Go Back
+ servings
A glass of cold Matcha Chai Latte with Masala Chai spices next to it.
Print Recipe
5 from 33 votes

Starbucks Matcha Chai Latte

This easy copycat recipe makes a delicious spiced Starbucks Matcha Chai Latte recipe using only 4 ingredients and 5 minutes! It's delicious both hot on a cold day or iced in summer and allows you to easily recreate your coffee house experience at home!
Prep Time1 minute
Cook Time6 minutes
Course: Dessert, Drinks
Cuisine: Fusion, Indian, Japanese
Servings: 2 Mugs
Calories: 158kcal
Author: Zen

Equipment

  • Matcha whisk Substitute: regular whisk or milk frother
  • Pot

Ingredients

  • 2 chai tea bags Substitute 1: 1 inch cinnamon stick, 5 slices of ginger, 4 cloves and 6 green cardamoms. Substitute 2: chai syrup
  • ¾ Cup hot water
  • 2 teaspoon ceremonial matcha powder Substitute: matcha syrup. If you want a stronger matcha taste, use 3-4 teaspoons of matcha powder, but note that the more powder you use, the more you'll have to whisk to get it to dissolve.
  • 2 Cups Whole Milk For a vegan matcha chai latte, use almond milk, soy milk or coconut milk.
  • Honey/ maple syrup (if you prefer to introduce a caramel note to emphasise the spice). to taste I usually use ½-1 Tablespoon per mug. Note: you may not need this if using matcha syrup or chai syrup which are pre-sweetened. If you want to use white sugar or stevia, I recommend making Hot Matcha Chai. If not, dissolving the sugar will be tedious!
  • Optional: ice for iced Matcha Chai Latte

Instructions

A. Making the chai tea

  • Using a tea bag: Steep the chai tea bag in the hot water for 3-5 minutes. Remove the tea bag. (If you're using chai syrup instead of a tea bag, mix the syrup with hot water till completely dissolved.)
  • Using whole spices: dry toast the cardamom, cinnamon and cloves on medium fire till fragrant. Add the ginger and water then boil for 3-5 minutes. (If you don't boil the ginger, it may curdle the milk.) Sieve out the spices (which can be kept to make a 2nd batch of tea! Simply boil for 10 minutes with 1- 1.5 litres of water.)
  • Using Chai Syrup: stir the chai syrup into the hot water.
  • Tip on sweetening: If you are using sugar/ stevia and already know exactly how much you want to add, add it now whilst the Masala Chai is hot (it's easier to dissolve.) If you're making this for the 1st time, wait till the matcha and milk have dissolved then sweeten to taste with a liquid sweetener like Maple Syrup. If using Chai Syrup, you may not need extra sugar.

B. Mixing in the matcha

  • Allow the chai tea from Step A to cool to 80C/ 176F (about 10 minutes but will vary depending on the temperature where you live! If the liquid is too hot, your drink may be bitter.)
  • Next, whisk in the matcha powder (if you don't have a whisk, use the milk frother to mix the matcha and water.)
  • See Notes on substituting matcha powder with matcha syrup.

C. Assembling the drink

  • Slowly pour the Matcha and Chai mixture from Step B into the milk. This will give you a cup of matcha chai latte with a white top- if you want the entire drink to look green, pour the milk into the Matcha Chai mixture.
  • Sweeten to taste.
  • For Hot Matcha Chai: If you want a hot matcha chai latte, heat up the milk gently in a pan or in a microwave for 1-2 minutes before adding. (This will also make it easier to dissolve any sugar.) If not, skip this step.
  • For Cold Matcha Chai: Add some ice cubes to the cup after the tea has cooled (if not the ice will dissolve and dilute your drink.)
  • See Notes if you want your Matcha Chai Latte to look like coffee-house art!

Notes

Substituting matcha powder with matcha syrup
If you have matcha syrup on hand- it's easy to make at home (click the link for the recipe- you can use it instead of the matcha powder and hot water mixture above. Start with 1 tablespoon of matcha syrup then taste- if the flavor isn't strong enough, add more. Also, remember not to add any sweetener in Step A as the green tea syrup is already sweet. (Taste after mixing the milk, matcha syrup and chai and sweeten again then if not to your taste.)
Homemade chai spice blend
Mix ⅛ ginger powder, ⅛ nutmeg powder, ⅛ cardamom powder,  ⅛ cinnamon powder, pinch of allspice powder. (I've added nutmeg powder and allspice as ginger powder isn't as flavorful as fresh ginger!)
Optional Cafe-style presentation
To make frothy: Use the milk frother or whisk to make the milky frothy. Alternatively, pour the milk into a mason jar, seal it well, then shake till the milk foams.
You can also sprinkle some green matcha powder or brown cinnamon powder on top to create some latte art.
Note: the nutritional information is an estimate automatically calculated using the WPRM recipe maker and I am not responsible for its veracity.

Nutrition

Calories: 158kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 10g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 29mg | Sodium: 97mg | Potassium: 366mg | Sugar: 12g | Vitamin A: 595IU | Calcium: 303mg | Iron: 1mg