No-Bake Thai Tea Cheesecake
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Making No-Bake Thai Tea Cheesecake is an easy and quick cheesecake recipe with a subtly fragrant, mellow, and creamy Thai tea infusion.
Thai iced tea is getting popular in my place as it is a perfect beverage to drink in hot weather. I decided to buy a pound of Thai tea mix without much thought when I set my eyes on that white and red package at the local supermarket. There is only one brand of Thai tea mix available here, which is Number One Brand. Making your own Thai iced tea is surprisingly easy — just brew, strain, add condensed milk, and voila… it’s ready to be served over ice.
Can you imagine how much a pound of loose tea leaves is in the package? For a cup of Thai iced tea, you need to add about one tablespoon of Thai tea mix. There was still a lot of leftovers, so I decided to do a little experiment on infusing Thai tea with desserts. The result is a light, subtle flavor that offers an interesting change from your normal recipe. More importantly, there is no baking involved.
What Is in Thai Tea?
As its name implies, Thai tea originated from Thailand, a country located in Southeast Asia. The tea has an orange color and it is usually sweetened with condensed milk and sugar. The drink is a combination of black tea leaves with other ingredients such as orange blossom water, star anise, crushed tamarind seed, and other spices. It also has a sweet vanilla aroma to it. The brewed tea color is bright orange as it contains artificial red and yellow food coloring. If it is your first time brewing Thai Tea, please be careful not to spill the tea as the color is so orange and it may stain your clothes and furniture.
Thai Tea vs Cream Cheese
No-Bake Chocolate-Crust Thai Tea Cheesecake was created because I had too much cream cheese sitting in my refrigerator and too much Thai tea mix in my pantry. My kitchen, my inspiration is a great saying in this case. At first, Thai tea might not be a usual choice of flavor for cheesecake but it is one that works remarkably well.
I didn’t really find many references for cheesecake recipes with tea flavor. Most tea cheesecakes use matcha or green tea powder as their combination. I think the main reason tea-infused cheesecake is not that popular because the tea flavor is usually too mild. In short, most tea flavors can not come through strongly enough to overpower the tangy cream cheese.
Previously, I posted my Thai Tea Ice Cream recipe and it surprised me as the infused Thai tea flavor came quite strong compared to other tea flavors. It really inspired me to think that one-day Thai tea might shine after the matcha in the baking category.
More Cheesecake Recipes
While you are here, don’t forget to check out these cheesecake recipes!
- Earl Grey Burnt Cheesecake
- No-Bake Avocado Lime Cheesecake
- No-Bake Blackberry Cheesecake
- Strawberry Cheesecake Ice Cream Cake
- No-Bake Oreo Cheesecake
Ingredients
Chocolate Crust
- 2 1/2 cups (210 gr) graham cracker crumbs
- 1/4 cup (25 gr) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 tbsp granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup (113 gr) unsalted butter, melted
Thai Tea Cheesecake
- 1/2 cup (40 gr) Thai tea mix
- 3 cups (750 ml) heavy cream, divided
- 3/4 cup (150 gr) granulated sugar
- 4 sheets gelatin
- 8 oz (225 gr) cream cheese, softened
- 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
- Whipped cream, for topping
Instructions
Chocolate Crust
- In a large bowl, mix graham cracker crumbs, cocoa powder, sugar, and melted butter until well combined.
- Press the crumb mixture firmly to a 9-inch/22 cm tart or springform pan. Make sure the thickness of the crust is even and the crumbs on the sides of the pan are flush with the rim. Place in the freezer while proceeding.
Thai Tea Cheesecake
- Soak the gelatin sheets in cold water until soft. Set aside.
- In a medium saucepan, heat Thai tea, 2 cups (500 ml) heavy cream, and sugar until simmering (not boil). Turn off the heat. Squeeze gelatin to remove any excess water and add it to the pan, stirring constantly until the gelatin is melted.
- Steep the tea for 10 minutes before straining it through a fine-mesh strainer. Set aside and let the mixture cool completely.
- With a hand mixer or stand mixer with a whisk attachment, whip the remaining 1 cup (250 ml) heavy cream until stiff peak. Set aside.
- With a hand mixer or stand mixer with a whisk or paddle attachment, mix cream cheese, whipped cream, and vanilla extract until well combined.
- Pour the Thai tea mixture into the cream cheese mixture and beat until well combined.
- Pour the filling into the prepared crust. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours or overnight.
- Serve with whipped cream on top, if desired. Serve cold.
I want to make this for a Friendsgiving next month– is it possible to use gelatin powder instead of gelatin sheets?
Yes, you can substitute the gelatin leaves with 1 tbsp gelatin powder.
Love the recipe, made it a few times already! I do have a question about the gelatin – would you happen to know what the bloom strength is for the gelatin sheets you use?
Hi Yura, thank you for leaving a review! I used bronze grade gelatin sheets.
Made this recipe last weekend! It tasted really good. I used Cha Tra Mue tea mix which I got from the Asian grocery store. Only thing is my batter did not look like your beautiful orange. It was more of a pale beige. I let the tea simmer in cream and sugar for atleast 20 mins. Not sure if that’s the difference! I served it with a mascarpone frosting and shavings of white chocolate, amazing!
Could I do this recipe with Thai tea powder? If so, are there any changes I’d need to make?
You have to adjust the Thai tea powder but I have no idea how much you need. Add it to heavy cream and see if the color and taste is to your liking before adding the gelatin.
Make sure to taste the powder first to know if the powder has been sweetened or not. And if it is sweetened, you have to adjust the sugar too.
I made two Thai tea cheesecakes using your recipe for the office Christmas party. They’re delicious and everyone loved it. However, by straining the tea mixture, the cheesecakes lost much of the Thai tea color and flavor. Is there any way around this?
Yes, you have to strain the tea or the cheesecake will turn gritty, not smooth. Or try steeping the tea for a longer time for a stronger flavor.
Add more Thai tea for concentration. Strain the tea and add a few drops of orange food coloring.