There’s something incredibly delicious to mashed strawberries with milk. And this strawberry hojicha latte is no exception! This unique drink combines the flavors of fresh strawberry and hojicha tea, two of my favorite things. Learn in this post how to make this aromatic and easy recipe at home.

Table of Contents

Why you’ll love strawberry hojicha milk tea

It’s full of flavor and aroma
It only uses natural and healthy ingredients
While it’s juicy and refreshing, it also tastes good warm!
Hojicha tea is lower in caffeine than other teas, making it a great choice for those who are sensitive to caffeine
This recipe is very easy to make, with just a few ingredients
It’s as lower calorie alternative to boba drinks, since it has something to chew (the mashed strawberries) but saving you carbs and sugar.

What type of tea is hojicha?

Hojicha is a Japanese green tea that has been roasted.
This roasting process gives a darker color and a unique toasty, nutty flavor.
It also has a natural sweetness and is lower in caffeine than other types of tea, making it a great choice for almost everybody.

Hojicha goes also great with milk, which is why it’s often used in latte recipes like this one.

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How much caffeine is there in strawberry hojicha latte?

Since the roasting process of hojicha reduces its caffeine content, this milk tea is relatively low in caffeine (around 8 mg caffeine per serving).

Ingredients and alternatives

STRAWBERRIES
You can use fresh strawberries or frozen ones.
If you use frozen strawberries, thaw them before smashing them. You can use the juice that comes out of the thawing process as well.
The smashed strawberries makes this drink irresistible ”crunchy”, but feel free to blend them if you want your drink smooth.
SWEETENER OF CHOICE
As when making strawberry matcha latte, you may use any sweetener that doesn’t affect the taste of the drink, like granulated sugar, simple syrup.
Low carb alternatives like xylitol, erythritol and sugar free simple syrup work also great (in fact, these are my favorites). Of course, sugar-free simple syrup is also an excellent option.
And in addition of these, the toasted, almost caramel-like taste of hojicha also goes very well with brown sugar, coconut sugar or sweetened condensed milk.
MILK
I usually use whole milk, but feel free to use your preferred type of milk, wether low fat milk or dairy-free alternatives.
HOJICHA
Nowadays hojicha powder is quite easy to find online.
This is sometimes also known as brown matcha and it’s very convenient for this recipe, but you can also use regular hojicha tea to make a concentrated tea (grinding your hojicha tea leaves at home won’t give you hojicha powder; as you can see in my failed but interesting experiment).
Hojicha (roasted tea leaves) and hojicha tea bags are both also available in many tea stores, but you may also roast your own green tea at home. It’s easy and it gives very decent results!
And as a plus, it’s an excellent way to recycle and repurpose green tea that has gone old.
Learn here how to make your own hojicha tea leaves by roasting tea in a pan.
ICE CUBES
Adding ice helps the drink stay layered, but if you don’t mind the ingredients getting mixed, you may skip this.
Strawberry hojicha latte still tastes delicious without layers and it also looks lovely, like a chocolate milk with strawberry chunks.
I love the layers but I don’t like chilled drinks, so I first assemble the drink using ice cubes and then carefully remove the ice right after layering.

This is how his latte looks like when you don’t use ice to make layers (it’s also quite lovely, don’t you think?):

Step-to-step instructions

How to make strawberry hojicha latte

Make a concentrated hojicha tea
If using hojicha tea leaves, I use 1 Tbsp. hojicha or 1 hojicha sachet for 5 Tbsp. of water. Steep hojicha in hot water and steep for about 30 seconds to one minute. The strain and let cool aside.
When using hojicha powder, 1 teaspoon for 4 Tbsp. of water is usually a good starting point.
Prepare the strawberries
Wash them, take the green leafy part at the top and mash them with a muddler or fork.
If you prefer a smooth texture, you may blend them.
Add sweetener of choice.
Assemble drink
Put in a glass in this order: the sweetened strawberry puree, then (optional) ice cubes, milk and pour the concentrated hojicha on the top.
Enjoy your Strawberry Hojicha Latte!

5 from 2 votes

Strawberry hojicha latte recipe

A comforting variation of Korean style strawberry milk

Print Recipe

Prep Time:5

Equipment

Ingredients

5 Strawberries roughly 50 gr.
1 tsp. Xylitol or equivalent, like 1 Tbsp. simple syrup
½ cup Milk
3-4 Ice cubes (Optional)
1 tsp. Hojicha powder
4 Tbsp. Water

Instructions

Make a hojicha concentrate by mixing the powder with the water.
If using hojicha tea leaves or teabags, look at notes *
Mash the strawberries and let them macerate with the xylitol or sugar for around 10 minutes (you may skip this waiting time if using sweetener in liquid form, like simple syrup or condensed milk)
Put in the glass the strawberries on the bottom, then add ice cubes (if you want your drink layered), the milk and pour the hojicha concentrate on top. If you don’t mind everything mixed together, you don’t have to add ice cubes nor mind the order.

Notes

* If using hojicha loose tea or tea bags, use around 1 Tbsp. or 1 teabag for 4-5 Tbsp. water.
Steep in hot water for around 30 seconds-1 minutes, strain and set aside to let it cool down (if you want your drink cool).

Nutrition

Calories: 100kcal

Course: Drinks

Cuisine: Corean, Japanese

Servings: Serving

Calories: 100kcal

Variations

Here are some other delicious ideas to try:

Switch the hojicha for matcha for a beautiful strawberry matcha latte
Skip the tea altogether to make a Korean style strawberry latte
Use another type of berry

2 Comments

Lily says:

April 23, 2023 at 7:37 pm

Thank you for sharing the recipe for strawberry hojicha latte. It sounds like a unique and delicious combination that I can’t wait to try!

1. Miyuki says:
  
  April 24, 2023 at 8:24 am
  
  I’m sure you’ll love it!

5 from 2 votes (1 rating without comment)

Strawberry Hojicha Latte – Easy, Delicious, Low-Caffeine

Why you’ll love strawberry hojicha milk tea