Meet the Thai Tea Lime Pie: A Bold Twist on a Classic Citrus Dessert
If you’re looking for a low-effort dessert that still feels impressive, this Thai tea pie delivers! The filling comes together in just 10 minutes with just a whisk—no complicated techniques or special equipment required! It’s the kind of recipe you can pull off on a weeknight or at the last minute, with consistently reliable results every time.
Looking for other Thai tea-flavored desserts? Check out these Swirled Thai Tea Cookies with Condensed Milk or this Thai Tea layer cake that I made for Hummingbird High‘s anniversary!
The recipe is based on the key lime pie recipe in my cookbook, Weeknight Baking. It’s a crowd-pleaser of a recipe thanks to its bright, zippy, creamy-yet-citrusy filling. I’ve used it as a base for other unique, unexpected pie recipes like this Homemade Baja Blast Pie Recipe (one of the most popular recipes on Hummingbird High) and it works like a charm every time!
Let’s Talk Ingredients
Here are the key ingredients you need to make this Thai Tea lime pie extra vibrant and flavorful:
- Thai Tea. I researched which Thai tea brands make the most authentic Thai tea flavor. I found that most Thai restaurants use one of two Thai tea brands: Cha Tra Mue or Pantai. Both are available for cheaper at an Asian supermarket. In previous recipes like these Swirled Thai Tea Cookies with Condensed Milk and Thai Tea Layer Cake, I used Pantai. I used Cha Tra Mue in this pie recipe though and didn’t notice much difference flavorwise.
- Sweetened Condensed Milk. If you want your cookies to taste as much like authentic Thai tea, use an Asian brand of sweetened condensed milk! I’m especially partial to Longevity Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk. It is often used in Vietnamese coffee drinks like this Vietnamese Egg Coffee!
- Orange Food Coloring. While you can get away with not using any food coloring, the food coloring gives the filling a vibrant boost and makes them look more like authentic Thai tea! I used one of the Americolor orange food colors in my Nifty Fifty Americolor kit.
Reference Photos (To Help You Make The Pie)
First, Make The Graham Cracker Crust
Next, Make The Thai Tea Lime Filling
Some Final Baking Tips To Set You Up For Success
Troubleshooting The Thai Tea Concentrate
When testing this recipe, I found that the tea leaves usually absorbed around 1 ounce or 28 grams of water—because of this, I instruct you to steep the tea leaves in more water than you need to make the concentrate.
You need around ⅓ cup of tea for the filling. If you end up with less than that after straining out the tea leaves, you can always make up the difference with extra lime juice. I don’t recommend adding more water to the concentrate though—that will make your pie bland!
How To Make The Recipe Fit Your Schedule
- Plan ahead for this one! After baking the pie, you need to cool it completely before refrigerating for at least 4 hours to chill it. If you’re baking for an event, I suggest baking everything the day before to give the pie time to properly cool and chill.
- I also recommend making the whipped cream right before serving the pie so it stays light and fluffy. That means potentially splitting up the recipe over two days. Bake the pie on Day 1 and chill it overnight; on Day 2, make the whipped cream right before serving and enjoy!
How To Make Foolproof Whipped Cream For Piping
The recipe instructs you to whip the heavy cream to “firm peaks.” The best way to see if you have this texture is to do a test with a whisk! Dip the tip of a whisk into the whipped cream, remove it, and quickly turn it upside down. If the cream is too soft, it will slide off the whisk and you’ll need to keep whisking. If the cream has a cloud-like texture with peaks that lose their shape, you’re at the “soft peaks” stage and need to continue whisking. Whisk for just a little longer and do the test again—the peaks should hold, and you’re officially at the “firm peaks” stage! Just watch out: this happens pretty soon after the “soft peaks” stage, and it’s easy to overdo it and make the cream overly clumpy.
Get the Recipe:
Thai Tea Lime Pie (Inspired By Cha Ma Nao)
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 15 minutes
Bake Time: 28 minutes
Total: 53 minutes
Servings: 1 (9-inch) pie
A creamy Thai tea lime pie made with real brewed tea, fresh lime juice, and sweetened condensed milk for a perfectly balanced sweet-tart dessert.
Prevent your screen from going dark
For The Thai Tea Concentrate
For The Graham Cracker Crust
For The Thai Tea Custard Filling
For The Thai Tea Lime Pie
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First, make the Thai Tea concentrate. In a heatproof mug, combine the water and Thai tea leaves.Set aside to steep while you make and bake the graham cracker crust.
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Meanwhile, prep the oven to bake the graham cracker crust. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350℉.
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Make the graham cracker crust. In a medium bowl, combine the crumbs, melted butter, brown sugar, and salt. Mix with a rubber spatula until the mixture looks like wet sand.Pour the mixture into a 9-inch pie pan and use your hands to press it evenly over the bottom of the pan, all the way up to the edges. Don’t be afraid to press hard so the crust holds its shape!
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Bake the graham cracker crust. Bake the crust for 10 minutes (keep the oven on—you need it to bake the full pie later). The crust will look underbaked and feel soft to the touch when you remove it from the oven, but will firm up as it cools.Cool the crust slightly on a wire rack while you make the filling.
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Make the Thai tea filling. Return to the Thai tea concentrate. Place a fine mesh sieve over a liquid measuring cup. Pour the Thai tea concentrate through the sieve into the cup.Use a rubber spatula to press the tea leaves against the sieve, straining out as much butter from the tea leaves as possible. You should have ⅓ cup (2.65 ounces or 75 grams) of Thai tea concentrate.In a medium glass bowl, combine the sweetened condensed milk, Thai tea concentrate, lime juice, salt, and food coloring. Whisk to combine.Pour the filling over the crust and use an offset spatula to smooth the top if necessary.
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Bake the Thai Tea Lime Pie. Bake for 18 minutes, or until the edges of the pie are set but the center still wobbles slightly. Cool completely on a wire rack.Once cool, cover loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours before topping with whipped cream, preferably overnight.
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Once the pie is chilled, make the whipped cream. In the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, combine the heavy cream, confectioners’ sugar, and vanilla.Whisk on medium-high speed until firm peaks form, about 3 minutes.Transfer the whipped cream to a piping bag fitted with a star tip. Pipe dollops of whipped cream along the border of the Thai Tea Lime pie.Serve immediately. The Thai Tea Lime pie can be stored in the refrigerator, covered loosely with plastic wrap, for up to 3 days.
buy the book
Weeknight Baking:
Recipes to Fit your Schedule
Over the past several years of running Hummingbird High, I kept a crucial aspect of my life hidden from my readers: I had a full-time, extremely demanding job in the tech world. In my debut cookbook, Weeknight Baking, I finally reveal the secrets to baking delicious desserts on a tight schedule.
