An iced vanilla chai latte is a great way to start your morning or have as an afternoon pick-me-up on a hot day. It's a refreshing drink and such an easy recipe: all you need are vanilla chai tea bags (or regular chai tea bags), water, vanilla extract, ground cinnamon, and your milk of choice. If you want extra vanilla flavor, you can add vanilla bean or vanilla syrup!
This Starbucks copycat recipe for an iced vanilla chai tea latte tastes just like one you can order at a coffee shop. I love adding coffee or espresso to it to make a dirty chai latte! You can absolutely enjoy this iced chai latte hot, and if you like homeade versions of hot beverages like me, you'll enjoy my other latte recipes like salted caramel oat milk latte, homemade pumpkin spice latte, and a matcha latte as other ways to get your caffeine fix without a lot of sugar! These are also all delicious iced if you prefer cold drinks 🙂
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Equipment
- Teapot, small saucepan, or liquid measuring cup - I drink tea all the time so I use my teapot to boil water to make the chai tea, but you can use a small saucepan over the stove or even a liquid measuring cup in the microwave!
- Milk frother - if you really want this iced vanilla chai latte to taste like your own Starbucks iced chai tea latte, a milk frother is a game changer! It not only mixes the vanilla extract, vanilla bean, and ground cinnmon into the milk to make a creamy vanilla cinnamon milk, but it adds air and gives the milk a great mouthfeel.
- Serving glass - this iced vanilla chai comes out to a little under 2 cups (16oz) and then you'll want room for ice. So be sure to use a serving glass with enough room!
- Cutting board (optional) - if you're going to use real vanilla bean, you'll need a small cutting board to slice the bean in half.
- Knife (optional) - you'll need a sharp knife to slice the vanilla bean and scrape the seeds out!
Ingredients
Full ingredients, measurements, and instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Hot water - it's important to use hot water to properly steep the tea!
- Vanilla chai tea bags - these are perfect for this easy recipe! Any spiced tea or black tea will work if you can't find or don't have vanilla chai tea bags.
- Milk - any kind of milk will work here! Cow's milk or any plant-based milk (unsweetened almond milk, soy milk, oat milk, coconut milk, etc.). I do highly recommend using a creamy milk that has some fat in it. This will give the vanilla iced chai latte a creamier flavor whereas fat-free milks make it a little watery! I love using a protein shake or low-fat cow's milk (you can use whole milk but there will be extra saturated fat).
- Pure vanilla extract - this will give that delicious vanilla flavor to this chai latte!
- Ground cinnamon - cinnamon is a primary ingredient in chai spices so adding ground cinnamon just furthers the flavor.
- Vanilla bean - if you love vanilla, I highly recommend adding vanilla bean to this recipe! It elevates this iced chai recipe and gives it even more vanilla flavor.
How to Make an Iced Vanilla Chai Latte
1: Bring water to a boil and pour into a liquid measuring cup. Place 2 vanilla chai tea tea bags in the hot water and steep for 7-10 minutes. *The longer you steep it, the stronger the tea will be!
3: Let tea completely cool (or at least come to room temperature!) and pour the tea over ice cubes in a serving glass.
2: As the tea cools, combine your favorite milk, vanilla extract, vanilla bean, and ground cinnamon in another liquid measuring cup or glass. Froth until fully mixed.
4: Add ice to the cooled tea and pour cinnamon vanilla milk over iced tea (re-mix the milk or swirl it around to stir up the vanilla beans and cinnamon that may have sunk to the bottom) and enjoy!
Variations & Substitutions
- If you want to make this chai latte recipe higher in protein, your favorite protein powder mixed with your milk of choice would also be fantastic!
- If you prefer some sweetness, you can add a Tablespoon or two of maple syrup, cinnamon simple syrup, or brown sugar to the milk before frothing!
Pro Tips
- Definitely use a milk with some fat in it! This will make the latte creamier and taste just like you ordered it from a coffee shop.
- For an even more flavorful drink, you can make extra chai tea ahead of time and fill ice cube trays with the hot tea to make chai tea ice cubes! As they melt, they'll just be more chai tea and shouldn't water down your drink.
- I'll prep the tea ahead of time and let it steep for 10 minutes (or longer sometimes) and make sure it's really cooled down before pouring it over the ice. Pouring hot tea over ice will just cause the ice to melt and result in a watery chai tea latte!
- The vanilla beans and ground cinnamon may sink to the bottom of the milk/tea, so be sure to swirl it around or mix it before drinking!
Storage & Making Ahead
- STORAGE: If you don't finish the iced vanilla chai, you can keep it in the refrigerator for up to 3 days! I would just strain the ice out so it doesn't water down your drink.
- MAKING AHEAD: If you want to make this ahead of time, I would follow the instructions up until you pour it over ice! I would wait until you're ready to serve or drink it to pour it over ice. Just be sure to mix it up as the vanilla and cinnamon will settle on the bottom!
Recipe FAQ
It will work but you won't get as strong of a masala chai flavor as you would if you used a chai tea. You could always mix your own chai spices or add a chai concentrate to give you that iced chai latte taste with black tea.
This iced vanilla chai latte does not have coffee in it but you can add some to make an iced dirty chai latte!
Simply add a shot of espresso (after letting it cool) to your tea before mixing in the spiced milk.
Whichever you prefer. Honey, pure maple syrup, or a vanilla simple syrup mix well because they're more liquid. Regular white sugar and brown sugar are good too, but they may not dissolve as well in this iced beverage!
A shaker bottle or mason jar will work well to mix the spices and milk together. If you don't have either, a bowl and whisk will do the trick too!
Depending on what type of tea you use, there will be some caffeine. The caffeine content could be anywhere between 30-120mg per serving depending on what brand you buy, the leaves they use, etc.! If you prefer minimal caffeine, you can use decaf chai tea.
Other Recipes You May Like
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PrintIced Vanilla Chai Latte
An iced vanilla chai latte is a great way to start your morning or have as an afternoon pick-me-up on a hot day. It's a refreshing drink and such an easy recipe to make!
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 1 glass 1x
- Category: Drinks
- Method: Mixing
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 1 cup (242g) boiling water
- 2 vanilla chai tea bags (or regular chai tea bags)
- ¾ cup (181g) milk of choice or vanilla protein shake
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ vanilla bean, sliced in half
Instructions
- Bring water to boil and pour into a liquid measuring cup.
- Add tea bags to hot water and steep 7-10 minutes (or longer for stronger tea). Set aside and let cool.
- Combine milk, vanilla extract, and ground cinnamon in a bowl, tall glass, or mason jar.
- Using a small cutting board, slice the vanilla bean in half and scrape the seeds out of both sides. Add seeds to milk mixture.
- Using a milk frother, mix milk mixture until combined. You can also use a whisk or shake the mason jar.
- Fill a 16- or 20-ounce glass halfway with ice cubes. Pour cooled tea over ice.
- Pour spiced milk mixture into glass with tea.
- Garnish with a sprinkle of cinnamon and the sliced vanilla bean. Enjoy!
Notes
- STORAGE: If you don't finish the iced vanilla chai, you can keep it in the refrigerator for up to 3 days! I would just strain the ice out so it doesn't water down your drink.
- MAKING AHEAD: If you want to make this ahead of time, I would follow the instructions up until you pour it over ice! I would wait until you're ready to serve or drink it to pour it over ice. Just be sure to mix it up as the vanilla and cinnamon will settle on the bottom!
- If you want to make this chai latte recipe higher in protein, your favorite protein powder mixed with your milk of choice would also be fantastic!
- If you prefer some sweetness, you can add a Tablespoon or two of maple syrup, cinnamon simple syrup, or brown sugar to the milk before frothing!
- Definitely use a milk with some fat in it! This will make the latte creamier and taste just like you ordered it from a coffee shop.
- For an even more flavorful drink, you can make extra chai tea ahead of time and fill ice cube trays with the hot tea to make chai tea ice cubes! As they melt, they'll just be more chai tea and shouldn't water down your drink.
- I'll prep the tea ahead of time and let it steep for 10 minutes (or longer sometimes) and make sure it's really cooled down before pouring it over the ice. Pouring hot tea over ice will just cause the ice to melt and result in a watery chai tea latte!
- The vanilla beans and ground cinnamon may sink to the bottom of the milk/tea, so be sure to swirl it around or mix it before drinking!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 16 ounces
- Calories: 93
- Sugar: 2
- Sodium: 148
- Fat: 1
- Saturated Fat: 1
- Unsaturated Fat: 0
- Trans Fat: 0
- Carbohydrates: 2
- Fiber: 0
- Protein: 16
- Cholesterol: 5
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