This Starbucks Copycat Iced Pineapple Matcha Drink is the perfect refreshing drink for all matcha tea lovers! It's really easy to make and tastes just like the Starbucks version with much less sugar!
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Why You'll Love This Drink
- It's super refreshing and perfect for hot days.
- Matcha contains caffeine so it can be a great pick me up! It's a great option if you need the caffeine but are trying to avoid coffee. Matcha tends to be easier on the stomach with less side effects than coffee.
- There's much less sugar than in the Starbucks version - Every component of this drink at Starbucks is sweetened - the matcha, the coconut milk, and then there's syrup! There's no need to make any pineapple or ginger syrup for your homemade version. I used fresh pineapple juice to add sweetness and tang to this drink and it's really tasty!
- It only has 4 ingredients and it comes together in a few minutes - All you need to do is add all the ingredients into a shaker, shake with ice, and pour into a tall glass over more ice. The simplicity is what makes this drink so awesome!
- It's vegan - This drink is made with coconut milk so it's completely dairy-free.
Ingredient Notes
The ingredient list in this recipe is super short. All you need are 4 simple ingredients and ice!
- Matcha powder - Matcha is a green tea powder. Starbucks uses a blend of sugar and matcha so using 100% matcha will easily reduce the carb content!
- Pineapple juice - Any 100% pineapple juice works here. Starbucks only uses flavored pineapple ginger syrup so using the real stuff makes a huge difference!
- Ginger Juice - I use bottled 100% ginger juice but minced fresh ginger works just as well. I use juice because minced ginger can add a bit of texture. I haven't tried ginger powder, I recommend starting with just ¼ teaspoon and adding more to taste.
- Coconut milk - I recommend bottled coconut milk for this drink. Canned coconut milk is too thick for this drink and might be hard to blend. If you don't like coconut milk, you can use almond or cashew but coconut tastes the best here!
I find the pineapple juice makes the drink sweet enough on its own so there is no sweetener but feel free to add some if you'd like. Agave or coconut syrup would work great.
Step-by-Step Instructions
You can mix this drink either right in the glass, in a cocktail shaker, or in a blender. I strongly recommend blending or shaking it in some way before serving. You can use a mason jar if you don't have a cocktail shaker.
The high acidity of the pineapple juice makes it really hard for it to blend with the coconut milk which is why I'm using a cocktail shaker in steps 5 and 6.
I'm showing it in a glass so you can see what's going on but to make the drink simply add the matcha dissolved in warm water with the ginger juice or minced ginger into a cocktail shaker or a mason jar with ice.
Add the fresh pineapple juice and coconut milk. Close and shake for 10-15 seconds until it's very cold to touch.
Pour the shaken drink into a tall glass over ice and serve with a glass straw.
The drink will start to separate a few minutes after serving just like a Pina Colada would. The drink is still perfectly fine to drink, it just doesn't look great if it sits out for too long. It's easy to blend it all together again by stirring it with your straw every couple of minutes!
The separation is unavoidable when using pineapple juice with coconut milk. If you wanted to avoid it, you'd have to simmer some fresh pineapple with maple syrup and water to make pineapple syrup that's low in acidity and high in sugar but who has time for that, right?!
Storing
This drink doesn't store very well because of the separation issue. I wouldn't make it any longer in advance than in the morning for the day. You'd probably have to reshake or reblend the drink every time, though, and at that point, you might as well make it fresh.
Just keep all the ingredients on hand in the fridge, it's super easy to just throw them all together and shake up for a refreshing drink!
FAQs
It's made with sweetened coconut milk (contains sugar and preservatives), sweetened matcha powder blend (matcha and sugar), and pineapple ginger syrup. With a homemade version, you control the sweetness and what exactly goes in!
Yes, it does have caffeine. There is about 64mg of caffeine per teaspoon of powder. This can vary depending on the quality of the matcha powder used. Here is a great article on caffeine in Matcha Tea if you want to learn more.
The acidity in pineapple juice can make coconut milk seize up and curdle. This doesn't affect the quality of the drink, it just doesn't look the best. This is why I shake the ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice. This prevents it and makes the ingredients blend well together.
I used organic ginger juice by The Ginger People brand. If you can't find it, you can use minced ginger. You could squeeze the minced ginger over a fine mesh strainer if you want to avoid little pieces of ginger floating around the drink.
More Starbucks Inspired Drinks
I've been on a big Starbucks-inspired drinks kick lately so there's definitely more to come but here are four drinks I've shared so far. I highly recommend the iced peach green tea, it's my favorite!
Print📖 Recipe
Iced Pineapple Matcha Drink
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 1 1x
- Category: Drink
- Method: Mixing
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
This Starbucks Copycat Iced Pineapple Matcha Drink is the perfect refreshing drink for all matcha tea lovers and it comes together in just a few minutes!
Ingredients
- 1 tsp matcha powder
- ⅓ cup hot water
- ½ cup pineapple juice
- ½-1 teaspoon ginger juice or minced ginger
- ¼ cup coconut milk
- Ice cubes
Instructions
- Into a cup add the matcha and hot water. Whisk with a matcha whisk or a handheld milk frother. Add a couple of ice cubes to cool it down if desired.
- Add the matcha, pineapple juice, ginger juice, coconut milk, and a handful of ice cubes into a cocktail shaker or a large mason jar and shake for 10-15 seconds until chill and blended.
- Pour into a tall glass over ice and enjoy right away.
Notes
The high acidity of the pineapple juice will make the coconut milk naturally seize up. The Starbucks version doesn’t do this because they use syrup with pineapple and ginger flavors. It is still good to drink, just stir it every few minutes.
I like to shake the drink and pour over ice into a tall glass. You can mix all the ingredients right in your glass but it will be harder to blend together the milk and pineapple juice.
Gloria
This recipe sounds like something in the tropics. We all need a vacation. I will feel like I am in Hawaii while sitting on my patio.
Bernice
Starbucks has a pineapple matcha?! We don't get all the drinks up here in Canada so I'm glad you've posted this mouthwatering recipe. I have all the ingredients to make it and it will be a lovely pick me up this afternoon.
Lauren Michael Harris
I have a container of matcha powder and have just been making lattes with it. This sounds absolutely delicious!
Maren
As someone who loves matcha this drink was a delight! Super tasty and delicious!
Liz
I have never tried making this at home! Seems pretty simple, so will be trying it soon!
Veronika
This is my new favorite drink now! It's absolutely delicious and so easy to make! Going to make it again today!
Enriqueta E Lemoine
So far, this is my favorite iced matcha beverage ever! Thanks for the recipe and the inspiration. Your pictures are adorable!
Sharon
I love making match drinks as an afternoon treat and this pineapple matcha drink does not disappoint. So tasty!
Heidy
Good Morning! I just wanted to let you know I found your recipe Starbucks Copycat Iced Pineapple Matcha via Pinterest and decided to make it! I had some of the stuff on hand and right away went to the market and got the rest of what I needed. Excellent instructions and tips! The recipe turned out perfect. So refreshing!
Ksenia
I have never had the Starbucks version, but your drink looks absolutely delicious! But yes, I could definitely see how it would seize up quickly - though with how good it tastes, I can’t imagine it’s going to be very difficult to finish it quickly