From the perspective of practical application, the development of fluorescent nanocrystals with low toxicity and desirable optical properties is highly needed. Here we report a new liquid-liquid interfacial synthesis of single-crystalline ZnTe nanorods with high fluorescence. With the use of long-alkyl-chain fatty acid as the capping ligand, the reaction of zinc acrylate with NaHTe under a moderate temperature (~90 °C) at the toluene/water interface yielded high-quality ZnTe nanorods. The preparation parameters and the growth mechanism were thoroughly investigated. The as-prepared ZnTe nanorods exhibited stable blue fluorescence with quantum yield up to 60%. This bright and stable emission gives promise for the use of these relatively benign nanorods in various applications such as blue light-emitting diodes.