Iced Hojicha with Cinnamon (Printable)

Roasted Japanese tea meets creamy milk and aromatic cinnamon in this chilled fusion beverage.

# What You Need:

→ Tea

01 - 2 tablespoons hojicha loose leaf tea or 2 hojicha tea bags
02 - 2 cups water

→ Dairy & Sweetener

03 - 1 cup milk (dairy or plant-based such as oat or almond milk)
04 - 1 to 2 teaspoons honey or simple syrup, optional

→ Garnish

05 - 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, plus extra for sprinkling
06 - Ice cubes as needed

# How-To:

01 - Bring 2 cups of water to a boil. Add hojicha tea leaves or tea bags, reduce heat and steep for 5 minutes.
02 - Strain the tea into a heatproof pitcher and allow to cool to room temperature. For faster chilling, refrigerate for 10 minutes.
03 - Fill two glasses with ice cubes.
04 - Pour cooled hojicha tea over the ice, filling each glass halfway.
05 - Stir in milk and sweetener to taste.
06 - Sprinkle ground cinnamon over each glass and stir gently.
07 - Garnish with an extra pinch of cinnamon on top and serve immediately.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • It's ready in 15 minutes, which means you can satisfy a craving for something special without the café wait time.
  • The cinnamon-hojicha combination feels indulgent but stays light enough for warm days when hot tea seems too heavy.
  • Works beautifully with any milk you have on hand, so dietary preferences never get in the way of enjoying it.
02 -
  • Don't skip the cooling step by pouring hot tea directly over ice—the temperature shock causes the milk to separate slightly and the flavor becomes thin and watered down.
  • Loose leaf hojicha always tastes noticeably better than tea bags because the leaves are larger and fuller, releasing their toasted complexity more completely.
03 -
  • Brew your hojicha slightly stronger than you think you need it, because ice always dilutes the flavor as it melts, and you want that toasted warmth to shine through.
  • If your plant-based milk tends to separate in cold liquid, warm it gently before adding—the slight temperature difference keeps it silky and integrated.
Go Back