Iced Green Tea
Iced Green Tea - cold-brewed, accented with rose and a bit of whole coriander - such a pretty, warm weather refresher.
Here's the story behind my favorite iced green tea. There was a man behind me at the grocery store the other day. I was in the bulk section surrounded by large jars of dried herbs, tea blends, spices, and sea vegetables. The man inquired about a rose & green tea blend, and the young woman overseeing the teas replied that she thought they used to carry a black tea & rose blend, but not green tea & rose. 
Green Tea Inspiration
Now, I drink a good amount of green tea, and thought the green tea with rose combination sounded particularly nice. I imagined it iced, and made a pitcher as soon as I got home using green tea I had from my trip to Tokyo, along with rose petals I had on hand. Cold-brewed, accented with rose and a bit of whole coriander - it's a warm weather refresher.
Iced Green Tea Brewing Technique
A couple notes related to my brewing technique. It's a hybrid, mostly cold-brew approach. I hit the leaves with a splash of just-shy-of-hot (not boiling) water, to wake up the leaves. This also extracts some of the healthy antioxidants from the tea leaves - straight cold brewing (with out the hot water splash) has less antioxidant activity. Count to 10 or so, and then finish up with cold water. This kills the heat, keeps the extraction smooth and slow, and prevents over cooking, or over brewing. The difference between a cold brew green tea and hot brew is dramatic, both wonderful in their own right, but for an iced tea like this I prefer less vegetable / cooked notes.
The green tea I used pictured below.
I use whatever green tea I have on hand, but I tend to prefer certain types over others. When I'm doing iced green tea, a favorite is loose leaf Japanese sencha (above). The color is beautiful, and it brews vibrant, smooth, and clean. Enjoy! -h
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Iced Green Tea
- 2 tablespoons good quality loose leaf green tea
- 1 tablespoon (unsprayed) dried rose petals (optional)
- 1 tablespoon whole coriander seeds (optional)
- 4 cups filtered water, divided
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Place the green tea, rose petals, and coriander in a pitcher. Bring 1/2 cup / 120ml water not quite to a boil. Pour it over the tea leaves wait ten seconds, then add the remaining 3 1/2 cups water.
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Refrigerate until the tea is a strength you like - typically 4 - 8 hours. Strain and serve over ice.
Makes 4 cups
- Alternative brew: Substitute a handful of fresh mint, and four coins of bruised ginger for the rose petals and coriander.
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Comments
So gorgeous! Can't wait to try this.
Looks so refreshing! My hubby loves tea. Will have to make this for him!
Iced green tea with rose petals and coriander seeds, sounds like the perfect heat quencher! Great brewing tips as well, I totally agree with 'waking up the leaves' for its healthy antioxidants. I'm also imagining a hot version of this tea with my Apple Spice Cake!
Gosh... we were burning outside today.... Had to try this homemade green tea and it was more than refreshing, it was delicious! Thanks for this simple and low-cost drink! 1+
This is so beautiful!!! love it and sounds delicious as well :)
I have never heard of a cold brew technique before. You say it improves antioxidant count, do you know if it has an impact of caffeine levels too? The concoction sounds delicious!
I will take two pitchers please. In this heat this is perfection. Off to make some and freeze a little in ice-cubes for later, I don't like my teas diluted ha!
For a tea making newbie like I am, is there a downside towards the traditional method of a straight hot brew method and then just stashing it in the fridge to cool down?
What a pretty refresher! So simple yet packed full of flavour and goodness :) I love when you get inspiration from people around you :) x
This looks delicious! I'm really curious about rose petals, both where and how to buy them and/or drying them myself. Is it like drying any kind of herb? Can one dry any type of unsprayed roses or are certain varieties better or worse for cooking? And what is rose water? Several of your recipes use dried roses and it would be nice to see a post dedicated to this.
Hi Emily - here's a post on edible flowers, as well as one on how to dry herbs. Have fun!
This looks so delightful and refreshing for summer :)
I really appreciate hearing about your cold brewing practices. I have yet to experiment. Also, the nuance of flavor. Super excited to try this one.
This sounds delicious! What a wonderful refreshing drink for summer.
Do you have a recommended source for the dried rose petals? I've seen them in a number of your recipes and love the flavor, but haven't found a place that I trust. I live in the SF bay area as well, will travel for the right source! :)
HS: Hi Maggie - you can get them at Rainbow, or often I source unsprayed roses at the farmers' market, and dry them myself - on a flat surface for a few days, tossing every day.
At a conference I attended on nutrient content in food, the presenter was emphatic about the nutrient profile of tea (antioxidants, etc.) degrading fairly quickly, making iced tea not the best option for nutritional benefit - regardless of how good it may taste.
Hello Heidi, You should try making gyokuro iced tea (very good on its own) or oolong ("greener" ones taste better than darker) if you haven't already. Klemen
Marvelous and refreshing.
Could you use rose water in place of the dried rose petals? Thanks!
HS: Sure! Just add it to taste, a bit at a time.
This is such a lovely drink for summertime! I really don't make iced tea often enough and this is so inspiring!
Hi Heidi, looking forward to seeing your Hong Kong pics - it is a fun place to visit isn't it? I hope it wasn't too hot - the heat there gets pretty intense! I only just noticed in the past couple of days, the Cookbook Collection tab you have on the site (it may have been there ages and I hadn't noticed) - makes me think of the 101 Library!
HS: Kate! It was SO hot and humid, but it was a mostly welcome change from SF summers ;) Working on a HK post now :) xo