Matcha is taking over the world, and while matcha cold foam is not a new invention, it’s picking up popularity for its sweet, creamy, and umami taste. It’s the perfect drink topper for coffee, matcha lattes, tea, and more.

This cold foam is so easy to make and only takes 4 ingredients and less than 5 minutes. It will seriously transform your home cafe and drinks!

Here’s how to make a delicious matcha cold foam at home!

What is Cold Foam?

People always have different definitions of cold foam, but the most basic definition of cold foam is that it is a frothed cold milk that creates a soft and fluffy foam layer.

However, when people say cold foam, they usually refer to sweet cream cold foam or even just soft whipped cream. Rarely do people refer to just frothed milk.

In this recipe, cold foam means a softly whipped cream, which is different from sweet cream cold foam, which is part heavy cream, milk, and sugar (which would be a matcha cream cold foam).

Cold foams are usually vanilla-flavored or plain, but it’s the perfect canvas to add different flavors. You’ll see all sorts of creative flavors like cherry, blueberry, peppermint, chocolate, lavender, maple, etc.

What is Matcha?

Matcha is a finely ground green tea powder made from shade-grown tea leaves called tencha. It’s traditionally prepared by whisking it in water, then drunk plain or added to milk.

Depending on the origin and blend, matcha green tea can have a variety of flavors, including sweet, creamy, nutty, umami, savory, roasted, chocolate, and more. However, most matchas will have an earthy taste with slight umaminess.

It’s perfect on its own, in a latte, or cold foam!

What is Matcha Cold Foam?

Matcha cold foam is just matcha powder mixed into heavy cream and sugar. It’s basically a softly whipped matcha whipped cream, but used to top drinks, desserts, breakfast foods, and more.

Like many drink trends, Starbucks popularized this drink topping, perhaps from loyal customers who wanted to add a little matcha flavor to their favorite drinks.

Matcha cold foam can either be just heavy cream or a mix of cream and milk for a fluffier, milkier cream.

What Does Matcha Cold Foam Taste Like?

It’s sweet, creamy, slightly bitter, and earthy, which makes a perfectly balanced cream top for matcha lattes and more!

I love this foam on milky teas like chai lattes, matcha lattes, Earl Grey milk tea, Thai tea, etc. It just adds a nice creaminess and flavor to aromatic teas, which makes them a great combo.

It’s popular on well-known drinks like lemonades, refreshing coconut water, and especially the pink drink with matcha cold foam (check out my full step-by-step recipe for an easy copycat version!) It’s seriously good!

How to Add Matcha to Cold Foam

If you add matcha powder straight into your cream and whip it, you’ll notice that your foam will be grainy.

Food Science Break: Since powders, like flour, are hydrophobic, they’ll want to stick to each other and clump. This is why when you bake, you always sift your flour or cocoa powder, to prevent clumps!

This is the same principle; if you sift the matcha powder, you’ll end up with much smoother cold foam, no pockets of bitterness anywhere! You want to use a small, fine mesh sieve, but you can also use a normal-sized sieve as well.

To get the least amount of clumps, you can also make a matcha koicha, which is a matcha paste with matcha powder and water. Then, add it to your cream for the ultimate smooth cold foam.

What Matcha to Use

You don’t need a luxury $50 tin of tea to make a good matcha foam, but you do want to avoid low-quality, dull powders. Cheaper, lower-grade matcha often oxidizes quickly, turning a grayish-yellow color and tasting bitter and flat. While many Western brands use the term ceremonial to market good-quality matcha, it’s not a term used in Japan, which is where much of the high-quality matcha comes from.

What you want to pay attention to is what harvest the matcha is, where the matcha is sourced, what the tasting notes are, and how it’s ground. These factors are what make a good quality matcha. You can determine what kind of matcha powder is the best one for you in my matcha tea guide.

But for simplicity, you can use your favorite matcha powder brand, but I encourage you to try multiple brands to find what you like. Look for an accessible, entry-level “ceremonial grade” powder (usually ranging from $15 to $25).

How to Make Matcha Cold Foam

Here’s what you’ll need to make a fluffy matcha cold foam at home:

• 1 tsp matcha tea powder
• ¼ cup heavy cream
• 1-2 tsp powdered sugar or agave (regular sugar is okay)
• 2 tbsp milk (optional)

Matcha Cold Foam Recipe

1. Add Cream, Sugar, and Milk. Add heavy cream, sugar, and milk (if desired) to a tall cup or bowl.
2. Sift Matcha Powder. Sift your matcha powder on top of the cream mixture, making sure to get all the clumps out.
3. Whip Cream. Using an electric frother or mixer, whip your cream for 10 seconds or until you get a soft and fluffy texture. Stop whipping before you get to the stiff peak stage, which is whipped cream. You want the cream to be fluffy but still pourable, similar to the texture of a thick smoothie.
4. Serve and Enjoy!

The Best Cold Foam Tools

To get that perfect pourable texture, you need to incorporate air into the cream without over-whipping it. Here’s a breakdown of some methods:

• Handheld Milk Frother (Fastest & Easiest): My personal go-to for quick everyday use. Tilt the frother near the surface of the liquid for 10–15 seconds to pull in air. It creates a great fluffy foam quickly, though the bubble size is slightly less uniform than that of a blender.
• The French Press Method (Best Microfoam): If you want a flawlessly smooth foam, use this. Pour the mix in and pump the plunger up and down about 30 times. The fine mesh screen creates microbubbles for a super velvety texture. It’s also a neat trick!
• An Electric Blender (Best for Big Batches): Throwing the ingredients into a high-speed blender is hands-down the most consistent method. Blend it on low speed for about 10–15 seconds. You can also use an immersion blender and a large tub. It makes a highly stable, velvety foam, and most cafes use a blender to prepare their foams.
• The Mason Jar Method (Zero Equipment): If you don’t own any of these tools, just dump everything into a jar, seal the lid, and shake like crazy for a minute or until thick. The foam will be loose and will melt a bit faster, but it gets the job done.

How to Use Matcha Foam: What to Make Next

Matcha cold foam is an amazing addition to cafe-style drinks, desserts, and sweets! Beyond beverages, you can add it to pancakes, yogurt bowls, or a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

If you want to keep experimenting with home-cafe beverages, you absolutely have to try the viral coconut matcha cloud drink; it’s so refreshing and creamy! You can also make a double matcha latte, which has this cold foam on a matcha latte.

Pink Drink with Matcha Cold Foam

Everyone loves the pink drink from Starbucks, but a secret hack is to add a matcha cold foam on top! It’s actually delicious and, surprisingly, the matcha flavor comes through.

Luckily, a pink drink with matcha cold foam is super easy to make at home and uses this exact cold foam recipe! If you want to master that drink at home, check out my full step-by-step pink drink with matcha cold foam recipe, where I break down the exact ratios to make it taste identical to Starbucks!

Tips:

Here are some great tips for making the perfect matcha cold foam at home:

• Experiment with Different Sweeteners: Cold foam doesn’t just taste good with sugar, but all sorts of sweeteners! You can swap out powdered sugar for brown sugar, honey, maple syrup, agave, monkfruit, and so on. Flavored syrups are also a great idea for a flavored matcha cold foam, like vanilla, strawberry, lavender, chocolate, etc.
• Accidental Whipped Cream?: If you accidentally overwhip your cream and make whipped cream, no worries! Just add 1/2-1 tbsp of heavy cream and rewhip until you get the perfect consistency.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is matcha cold foam made of?

Matcha cold foam is made using four simple ingredients: heavy whipping cream, a splash of milk (to thin the texture), matcha green tea powder, and a liquid or powdered sweetener like vanilla syrup, honey, or powdered sugar.

Can I make matcha cold foam dairy-free?

Yes! Swap the heavy dairy cream and milk for a high-quality, full-fat oat or coconut cream. You can also use plant-based vegan cream that mimics dairy cream.

What is the best sweetener to use for cold foam?

Powdered sugar, simple syrup, or flavored syrups work best because they dissolve instantly in cream. Regular granulated white sugar is fine, but sometimes it doesn’t dissolve thoroughly and leaves the cream grainy.