Lychee Black Tea Recipe

Brew the tea

Bring 1 cup hot water to near-boil (about 95°C / 203°F). Add black tea leaves (about 2 tablespoons) or 2 tea bags. Steep 4–5 minutes for a strong brew. Remove tea leaves or bags and allow the tea to cool to room temperature, about 20–30 minutes. (If you need to speed up cooling, place the brewed tea in the refrigerator for 10–15 minutes.)

Measure out 2 cups of the cooled strong tea for the recipe.

Prepare lychee and syrup

If using canned lychees, drain them and reserve 3 tablespoons of the canning syrup (this is your lychee syrup). Chop or halve 4 of the lychees roughly; reserve 2 whole lychees for garnish. If using store-bought lychee syrup, measure 3 tablespoons.

Sweeten and combine

In a small bowl, combine the 3 tablespoons lychee syrup with 1 teaspoon simple syrup (or granulated sugar). Stir until sugar dissolves. Taste: you want a noticeable but balanced lychee sweetness. Adjust with up to 1 tablespoon additional lychee syrup or 1/2 teaspoon more simple syrup if you prefer sweeter.

Add 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice to the lychee-syrup mixture and stir. The lemon brightens the flavor and prevents the drink from tasting too cloying.

Combine tea and lychee

In a pitcher, pour the 2 cups of cooled black tea. Add the lychee-syrup-lemon mixture and stir thoroughly to combine. Taste and adjust sweetness or acidity as desired (add up to 1 tablespoon more lychee syrup or up to 1/2 teaspoon more lemon juice).

Serve over ice

Fill two serving glasses with ice (about 1/2 cup ice per glass). Pour the lychee black tea evenly between the glasses. Add 3 halved lychee pieces (or 1-2 whole lychees) to each glass and garnish with 2 fresh mint leaves if using. Stir gently and serve immediately.

Make the tea base and lychee syrup mixture up to 24 hours ahead; store refrigerated. If serving chilled later, pour over fresh ice and add garnish just before serving. For a sparkling version, replace up to 1/2 cup of chilled tea with chilled club soda and add soda at the end to preserve fizz.