This recipe for Matcha Milk Jam/Green Tea Milk Spread is rich and creamy in texture. It has a slight earthiness from the matcha, balanced with a little sweetness. Use it on toast, or as a filling for baked goods.
This post first appeared on Sift & Simmer in February 2017. Updated May 2021.
It’s funny how you learn about new things nowadays.
Especially on social media.
Everything is so fast-paced; this minute it’s in, the next minute, it’s out.
I first learned of Korean matcha milk spread on Instagram, and when my friend was in Korea, I messaged her to ask her to bring one home for me.
Unfortunately, she had just left Korea and wasn’t able to get her hands on it despite having seen the item herself.
Matcha Milk Jam is a creamy condiment made of milk, cream, matcha and sugar.
At the time of this original post, no one carried matcha green tea milk spread in Vancouver.
It was expensive to order it online from Asia, so I decided to make it myself.
Why you’ll love this recipe
This green tea milk spread is rich and creamy in texture, with a slight bitter overtone from the matcha, balanced by a little sweetness.
It’s a versatile filling: use it on toast, pancakes, waffles, or in buns.
This spread doesn’t contain any chemicals (that are commonly found in store-bought milk spreads).
It only contains 6 ingredients.
6 ingredients you’ll need
My Matcha Milk Jam recipe contains only 6 ingredients:
- high quality matcha powder: it’s important to choose a good culinary or ceremonial matcha powder for not only taste and flavour, but also for colour. A lower grade matcha can taste overly bitter and yield a yellow-green hue.
- water: dissolve the matcha powder in hot boiled water to ensure no lumps.
- whole milk: use whole milk, which has about 3.5% MF (milk fat).
- heavy cream: use a heavy cream with 36% MF (milk fat) for a richer texture; you can certainly use a cream with less milkfat, but may need to stir the mixture longer.
- skim milk powder: helps to thicken up the milk jam and add some additional flavour; if you don’t have skim milk powder, you can substitute with cornstarch.
- granulated sugar: adds sweetness; you can increase or decrease the amount of sugar to your preference.
All recognizable ingredients!
How to make it
The one caveat to making matcha milk jam is that you need patience.
In order to thicken the jam to a rich, creamy consistency, heat the ingredients over low-medium heat.
- First, dissolve the matcha, sugar, and milk powder with the hot water so that there are no lumps.
- Next, heat the cream and milk in a small saucepan.
- Whisk in the the matcha mixture into the cream and continue to whisk over low-medium heat.
- It’s important not to walk away from the mixture at any time as the cream may boil over.
- Continue to whisk until the mixture thickens and reduces by about half.
Note: the matcha milk jam will continue to thicken once cooled.
Watch how to make it
FAQs & troubleshooting
Can I use non-dairy milk?
Yes, you can — depending on the consistency of the non-dairy milk, you may need to reduce the milk jam a little longer.
See below on how to make a vegan variation.
Do I need to add milk powder?
It adds thickening power and flavour to the milk jam, however, you can substitute cornstarch instead.
Can I store it at room temperature?
No, as the milk jam is not pasteurized (with a canning process method), it is not safe to store the matcha milk jam at room temperature.
Store in the milk jam in the refrigerator.
How long will it last?
The matcha milk jam will last about 1-2 weeks in the refrigerator.
My milk jam didn’t thicken, what went wrong?
Depending on how strong your heat source is, you may need to continue whisking until the mixture does thicken.
Otherwise, you can try adding a little more cornstarch/milk powder.
Ways to use it
Try it as a filling for doughnuts.
Use it on in Matcha Strawberry Fruit Sando.
Flavour variations & substitutions
For a vegan variation, substitute canned coconut milk for the heavy cream and use a non-dairy milk.
Replace the milk powder with cornstarch.
Other recipes you may like
Be sure to check out these recipes:
Matcha Cream Puffs (Choux au craquelin)
And if you love matcha as much as I do, subscribe to my blog and be on the list to receive my free Matcha Recipe e-book!
When I posted this matcha milk jam to my Instagram account @siftandsimmer, I was surprised at the requests for this recipe! As a result, the wait is over — you can now make your own Matcha Milk Spread easily from scratch.
If you try this recipe, tag me @siftandsimmer on Instagram, or leave a comment/rating and let me know!
Matcha Milk Jam/Green Tea Milk Spread
For accuracy and precision in baking recipes, use weight (metric) measurements when available.
Ingredients
- 2 tsp good quality matcha green tea powder sifted
- ¼ C hot boiled water
- 3 tsp granulated sugar
- 1 tsp dry milk powder or cornstarch
- ½ C whole milk or non-dairy alternative* (see note 3)
- ½ C heavy cream (at least 36% milkfat) or canned coconut milk
Instructions
- Place sifted matcha powder into a heat-safe jar or bowl.
- Carefully add hot boiled water to the matcha.
- Stir in sugar and milk powder and mix until everything is completely dissolved.
- Heat whole milk and heavy cream in a small saucepan.
- Bring to a simmer over medium heat and while whisking, gradually pour matcha mixture over a sieve into the saucepan. If there are any lumps remaining in the sieve, add some of the milk from the saucepan over top of the sieve and push through with the back of a spoon.
- Whisk periodically until mixture has thickened and reduced by half, about 20 minutes over low-medium heat. It should be smooth and creamy.
- A way to tell if it's ready is when you scrape the mixture in the pot with a spoon or whisk, there should be a line that is visible, meaning it has thickened enough. If you scrape the pot and can't see a line, continue whisking over heat.
- Once it has thickened enough, remove from heat. Let cool.
- Pour into a jar and refrigerate. The spread will be a little more thicker once it has cooled.
- Best consumed in 1 week.
Notes
Nutrition
The nutritional information provided should be considered as approximate and is not guaranteed. Please use your best judgment to ensure food is safely prepared and/or a good fit for your diet.
I was thinking to make it vegan by using coconut milk and cream and vanilla powder?
I have tried making it with coconut milk but haven’t tried it with vanilla powder — depending on whether your vanilla powder has cornstarch or some type of thickener, it may work out well. If you try it, I’d love to hear how it turned out. 🙂
Can this recipe be frozen?
I’ve only frozen the milk jam in small amounts, as in these Matcha Tang Yuan.
Maria how about soya cream? the taste of the jam will not be altered by the coconut flavour if you use soya cream (i use alpro )
‘This is fantastic and seems quite easy to follow. Thanks for the recipe. I might consider putting some dried coconut for some texture too.. will it work you think?
Just want to ask how long can it last? If I was to make 1-2 jars.
I bought one in Thailand – from Japan and love it so much but won’t be travelling back anytime soon
Please let me know
Thanks in advance
V
Hi Vincey,
Thank you for the comment! Yes, dried coconut would definitely lend a different texture to the matcha milk jam. What a wonderful idea.
In a clean glass jar, the jam will last 1-2 weeks in the refrigerator. The great thing about this recipe is that it produces a small batch (1/2 cup) so you can enjoy it fresh without having to worry about it spoiling too quickly.
I hope you try it out! 🙂
Hi! Can i use cornstarch instead of milk powder? Or omit the milk powder? Thank you!
You can use cornstarch in place of the milk powder.
Hi there!
I intend to use this recipe for a filling.
How long would you say this can last outside at room temp before being refridgerated?
Thank u!
Hi there, if freshly made, I would say the milk jam can be left at room temperature for a few hours. It also depends on your climate. If you live in a warm climate, I’d err on less time at room temp. Hope that helps.
have you ever tried putting the matcha powder at the end? will it dissolved well? Because i find the matcha flavour reduce after i cooked it. maybe it oxidized? or is it because the matcha powder i used is not a good quality matcha powder?
What brand of matcha powder you used?
please help, thanks. 🙂
Hi there, Mellisa! I haven’t tried putting matcha at the end, because it would end up very clumpy. If your matcha flavour isn’t as intense, it could very well be the quality of the matcha powder you’re using.
I’m using Matchaeologist’s “Midori” Culinary grade matcha: it’s linked in the ingredients above. Otherwise, you could try adding an additional 1/2 tsp of matcha powder to your batch. Let me know how it turns out!
I found your website the other day, and have been going through your recipes. I made the matcha brownies the other day, and today I made this milk jam. It goes well on toast, I will be spreading this on everything. 🙂
Awesome, thanks for reading, Yumi! 🙂
Can I omit heavy cream and substitute with corn starch to make it “thicker”?
I haven’t tried omitting the heavy cream and just thickening with cornstarch so I can’t say how the texture will be.
Personally I don’t love regular green tea, but I have to buy the matchapowder. Where do I get it? Does trader joe’s or whole foods have it, or do I need to go to a Shoprite or something?
Trader Joe’s does carry matcha powder (by the coffee section), as does Whole Foods.
Really love this recipe and now I am having my matcha milk jam with my daily breakfast! Easy to make!
Yay, glad that you’re enjoying the matcha milk jam! Thank you, Menghan! 🙂
Hello!
I tried making the jam yesterday and was gonna spread it on a toast this morning but when I took it out from the fridge, I realised that the spread had hardened so much that it’s not spreadable anymore. Do you have any clue what may have gone wrong?? Thanks in advance for your response!! 🙂
It’s hard to know what may have gone wrong without seeing you make the milk jam. Did you make any substitutions? If anything, the jam should be spreadable at room temperature.
Today is my second time making this matcha spread . Why I want to make again? Because it tastes really good. I add more matcha because I like the strong matcha taste .
Awesome, thanks for making the recipe Vanessa! 🙂
Fantastic matcha milk jam! Already made this a few times for myself and for friends – made such a great gift! And so easy 🙂 good tip to dissolve the matcha first. I had put in the matcha at the end once and I was left with many dark green speckles.
Awesome! Thanks Amy!
I put the jam in the fridge and it solidify, very much like butter. Is that how it should be? It still tastes delicious!
Yes, that is normal. The consistency can vary, depending on how much you reduced it during the cooking.
My milk spread turned out a little oily. there’s a layer of dark oil on top of the spread. 🙁
I haven’t had that experience before. Sounds like the oil from the cream separated. Did you whisk the mixture? It should be emulsified.
Hi Michelle, if I would like to make a coffee flavored spread can I replace the matcha powder with instant coffee or espresso powder? Also, if I want the spread to be thicker, do I just increase the amount of cornstarch accordingly?
Yes, you can replace the matcha with instant coffee or espresso powder. And yes, you can increase the amount of cornstarch if it’s not thick enough to your liking.
So I followed the exact measurements from your recipe, super simple! But it didn’t make a lot. It almost made enough spread for only two pieces of toast. Did I do something wrong? Or should I double it next time?
You should end up with approximately 1 cup of milk jam, which would be more than enough for a few slices of toast. Perhaps you reduced the mixture too much — was it particularly thick?
It was actually thin. Maybe I did reduce it too much because I wasn’t sure if it was done. Will definitely try it again!
Hello! I just wanted to say: I made-shift tried this recipe by substituting matcha powder, milk powder, and sugar with instant matcha latter powder. And it actually worked!
The matcha wasn’t too strong, so I steeped some matcha tea leaves into the powder + water mixture as the milk and cream heated up. And it tasted great.
The consistency was also a bit thicker than I’d like, so I added around one or two more tsp of milk—and it came up nicely.
Anyways, just wanted to thank you for the recipe. I only wished I had some quality matcha powder with me. Can’t wait to try the Earl Grey next.
Sorry for bothering! Thank you and have a good week!
Thanks for stopping by and trying the recipe, Chris 🙂
super easy, rich, creamy and delicious!!
Thanks for your feedback and for trying the recipe, Jayne 🙂
Loved it! I used some to make matcha cookie sandwiches with a sugar cookie base and they were delicious! Will definitely make it again!
Amazing, glad you loved it Ginny! 🙂
It’s such a great recipe and it makes a delicious spread! My matcha is very strong, so I would definitely recommend adjusting 1/2 tsp up or down depending on the strength of your matcha and your personal preference. It’s delicious on plain toast, but I’m thinking it might be even better on top of white chocolate chip pancakes with some fresh strawberries
Thanks for the feedback, Rowan! Yes, definitely adjust the matcha to your liking — some brands can be very strong and others mild. The pairing of the spread with pancakes and fresh strawberries sounds amazing! 🙂
These were so delicious and I’m glad I can make these with non-dairy milk! Perfect for my teens! Excited to make this again!
What an interesting recipe and use of matcha. My friend is a big fan of it so I may need to make it for her.
I like matcha, but didn’t know you can make a delicious milk spread with it. Will be perfect with a cup of tea.
Oooh this looks amazing! I bookmarked your hojicha milk jam recently to use up some leftover hojicha powder, but now I really want to make this Matcha Milk Jam too! Sounds incredible paired with toast.