Iced Moroccan mint tea recipe using loose-leaf green tea
Iced Moroccan mint tea with fragrant mint, flavorful gunpowder green tea, and a hint of lime to give that oomph. This is the iced tea for your slow summer day or any chill day. You can easily scale up the recipe to serve in a pitcher for a crowd!
Moroccan mint tea is a super common hot tea drink in North Africa using fresh mint leaves (nana), and Chinese gunpowder green tea. It is served as a sign of hospitality. And well, whenever we are in Morocco my mother-in-law prepares it every single day – hmmm maybe even twice a day, for breakfast and for tea time.
This recipe is an iced version of my traditional Moroccan Mint Tea recipe.
I love to drink tea year-round, but simply cannot drink hot tea when it is hot outside – how Moroccans do it, I do not know. But it led me to create this iced Moroccan mint tea to enjoy all year round, regardless of the weather! If you love iced coffees too, try the iced mint latte recipe, and learn to make your own homemade mint syrup too!
If you are interested in making your own iced tea recipes and steeping some perfect tea, download my tea-making cheat sheets to get full guidance on steeping times, temperatures, and cold brew options. You can download your own copy below:
Why you’ll love this recipe
- This is a simple and easy thirst quencher and cooler for hot days.
- Perfect iced tea version of the iconic Moroccan mint tea.
- The benefits of Moroccan mint tea are so many for it is made with green tea and fresh mint.
- To cool the hot tea quicker, in this recipe, we make a cup of strong hot tea, dilute it with cold water, and add the ice to skip the long cooling time for the whole teapot full of Moroccan mint tea. That way you can do it just before serving or make it to the fridge ahead of time.
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Iced teas are so simple to make from scratch! If you want to try out my other refreshing iced teas, rooibos iced tea, hibiscus-blueberry iced tea, or the honey-seasoned iced tea, too! If you want more ideas for making juices and iced coffees, browse the Iced teas, mocktails, and juices category to find your perfect summer cooler!
Ingredients for iced Moroccan mint tea
- Fresh nana mint: Moroccan nana mint has a strong flavor and it gives the best taste, but it can be substituted with other spear mints as well. Save some for garnishing as well
- Gunpowder green tea: Use loose-leaf Chinese gunpowder tea, it has a great flavor and is traditionally used in the classic hot Moroccan mint tea. Can be substituted with other green tea or you can use green tea bags.
- Caster sugar: Traditional Moroccan mint tea is sweetened with caster sugar and it gives the perfect sweetness to the iced tea. Mix the sugar in the hot brewed tea to melt it nicely before cooling the tea.
- Lime: Fresh lime juice gives a zingy flavor and use some lime slices to garnish the drinks.
- Water: For the best results use always fresh water to boil it and keep it to about 80 degrees to prevent the bitter flavors in green tea.
- Ice cubes: Learn how to make mint ice cubes later in this post.
You can find the exact measurements on the recipe card.
Tools you may need
- Electric kettle
- Teacup, jar, and a tea strainer or small teapot with an infuser
- Big jar/pitcher for mixing. I usually use one of the big glass jars similar to a Mason jar
- Strainer
| RELATED: How to use and choose a teapot and tea kettle
How to make iced Moroccan mint tea with fresh mint and loose-leaf tea
Step one: Steep strong tea
Heat water at about 80°C (176°F). If you don’t have an electric kettle with a temperature controller simply boil first water like normally. Then open the lid, and leave the water to cool down for a couple of minutes to decrease the temperature.
Place a handful of mints in a cup or a teapot, measure caster sugar, set the infuser with green tea in, and pour the hot water over the ingredients.
Let the Moroccan mint tea steep for 2-3 minutes, then discard the green tea. Mix to ensure the sugar is dissolved, and leave it steep with the mint still for a couple of minutes.
Step two: Mixing the tea
Pour the mint tea through a sieve into a pitcher add lime juice and test the sweetness. You can still add some sugar to dissolve while it is hot. If it tastes good pour the water in and test the flavor again.
You can add more water if needed, but leave it a bit too strong, for the ice cubes will melt in and give some extra water. Also, your iced tea should be still slightly too sweet for when it cools with ice cubes the sweetness is more subtle.
Step three: Serving the iced mint tea
Build the iced mint tea into tall glasses. Start with ice cubes, add some lime slices on the sides, and a fresh mint sprig for garnish. Then top with your flavorful iced mint tea and enjoy!
Storage
You can store the iced tea before adding the ice cubes or garnish. Store in a glass bottle air tightly for up to one week or so. This is a good option as well if you want to make it ahead of time ready into the fridge. Then you just need to pull it out from the fridge and serve with ice cubes and garnish if you wish to do so.
How to tweak this recipe
- For more versatile flavor try out some tea blends or your favorite tea instead of plain green tea.
- Switch the Moroccan mint with organic peppermint leaves to get an even more cool and fresh result.
- Double or triple the recipe and serve in a pitcher for a summer party. Leave some ice cubes and a small handful of mint leaves to garnish serving glasses.
- Use different sizes of ice cubes for more fun serving.
- Make mint ice cubes to give a personal touch, quick tutorial below!
How to make mint ice cubes
Wash some fresh-looking mint leaves and place one leaf into each ice cube hole. Fill with water and place into the fridge overnight. I like to use a tray under this silicone ice cube tray to balance it evenly and to catch any spills.
Little Helper
Making the most impressive ice cubes is the joy of any tiny chef. You decorate the ice cubes with some mint leaves like the above or lime slices! Pouring the water from a small pitcher into the ice cube trays is a good way to practice pouring skills!
What are your favorite iced teas?
Let me know if you have tried this or other iced teas and how you like to garnish them! Comment below or tag me on Instagram with @blue.tea.tile, I would love to know your favorites!
More tea knowledge and recipes
You can find the recipe card below!
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Iced Moroccan Mint Tea
Iced Moroccan mint tea with fragrant mint, flavorful gunpowder green tea, and a hint of lime to give that oomph. This is the iced tea for your slow summer day or any chill day.
I love to drink tea year-round but simply cannot drink a hot drink when it is hot outside. It led me to create this iced Moroccan mint tea to enjoy all year round regardless of the weather.
You can easily scale up the recipe to serve in a pitcher for a crowd!
Ingredients
Iced tea
- 200 ml hot water (80°C /176°F)
- bouquet of mint
- 3-4 tsp green tea
- 3-4 tsp caster sugar
- 1 tbsp lime juice
- 200 ml cold water (or more)
Garnish
- Ice cubes
- Lime slices
- Mint sprigs, one for each glass
Instructions
- Step one: Steep strong tea
Heat water at about 80°C (176°F). If you don’t have an electric kettle with a temperature controller simply boil water first like normally. Then open the lid, and leave the water to cool down for a couple of minutes to decrease the temperature.
Place a handful of mints in a cup or a teapot, measure caster sugar, place the infuser with green tea in, and pour the hot water over the ingredients.
Let the Moroccan mint tea steep for 2-3 minutes, then discard the green tea, mix to ensure the sugar is dissolved, and leave it steep with the mint still for a couple of minutes. - Step two: Mixing the tea
Pour the mint tea through a sieve into a pitcher add lime juice and test the sweetness. You can still add some sugar to dissolve while it is hot. If it tastes good pour the water in and test the flavor again.
You can add more water if needed, but leave it a bit too strong, for the ice cubes will melt in and give some extra water. Also, your iced tea should be still slightly too sweet for when it cools with ice cubes the sweetness is more subtle. - Step three: Serving the iced mint tea
Build the iced mint tea into tall glasses. Start with ice cubes, add some lime slices on the sides, and a fresh mint sprig for garnish. Then top with your flavorful iced mint tea and enjoy!
Storage
You can store the iced tea before adding the ice cubes or garnish. Store in a glass bottle air tightly for up to one week or so. This is a good option as well if you want to make it ahead of time ready into the fridge. Then you just need to pull it out from the fridge and serve with ice cubes and garnish if you wish to do so.
Notes
- You can easily scale the recipe for a pitcher to serve for a crowd.
- For more serving ideas and examples on how to adjust the recipe scroll up to How to tweak this recipe header.
- To know more about ingredients and substitutions look under the header Ingredients for Iced Moroccan mint tea.
- Find in this post a quick tutorial on How to make mint ice cubes on How to make mint ice cubes, for a more personal serving!
