Cantaloupe-Mint Iced Green Tea
By Lan LamPublished on May 12, 2020
Time
15 minutes, plus 2 hours steeping and chilling
Yield
Serves 4
Ingredients
Before You Begin
Chinese green tea will produce a grassy, floral tea, whereas Japanese green tea is more savory. You can substitute decaffeinated tea if desired. Three tea bags can be substituted for the loose-leaf tea. To ensure that your water is at the proper temperature, start with 2½ cups of boiling water; add cold water, a little at a time, and stir with an instant-read thermometer until the water registers 175 degrees; and then measure out 3 cups. Your ice water should be half ice and half water. This recipe can easily be doubled.
Instructions
- Cut cantaloupe into 4 quarters, but do not peel. Grasping peel, shred flesh on large holes of box grater to yield 1 cup pulp. Set aside. Place tea in medium bowl. Add hot water and steep for 4 minutes. Add ice water, chopped mint, sugar, lemon juice, and reserved cantaloupe. Stir tea with wooden spoon until sugar is dissolved. Let steep for 1 hour. Strain through fine-mesh strainer into pitcher (or strain into second bowl and transfer to pitcher). Refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 3 days.
- To serve, pour into ice-filled glasses. Garnish each serving with mint sprig.
Time
15 minutes, plus 2 hours steeping and chillingYield
Serves 4Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Why This Recipe Works
For smooth and refreshing iced green tea with delicate fruitiness, we chose cantaloupe and mint. We started by brewing tea with 175-degree water to extract the aromatic compounds from the leaves. Then we cooled the extraction with ice water and cantaloupe, mint, sugar, and lemon juice but did not strain it. By steeping the tea for an hour at this lower temperature, we could draw more flavor from the leaves without pulling out too many astringent compounds.
Before You Begin
Chinese green tea will produce a grassy, floral tea, whereas Japanese green tea is more savory. You can substitute decaffeinated tea if desired. Three tea bags can be substituted for the loose-leaf tea. To ensure that your water is at the proper temperature, start with 2½ cups of boiling water; add cold water, a little at a time, and stir with an instant-read thermometer until the water registers 175 degrees; and then measure out 3 cups. Your ice water should be half ice and half water. This recipe can easily be doubled.
Instructions
- Cut cantaloupe into 4 quarters, but do not peel. Grasping peel, shred flesh on large holes of box grater to yield 1 cup pulp. Set aside. Place tea in medium bowl. Add hot water and steep for 4 minutes. Add ice water, chopped mint, sugar, lemon juice, and reserved cantaloupe. Stir tea with wooden spoon until sugar is dissolved. Let steep for 1 hour. Strain through fine-mesh strainer into pitcher (or strain into second bowl and transfer to pitcher). Refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 3 days.
- To serve, pour into ice-filled glasses. Garnish each serving with mint sprig.
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