Name: Strawberry Matcha Latte
Prep time: 15 min
Total time: 15 min
Ingredients: 10 ounce strawberries (, hulled and roughly small diced (about 2 cups diced)); 5 Tablespoon granulated sugar ((or your preferred sugar substitute)); 1⅓ cup milk ((or 300mL)); 2 teaspoon ceremonial grade matcha; ¾ cup water; 2 teaspoon honey (, optional (or substitute with your preferred sweetener))

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THE strawberry matcha latte that's well balanced between a full bodied, fresh strawberry essence and creamy but light, floral, and herbaceous matcha. Not only does this latte taste amazing and embodies summer, it is so aesthetically pleasing!

Front close up view of a glass of strawberry matcha latte.

Summer time in Louisiana is so hot and humid, but you know what makes it a bit better? Some amazing Louisiana strawberries! Especially, if they're also made into this IG worthy latte. Just look at this gorgeous light pink and vibrant green! But colors aside though, this strawberry matcha latte is super easy to make and tastes amazing!

High quality matcha is a necessity!

Unlike using matcha powder in cooking or baking, making matcha drinks require that high quality matcha is used. Not only does high quality matcha ensure that the drinks are vibrant, clean, and green in color, the difference in taste is also very noticeable. Lesser quality matcha tend to be a bit murkier and brownish green in color, and they also taste bitter, astringent, and may not have that pleasant floral or vegetal flavor. Being that the matcha flavor will be one of the major flavor factors of this strawberry matcha latte, we highly recommend using ceremonial grade matcha.

Pouring strawberry milk into a glass of ice.

Good quality strawberries make a difference

I will say that this drink NEEDS good strawberries. We, living in Louisiana, are very fortunate to have amazing strawberries during our strawberry season...which is now! So this strawberry matcha latte tastes amazing and full of strawberry flavors. We have tried making this latte with less ripe and less fragrant strawberries, and it was okay. The strawberry milk was noticeably less pink in color, was not as sweet, and had less strawberry flavors in general. So for the sake of flavors and aesthetics, I recommend picking out the ripest strawberries.

Now outside of strawberry season, I recommend using frozen strawberries. Frozen strawberries and fruits in general are picked at the end of the season or at the fruit's optimal prime. I'd say a maybe even a little past that. So the fruits are typically sweet, ripe, and flavorful. So, when there's no good, fresh strawberries, go for the frozen ones. Also, because we are macerating the strawberries for this latte, not having fresh strawberries won't affect the end product much.

Stirring a glass of strawberry matcha latte with a straw.

Macerated strawberries

You might wonder why we opted to macerate our strawberries for this latte rather than just using the strawberries fresh. Well, macerated strawberries have a stronger strawberry smell and taste. Not sure if it's all mental or if it the sugar is breaking down the strawberry cells and releasing more flavor and aroma. So, try it out and tell us in the comments below!

Besides the elevated strawberry flavors and scent, macerating the berries also makes the strawberries more convenient for use. Rather than dicing up my strawberries when I need it, I can macerate my strawberries up to 3 days ahead of time and use it whenever I feel like having some strawberry milk or strawberry matcha latte. Now, do note that the speed the strawberries or any other fruits macerate at, depends on how small the berries are diced. The smaller the strawberries are diced, which means more surface area, the faster the maceration can happen, and vice versa.

Wide, front view of a glass of strawberry matcha latte garnished with strawberries.

Adjust the sweetness of your strawberry matcha latte

Now, piggy-backing to our previous topic of macerating strawberries and picking ripe strawberries for this strawberry matcha latte, the sweetness of the latte ultimately depends on how sweet the strawberries are. Our recipe is based on relatively ripe strawberries so we didn't need too much additional sugar. For example, depending on how sweet and ripe the strawberries are, more sugar or sweetener may be needed for maceration. Heck, sometimes I prefer a drink that's like a sugar bomb and other days I crave bitter coffee. So feel free to adjust the sweetness of this latte for your mood of the day or even hour.

Pouring matcha tea into a glass of strawberry milk.

The secret to layering drinks

This topic is probably why you're here reading right now...how to layer this strawberry matcha latte. We had to test this recipe a few times, not because the drink didn't taste good. The issue was troubleshooting the occasional issues of our latte layers blending too quickly into each other. So we found out why, and it's honestly a simple concept that you probably already know.

The secret to keeping your beautiful layers separated distinctly all lies in the density of the liquids. If you want the pink strawberry milk to stay on the bottom half of the glass, you must ensure that the strawberry milk is heavier than the matcha tea that's on the top half. In the case of this particular latte, the strawberry milk needs to have no aeration and the matcha tea needs to have more aeration.

Invest in a matcha whisk

One way to keep the matcha tea light is by aerating it. For aerating matcha teas, I highly recommend investing in a good matcha whisk or a small milk frother, like those for lattes. Both of these tools help incorporate air into the tea, making it light. Personally, I do love the convenience of a latte/ milk frother, but the aesthetic look of a matcha whisk is hard to beat.

Strain the strawberry milk

You guys might wonder, is straining the strawberry milk necessary for this latte. The answer is no. It is definitely not a necessity, but we found that straining the strawberry milk, especially after blending, helps remove the extra air and foam that was incorporated and also the strawberry pulp. We didn't mind the pulp too much, but it does have a texture that might not be enjoyable for everyone. On the other hand, we did mind having the extra aeration when we don't strain our strawberry milk. The color of the milk was definitely lighter and also the layers in our drink became blended much faster. So, yes. We highly recommend straining the strawberry milk. But if these things don't bother you, and you're here solely for the taste, feel free to skip.

Also, if you don't mind having chunks in your latte, I know many of us are texture people, you can skip blending the strawberry milk. Instead, you can just spoon the macerated strawberries into your glasses, add ice, add the milk, and top it off with the matcha tea.

Front, angled view of a glass of strawberry matcha latte with a straw.

If you're looking for other summer recipes, you may like these:

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Strawberry Matcha Latte

Prep Time15 mins

Total Time15 mins

Yield: glass

Ingredients

For the strawberry milk:

▢ 10 ounce strawberries , hulled and roughly small diced (about 2 cups diced)
▢ 5 Tablespoon granulated sugar (or your preferred sugar substitute)
▢ 1⅓ cup milk (or 300mL)

For the matcha tea:

▢ 2 teaspoon ceremonial grade matcha
▢ ¾ cup water
▢ 2 teaspoon honey , optional (or substitute with your preferred sweetener)

Instructions

For the strawberry milk:

Combine the small diced strawberries and sugar and mix well to macerate. Let the strawberries sit at room temperature for at least 5-10 minutes or up to 1 hour (keep it covered as needed).
*You can macerate the strawberries even the night before, up to 3 days ahead of time, if you prefer. Just keep it properly stored in the fridge.The sweetness of the latte mostly comes from the macerated strawberries, so feel free to adjust the amount of sugar used.*
Once the strawberries have been macerated, add all of the macerated strawberries into a blender along with the milk. Blend the strawberry milk for about 10-20 seconds until there are no more strawberry chunks. Strain the strawberry milk with a fine mesh strainer and set aside until needed.

For the matcha tea & assembly:

In a small circular bowl, combine the matcha powder, honey, and water. Using the matcha whisk, whisk the matcha tea briskly for 1-2 minutes, or until the tea is frothy and well combined with no lumps.
*If you don't have a matcha whisk, portable electric milk frothers do wonders.*
Prepare 2 glasses with your preferred amount of ice and divide the strawberry milk into each glass. Pour half of the matcha tea over the strawberry milk to top the strawberry matcha latte.
*If you prefer a creamier latter with a little more body, you can decrease the milk by 2 to 3 Tablespoons per serving and replace it with 2 to 3 Tablespoons of heavy cream per serving.*
Garnish the strawberry matcha lattes with strawberries and enjoy!

Notes

*An alternative way to make the strawberry milk, if you don't mind chunks of strawberry in your latte:

Spoon the macerated strawberries into 2 glasses (divided evenly).
Top each glass with ice then fill each glass with milk with ⅔ cup to ¾ cup milk.
Pour the frothy matcha tea over the milk.

This method doesn't require blending or straining the milk, but the strawberry milk will not be as pink.

**Also, refer to the post above for FAQs and tips for making this drink!