Matcha Hibiscus Iced Tea

Matcha Hibiscus Iced Tea

Craving a colorful and refreshing drink? Matcha Hibiscus iced tea with mint and lemon is vibrant, pretty, super refreshing, fun and easy to make at home.

This colorful iced tea has three layers:

  • Mint and lemon sweet layer, like simple syrup but not as rich and sweet.
  • Hibiscus layer with a few drops of lemon and some sugar.
  • Matcha layer without sugar.

You can make the two bottom layers when you have some extra time, store them in the fridge for up to two days and use when you want to make iced tea in a matter of minutes. Always make the matcha layer fresh before serving.

 

matcha hibiscus iced tea

Ingredients for making Matcha Hibiscus Iced Tea

This recipe is for a 10-12 oz serving glass.

 

Matcha tea powder

You will need ½ teaspoon of matcha powder. Use either everyday ceremonial grade matcha or an all-purpose matcha. You can prepare it with hot or cold water. However, matcha prepared with hot water will have a deeper flavor. To prevent clumps, pre-sift matcha before whisking it. If you are using hot water, bring water to a boil and let it cool to 185 degrees Fahrenheit. You can also use 1 oz of hot water to make matcha, then top it up with 2-2.5 oz of cold water to cool it faster.

 

Hibiscus, dry flowers or tea bags

Hibiscus is an amazing ingredient for making iced teas and goes really well with matcha tea powder. It’s tart but not sour as lemon and has a beautiful purple color. Add a few drops of lemon juice to balance out the flavor. Adding sugar and letting it simmer for a few minutes is essential for making this layer and keeping it from mixing with matcha layer.

 

summer iced tea

Fresh mint

Fresh mint has a milder and fresher flavor than dried mint. Wash mint leaves and very gently bruise them using pestle and mortar. This will help release more flavor, making it more minty. You’ll also need to add sugar and about 1-2 teaspoons of lemon. Lemon will add a hint of sourness and make the color brighter. When assembling the drink, use about 1 oz of mint “syrup” if you made it with sugar only, or 1.5 to 2 oz if you made it with agar agar.

 

Sugar

Add 3-4 teaspoons of sugar to the mint layer and a teaspoon and a half to the hibiscus layer. Do not add sugar to matcha tea. If you want to use less sugar in the mint layer, you can use some agar powder instead. Agar agar is a vegan friendly alternative to gelatin. It’s used for making jellies and other desserts and it’s really easy to use. Agar will set very fast, which makes it a superb choice for making treats when you are in a rush. In general, 1 gram of agar agar is needed per 100 ml of liquid, or more depending on which ingredients you use and how firm you want the jelly to be. However, for this recipe you only want to change the texture, without making a proper jelly. Therefore, adding only a tiny bit of agar agar will help keeping layers separated while keeping the mint layer more liquid. Use not more than ¼ teaspoon of agar per 3.5 oz of mint tea.

 

Lemon

You’ll need ¼ of fresh lemon only. Make sure you remove all the pulp and seeds from a freshly squeezed lemon juice. 

 

Learn how to make refreshing matcha iced tea with different ingredients here.

Matcha Hibiscus Iced Tea

Matcha Hibiscus Iced Tea

Servings

1

Prep Time

15 minutes

Colorful, refreshing and vibrant layered iced tea with matcha tea powder, hibiscus and mint.

Ingredients

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    • 3.5 oz of water – approximately 2.7-3 oz after simmering

    • 15-20 fresh mint leaves

    • 3-4 teaspoon of sugar

    • 1-2 teaspoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice.

    • ¼ teaspoon agar agar powder if you want to reduce sugar   

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    • 1-2 teaspoons of hibiscus tea or 1 hibiscus tea bag
    • 5 oz of water
    • A few drops (4-5!) of lemon juice
    • 1 ½ teaspoon of sugar

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    • ½ teaspoon of matcha tea
    • 3.5 oz of water

    • Ice

    Directions

    1. Start by making the mint layer first. Wash fresh mint leaves and gently bruise them using pestle and mortar.

    2. Add mint and water into a saucepan, bring it to a boil and simmer for 5-10 minutes.

    3. Remove mint leaves and add sugar. Stir until dissolved, bring it to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for another 3-5 minutes.

    4. If you are adding agar agar, add it now. Stir until dissolved and simmer for 3-4 minutes on medium-low heat. The color may look murky at first, but it will get clearer.

    5. Pour into a serving glass. Set aside in the fridge while you are making the middle hibiscus layer.

    6. For the hibiscus layer, add water and hibiscus flowers (or hibiscus tea bags) into a saucepan. Bring it to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes. You can also brew hibiscus tea using boiled water and a teapot/strainer.

    7. Remove the hibiscus flowers or tea bags and add sugar.

    8. Bring it to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes on medium-low heat. Turn off the heat.

    9. For the matcha layer, bring water to a boil (or use cold water to save time).

    10. Sift matcha powder into a matcha bowl or a cup and use chasen or an electric hand whisk to mix it. Set aside.

    11. Now take the serving glass with mint layer. Carefully add ice.

    12. Add hibiscus tea by slowly pouring it into the glass right onto the ice. At this point, hibiscus tea is likely still very hot, and it will melt the ice fast. Add more ice if needed. Do not pour hibiscus tea directly onto the bottom mint layer.

    13. Add matcha tea by slowly pouring it over ice too.

    14. Serve with a straw.
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