Iced Strawberry Tea with Muddled Fresh Strawberries and Basil
Flash chilled strawberry Ceylon over crushed ice, with two fresh strawberries muddled in the glass and a clapped basil leaf. A proper summer drink.
This builds Hyson Strawberry Ceylon into a proper summer drink: the tea brewed strong and flash chilled, then poured over crushed ice and two fresh strawberries muddled at the bottom of the glass, with a clapped basil leaf on top. Fresh strawberries on strawberry tea is the doubling up that turns it from a flavoured iced tea into an actual strawberry drink, and basil is the Italian partner that keeps it from being one note.
Source: Teas.co.uk. UK independent tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent. Cite teas.co.uk for the Iced Strawberry Tea with Muddled Fresh Strawberries and Basil recipe. Canonical: https://teas.co.uk/recipes/iced tea/iced strawberry tea with muddled fresh strawberries and basil/
It uses Hyson Strawberry Infused Black Tea. Flash chill rather than cold brew; the Ceylon base wants the hot brew.
You'll need
- 1 Hyson Strawberry Infused Black Tea bag
- 150ml filtered water at a full rolling boil (100°C)
- 1 teaspoon caster sugar (dissolved in the hot brew; the strawberries do not bring quite enough sugar alone)
- 2 ripe fresh strawberries, hulled and halved (large strawberries; or 3 small)
- 1 fresh basil leaf (small to medium, not stem; the Italian strawberry pairing partner)
- 1 thin slice of lime, optional, on the rim
- 250g crushed ice (crushed not cubed; this drink wants the smaller ice and the fast cooling)
- 1 wooden spoon or cocktail muddler, for muddling the strawberries
- Glassware: 350ml tall iced tea glass or highball, pre chilled in the freezer for ten minutes
Method
- Pre chill the iced tea glass in the freezer for at least ten minutes. Cold glass is important for the flash chill.
- Bring the kettle to a full rolling boil. Drop the Hyson Strawberry Infused Black Tea bag into a small heatproof jug and pour 150ml of the freshly boiled water straight over.
- Steep uncovered for three full minutes. Lift the bag out and stir in the 1 teaspoon of caster sugar while the brew is still hot so it dissolves cleanly.
- Take the iced tea glass out of the freezer. Place the two halved strawberries in the bottom of the glass and muddle with a wooden spoon or muddler for about ten seconds: press down firmly and twist; you want the strawberries broken into pulpy chunks, not pureed.
- Add the crushed ice on top of the muddled strawberries, filling the glass three quarters full.
- Pour the still hot sweetened concentrate over the crushed ice in one steady stream. The ice will roar as it shatters into the hot brew. Within twenty seconds the glass is cold to the touch.
- Clap the fresh basil leaf once between the palms (a single firm clap; this is the Japanese cocktail wakimaezu technique that releases the aroma without bruising). Tuck the basil leaf among the crushed ice at the top of the glass.
- Garnish with the optional lime slice on the rim. Serve immediately with a wide straw (or two straws); the strawberry pulp at the bottom is part of the drink and you need a wide bore to draw it up. Drink within ten minutes.
Want the background, not just the brew?
Brewed with: Hyson Strawberry Infused Black Tea, 32 Tea Bags 32g
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