instead of sugar or condensed milk?
- Oat, soy or almond milk, same amount (use unsweetened for savoury dishes).
Reviews
No reviews yet. Be the first to cook it.
Rate this recipe
Sign in to rate and review this recipe.
You might also like
Power packApple, pear, kiwi and celery juice
A sweet, energising juice of apples, pears and kiwi fruit with a stick of celery, all used unpeeled for extra goodness. It's naturally sweet, so it needs no sugar. Serve well chilled.
Guava delightGuava, mango and banana drink
A thick, fragrant blend of ripe guava, mango and banana, boosted with a spoonful of guava powder from the health shop. The book calls it a modern-day vitality drink, drawing on guava's long use in traditional Indian medicine. Serve it well chilled; sieve it if you don't like the little guava seeds.
PingadoHot milk with coffee
Order 'um pingado' at the balcão of any São Paulo padaria at 7 in the morning and the attendant pours hot milk into a ridged glass tumbler (the copo americano) and 'drips' in a splash of strong coffee, hence the name. It is milkier and gentler than a média (half coffee, half milk), creamy and lightly sweet, usually drunk standing up with a pão na chapa, a toasted buttered roll. At home you need strong filter coffee and milk heated until steaming. Scalding the milk is the frequent mistake, as boiled milk tastes flat and forms a skin. Chef's tip: froth the hot milk for a few seconds with a whisk or by pouring it back and forth between two jugs before adding the coffee, as padaria machines do.
BrazilianPerfect for:Tea-time