Iced Chai Latte

Last summer, I was all about cold brew coffee. This summer, my obsession is iced chai lattes. And my friends, I am deeply obsessed.
The size (and frequency) of my batches seems to have become larger and larger as the summer has progressed. At first, I was just drinking one or two glasses in the morning. And then another glass in the afternoon started to seem perfectly reasonable.
When I switched from water glasses to pint glasses, I knew I was in trouble.
I take a fairly simple, uncomplicated approach to my iced chai — minimum effort for maximum payout.
I like cold-steep my tea for at least a few hours, though sometimes I leave it all day. The beauty of cold-steeping is that the tea stays mellow and smooth even if you forget about it for a while. (There are Quick Steeping directions below if you need your iced chai a little more urgently.)
I think four bags of tea per quart of water makes a nicely spicy cup of iced chai. I recommend starting there, but if you think you’d like your chai lighter or stronger, just adjust the number of tea bags as needed.
I sweeten my chai lattes with a quick honey syrup made of equal parts honey and water. A syrup like this mixes more easily into the tea than straight honey.
You could mix the syrup with the full batch of chai once it’s finished steeping, but I prefer to mix them in the glass. That way I can adjust the sweetness to my taste, or to the taste of any guests who happen to wander by in need of a cool, refreshing beverage.
Top off your glass of iced chai with as much or as little milk as you like. Creaminess is a highly personal decision. I like to use whole milk, but 2% milk, almond milk, or coconut milk are all lovely.
One final thought: If you like to sip your iced tea slowly and don’t want it to get watered down with ice cubes, make an extra batch of chai and freeze it into ice cubes!

Iced Chai Latte Recipe

• Prep time: 5 minutes
• Steeping time: 4 to 12 hours
• Yield: 4 servings

Double this recipe for more servings. The honey syrup and prepared chai will both keep for at least a week in the refrigerator.
Quick Steeping: If you need to speed up the steeping process, bring 2 cups of water to a boil, remove from heat, and add the tea bags. Steep for 10 to 20 minutes. Remove the tea bags and add the remaining 2 cups of water. Cool to room temperature, then transfer to the fridge to cool completely.
Homemade Chai Blend: If you prefer to make your own chai blend instead of using tea bags, follow the instructions above for Quick Steeping and use the blend of black tea and spices recommended in this recipe for Homemade Chai.

Ingredients

For the iced chai:

• 4 tea bags of chai
• 1 quart water

For the honey syrup:

• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/4 cup water

To serve:

• Milk, any kind

Method

1 Steep the tea: Combine the tea and water in a quart-sized jar.
Cover and let steep at room temperature for at least 4 hours or up to 12 hours. The tea will become stronger and more infused the longer it stands.
2 Make the honey syrup: Combine the honey and water in a small glass container. Microwave for 30 seconds. Stir to dissolve the honey.
Allow to cool, then cover and refrigerate until needed. (Honey syrup will keep for about a week.)
3 Remove the tea bags: Once the tea has infused to your liking, remove the tea bags. The tea is ready to be used immediately, or cover and refrigerate for a week or more.
4 Assemble an iced chai latte: Place a few ice cubes in a glass. Pour 1 to 3 teaspoons of honey syrup over the ice cubes. Fill the glass with a cup or so of iced chai and top with as much milk as you like.
Stir to combine and taste. Add more honey syrup or milk, if desired.

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Vietnamese-Style Noodle Bowls with Chicken

An entire meal in one bowl is a brilliant system. That’s one reason the bowl trend has taken off and shows no signs of declining.
Another is the ease. You can put a bowl together without any heavy lifting, and at the end of your assembly line you have happy eaters.
Here is a riff that I like to do on Vietnamese “bún” – one of the original meals in a bowl! This is a cold salad of vermicelli rice noodles, chicken, fresh herbs and vegetables, and a tangy rice vinegar dressing.

Vermicelli noodles are now widely available at most grocery stores, or you can find them online. When shopping, make sure to get vermicelli noodles made with rice, not mung beans.
The two noodles look similar, but mung bean noodles tend to be sticky once cooked and are better suited to other dishes. Rice vermicelli separates into fine threads after cooking, which are easier to pick up with chopsticks or a fork.
The meat for making bún is often grilled, but for an easy weeknight meal, I like to just cook it in the oven. First I coat the chicken with a mix of oyster sauce and hoisin (a combination that I like), then I bake it covered with foil. This helps keep the chicken moist as it cooks.
When it’s done, I sear the breasts quickly in a skillet to caramelize the outside and add some charred flavor.
By the way, if you do want to grill your chicken, I recommend using bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts. Cook it without sauce over high heat, then transfer to low heat, baste with the sauce, and finish cooking.

The chicken noodle bowls are finished with a simple rice vinegar dressing seasoned with ginger, and garnished with fresh mint, cilantro, scallions, and chopped peanuts. (Many bún recipes use lime in the dressing, but I like squeezing fresh lime over the top instead.)
You get crunch and sweetness, a hit of vinegar, a soft pillow of noodles, and bites of caramelized chicken – all in one bowl. This is a “meal in a bowl” at its best!

Vietnamese-Style Noodle Bowls with Chicken Recipe

• Prep time: 30 minutes
• Cook time: 40 minutes
• Yield: 4 servings

If you need to make this recipe gluten-free, be sure to check your bottles of hoisin and oyster sauce to make sure they are gluten-free.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar, or more to taste
• 1/2 cup seasoned rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoons fish sauce
• 1 piece (1-inch) fresh ginger, cut into 2 thick slices
• 1 clove garlic, halved
• 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
• 2 tablespoons oyster sauce
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 2 large skinless, boneless chicken breasts (about 1 pound or 1/2 kilo)
• 8 ounces rice vermicelli noodles
• 2 carrots, grated
• 2 cups fresh bean sprouts (6 ounces or 170 grams)
• 1 jalapeno or other chili pepper, cored and thinly sliced
• 2 scallions, thinly sliced
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh mint leaves
• 1/4 cup peanuts, coarsely chopped
• 1 lime, quartered, for garnish

Special equipment:

• 8x8 baking dish or other small baking dish
• 12-inch nonstick skillet or well-seasoned cast iron skillet

Method

1 Make the dressing: In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the sugar, rice vinegar, fish sauce, ginger, and garlic. Cook, stirring often, just until bubbles appear at the edges and the sugar has dissolved. (Alternatively, microwave in 30-second bursts until the sugar has dissolved and the dressing is hot.)
Remove from heat and cool to room temperature. With a slotted spoon, remove and discard the ginger and garlic.
Taste the dressing for seasoning and add more sugar, 1/2 teaspoon at a time, if you like. The dressing should be a nice balance of vinegary and sweet.
This can be prepared several days in advance; keep refrigerated.

2 Bake the chicken: Warm the oven to 400F. In a bowl, combine the hoisin and oyster sauces with the canola oil. Add the chicken and turn well to coat all over.
Arrange the chicken in an 8x8 baking dish in one layer. Cover with foil and cook for 35 minutes, or until a meat thermometer inserted into the middle of the breasts registers 165F.

3 While the chicken bakes, cook the noodles: Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil. Remove from heat, add the noodles, and let stand for 3 to 5 minutes, or until the noodles are tender when you taste one.
Drain into a colander, rinse with cold water, and shake the colander to remove excess water. (If the chicken isn't quite ready yet, cover the noodles with cool water to keep them from drying out. Drain before serving.)

4 Sear the chicken: Heat a large nonstick or well-seasoned cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Arrange the cooked chicken breasts in one layer and cook 2 minutes. Turn and cook 2 minutes more. Watch carefully so they do not burn.
Remove from the pan, and allow to cool briefly. Slice the chicken thinly, keeping the slices together if possible.

5 Assemble the salad: Divide the noodles among 4 large bowls. Top with sliced chicken, carrots, bean sprouts, jalapeno, and scallions. Sprinkle with a few spoonfuls of dressing, then garnish with cilantro, mint, and peanuts. Serve with lime and remaining dressing on the side.

Read More: Vietnamese-Style Noodle Bowls with Chicken