Strawberry matcha latte

Ingredients

• 250 g strawberries, fresh or frozen, hulled and halved (syrup for about 4 drinks)
• 3 tablespoons white sugar
• 1 squeeze of lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons (about 4 g) culinary grade matcha
• 60 ml warm water, about 60 to 80°C
• 180 ml cold milk, dairy or barista oat milk
• 1 large handful of ice cubes

Method

1. Make the strawberry syrup. Put 250 g of hulled strawberries in a small pot with 3 tablespoons of sugar and a squeeze of lemon juice. Simmer gently for 8 to 10 minutes, mashing as they soften, until syrupy. Cool completely. For a smooth syrup, strain it; for a fruitier drink, keep the pulp. Keeps about a week in a jar in the fridge.
2. Whisk the matcha. Sift 2 teaspoons (about 4 g) of matcha into a bowl or jar, add 60 ml of warm water and whisk in a W motion (or shake in the sealed jar) until smooth with a light foam.
3. Layer the glass. Spoon 2 to 3 tablespoons of strawberry syrup into the bottom of a tall glass. Fill with ice, then slowly pour in 180 ml of cold milk over the back of a spoon so the pink layer stays distinct.
4. Float the matcha and serve. Pour the matcha gently over the milk so it settles as a green top layer. Serve with a straw, and stir the layers together just before drinking.

How do you get the three layers to hold

The layers are a density trick. Sugar makes the strawberry syrup the heaviest layer, so it stays at the bottom; milk is lighter and sits above it; the matcha-and-water mix is lightest of all and floats on top. Two things protect the effect: keep the syrup properly sweet and cold, and pour each layer slowly, over the back of a spoon or down the inside of the glass. If the colours still blur, the glass or the milk was too warm, or the pour was too fast.

Fresh or frozen strawberries

Both work well. In summer, fresh NZ strawberries make a brighter, fresher-tasting syrup. The rest of the year, frozen berries are cheaper, already ripe and actually break down faster in the pot, so they are the sensible default (no thawing needed). Very ripe fruit needs a little less sugar; taste the syrup as it cools. The lemon juice is not optional decoration: it keeps the colour vivid and stops the sweetness going flat.

Shortcuts when you are not making syrup

For a faster version, muddle a few very ripe strawberries with a teaspoon of sugar straight in the glass, or loosen a spoonful of good strawberry jam with hot water. Cafe strawberry matchas are usually built on a commercial syrup or purée, which is why they taste sweeter than homemade. With your own syrup you control exactly how sweet the drink lands.

Common questions

What matcha grade should I use for strawberry matcha?

Culinary grade. Between the syrup and the milk there is a lot of sweetness for the tea to cut through, which is exactly what culinary matcha's robust flavour is for. Save ceremonial grade for drinking plain.

Can I make strawberry matcha hot?

You can (stir the syrup through hot frothed milk and top with whisked matcha) but the layered look mostly disappears and warm strawberry milk is not to everyone's taste. The drink is at its best iced.

How long does the strawberry syrup keep?

About a week in a sealed jar in the fridge, and it freezes well in ice-cube trays. One cube is close to one drink's worth.