I became interested in trying varieties of milk tea traditions after seeing Kevin from Cross Cultural Christian’s video recipe about Sri Lankan Style Milk tea and talking to my friend Sumathy about her family traditions. I didn’t grow up drinking tea this way, and being off dairy for the time being I was looking for a rich alternative to sweetened condensed milk. I tried first making Kevin’s recipe and loved his addition of ginger, but I also substituted sweetened condensed coconut milk which gave it a coconut flavor. I loved this, but it tasted very different than the recipe intended. Luckily there are plenty of sweetened condensed milk alternative recipes out there, and after many experiments, I settled on a cashew-based sweetened condensed milk recipe that tastes great with pulled milk tea. Adding sunflower lecithin is optional in this recipe, but it helps keep the milk from separating. It’ll still taste great without though! I really like Full of Plants vegan sweetened condensed milk recipe as well whose combination of almonds and cashews is absolutely delightful.

I’ve noticed that although some pulled tea recipes I’ve found called for tea bags, generally Ceylon BOPF tea is preferred. The broken leaf leads to a stronger tea and I like that it is steeped instead of boiled as in my opinion Assam CTC is best for withstanding rapid boiling. You can also use a black tea bag (preferably Ceylon tea) and open it using the tea leaves inside if you can’t find BOPF. You could also try Lipton tea bags.

You’ll find the addition of candied ginger and cardamom here, both of which are optional and just something I like to add for a little bit of spice and a bit of a floral note. From what I’ve read generally spices aren’t a part of this style of tea traditionally and its known for its light taste and foamy head. Here are some recipes of pulled tea by Malaysian food blogger Char from Wok and Skillet, and more information about Malaysian tea pulling from Kopitiam Cafe owners in NYC.

I love their reference of Mr. Teh Tarik and would love to pull tea as well as him someday! My version is delicious, but you will get more lasting foam with regular sweetened condensed milk.

Ingredients:

servings: 2-3

Sweetened-Condensed Cashew Milk*

3/4 cup whole raw cashews (soaked for at least 4 hours or overnight)

2 cups of water

1/2 cup sugar

pinch of salt

1/2 tsp sunflower lecithin powder (optional)

Tea

2 cups of water

4 tsp Ceylon loose leaf tea (like BOPF, with a broken leaf)

1 tsp candied ginger (optional)

2 cardamom pods, crushed (optional)

*Regular sweetened condensed milk can be used in this recipe if you do not need a dairy-free option.

Method

Cashew Sweetened Condensed Milk (or sub regular)

1. Drain soaked cashews and blend with 2 cups of water (and lecithin if using) in a high-speed blender. Turn up the blender to the highest speed for at least one whole minute, preferably 2.

2. Strain cashew milk in a nut milk bag (optional but makes it a tad bit smoother)

3. Add sugar to a saucepan, add vanilla and stir it into the sugar before pouring in the cashew milk. Whisk together and then turn on the heat.

4. Bring to a simmer and let reduce to about half of the original volume, stirring frequency. Make sure it does not burn by keeping the heat low enough for just a gentle simmer. Really, as soon as it starts to truly thicken is a good time to remove it because it will get a bit thicker than it looks when it cools and you want it to fall off the spoon (not become a cashew pudding).

5. Pour into a jar and let cool completely before using. Should store in the fridge for up to 7 days.

Tea

1. Add 2 cups of water, candied ginger, and cardamom to a saucepan and bring to a boil.

2. Add tea leaves and take off the heat. Cover and steep for 3 minutes and strain immediately

3. While steeping, fill a pitcher, mug, or pulling cup with 4 tbsp of sweetened condensed milk.

4. Strain tea into the cup after steeping and stir until the milk is well incorporated

5. Pull the tea mixture back and forth by pouring between two cups or pitchers from a height until very frothy. Alternatively, you can blend the mixture in a blender or use an electric frother.

6. Serve immediately