Thai Iced Coffee Recipe with Condensed Milk

How Thai Iced Coffee Tastes

I like strong coffee still evident through the condensed and evaporated milks. They already bring plenty of sweetness and richness for my first version, so I taste before considering any extra syrup. Condensed milk gives a cooked-milk sweetness; evaporated milk adds a creamy finish. Roast and blend can bring earthy, nutty or darker bitter notes, but a grain-containing Thai mix will not taste identical to plain espresso.

Thai Iced Coffee Recipe

Creamy Thai Iced Coffee

One glass, about 10 minutes. This is a measured home adaptation of Thai-Foodie’s steep-and-strain method. Use ground Thai coffee brewing mix; brand composition and filter speed vary. The 180 ml (6.1 US fl oz) serving is collected coffee, not the 250 ml (8.5 US fl oz) water input. A heat-resistant glass 450 ml (15.2 US fl oz) leaves space for the liquids and ice.

Here a tablespoon is a 15 ml US measure. Spoon weights for a coffee-and-grain mix vary, so record the weighed dose of your own product if you want to repeat it precisely. If less than 180 ml (6.1 US fl oz) coffee drains through, scale the two milks down proportionally instead of silently topping up the concentrate with water.

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Which Coffee Should You Use for Thai Iced Coffee?

Thai brewing mix: Start with the packet’s brewing and ingredient information. Some mixes contain grains, legumes or seeds alongside coffee. For example, Pantainorasingh’s Oliang Powder Mixed listing names 50% coffee, corn and soybean. That is one product, not a national formula; check your packet’s ingredients, allergens and any added sugar. “Oliang” on a brewing mix does not prevent you from adding milk to the finished coffee. Ground mix requires filtering; instant three-in-one powder needs its own directions.

Plain-coffee adaptation: Steep 20 g ground coffee in 250 ml (8.5 US fl oz) hot water for about four minutes in a French press. Measure 180 ml (6.1 US fl oz) brewed coffee and use the same milk quantities. This gives a practical alternative with a different flavor from a Thai mix.

Espresso adaptation: Combine 60 ml (2 US fl oz) prepared espresso with 120 ml (4.1 US fl oz) hot water, then add the two milks and ice. This has the same coffee-base volume as the main recipe, but not necessarily the same caffeine. Use decaf coffee in either adaptation if preferred; decaf still contains a small, variable amount of caffeine.

Thai vs. Vietnamese Iced Coffee

Compare the coffee, brew method and actual portion rather than the country name.

Thai Iced Coffee Troubleshooting

For a dairy-free version, replace both milk ingredients. A sweetened condensed coconut product plus an unsweetened plant drink is one adaptation; use their labels for sugar and calories. Substituting ordinary milk for evaporated milk is also possible, but the same volume produces a lighter result.

Thai Iced Coffee Caffeine, Calories and Sugar

Calories and Sugar: What the Two Milks Contribute

The two milks supply 170 kcal and 25 g total sugar, plus the coffee contribution.

Carnation condensed milk lists 130 kcal and 22 g total sugar per 30 ml (2 US tbsp), including 18 g added sugar. Carnation evaporated milk lists 40 kcal and 3 g total sugar per 30 ml (2 US tbsp).

Our label calculation holds evaporated milk at 30 ml (2 US tbsp) and changes only the sweetened milk:

Halving condensed milk removes 65 kcal and 11 g sugar from this particular dairy combination; it does not halve the whole drink’s calories. The default row includes 18 g added sugar; the remainder includes naturally occurring milk sugars.

Caffeine: The Recipe and Reference Examples Are Different

The 3-tablespoon Thai-mix recipe has no verified caffeine measurement.

For context only, Mayo Clinic’s generic coffee table gives 96 mg per 237 ml (8 US fl oz) brewed coffee and 63 mg per 30 ml (2 US tbsp) espresso. Scaling those references gives:

These are generic examples, not measured values for the main recipe or its strong-coffee adaptations. Adding milk or ice changes concentration and temperature, not the amount of caffeine already in the coffee.

History and Culture

Creamy iced coffee belongs to Thailand’s wider street-drink culture of brewed coffee, ice and adjustable sweetness. Cloth-filter preparation and canned milks are familiar choices. The broad name kafae yen means iced coffee; tell the seller whether you want a milky drink, black coffee or less sweetness rather than relying on a universal formula.

A home recipe can preserve the strong-coffee and milk balance without treating star anise or cardamom as obligatory. Thai-Foodie’s practitioner account provides context for the unspiced milk-coffee approach used here.

Common Questions

Editor's Take

Sources and Further Reading