Cha Yen (Thai tea)

Ingredients:

• 4 tbsp of water
• 3/4 cup Thai tea
• Ice chips or ice cubes to fill the glass
• 1 - 1.5 cups of concentrated milk or low-fat cream (3-4 tablespoons per glass)
• 1.5 cups sugar syrup:
  1 cup of sugar
• 1 cup of water

Preparation:

1. Bring a medium saucepan of water to a rolling boil. Place a 1-liter heatproof pitcher in the sink. Once the water boils, add the tea and remove from the heat. The tea will float on the surface until you gently stir it into the water. Once all the tea leaves are saturated, steep for 3 minutes.
2. Pour the contents of the saucepan into the pitcher; don't worry if there's some sediment left. Pour the tea back and forth from the pitcher to the saucepan seven times to make it darker and stronger. Finally, the tea should be in the saucepan. Rinse the pitcher and strain the tea again into the pitcher through a coffee filter. Add the syrup and stir to dissolve. Cool to room temperature, cover, and refrigerate before serving.
3. To serve, fill glasses with crushed ice. Pour 3/4 cup of chilled Thai tea into each glass. Top each glass with 3-4 tablespoons of evaporated milk. Serve when the milk has dripped over the ice and combined with the tea.
   
   In a small saucepan, combine the sugar and water and bring to a vigorous boil over high heat. Reduce the heat and, maintaining a gentle simmer, simmer until the liquid thickens and is lightly colored, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.
   
   Pour the cooled syrup into a jar with a tight-fitting lid, seal and store at room temperature for 1 week or in the refrigerator for several weeks.