How To Make Bubble Tea

As my Bubble/Boba Tea addiction has been spreading, I have been getting many inquiries about what it is and how to make it!  I previously wrote a blog about the background of the delicious drink and figured it was about time that I wrote a step by step instruction blog.  Enjoy!  And please let me know if you have any questions.

If you want to view the blog about what Bubble Tea is check it out: Bubble Tea: My Addiction

Today we decided to make Apple Cinnamon Honey Dew Bubble Tea :)  it was the most delicious combination of flavors yet!

Ingredients:
2 Cups Pearl Tapioca
3 Tbsp Honey (You can also use simple syrup if you prefer)
Apple Cinnamon Tea
Milk (I used Rice Milk)
4-5 squirts of Honey Dew flavored syrup
Wide Straws (Straws with Tapered ends make getting any remaining tapioca easier at the end of the drink)

Directions:
Get a sauce pan to a roiling boil with about 4 Cups of water.  (It is imperative that the water is boiling before you add the tapioca or it will turn into goop)
Prepare Tea
Strain out 2 Cups of Pearl Tapioca to shake off any loose powder.
Add the pearl tapioca to the boiling water and stir continuously for about 10-15 minutes (they should be a little bit chewy).
Pour into a strainer and run cold water on the tapioca to keep from sticking together.
Add 3 Tbsp Honey to a Container with a lid, heat up for about 15 seconds.  Add the tapioca to the Container and top just barely with cold water.  Stir until the honey is thoroughly mixed in.  
Pour the brewed tea in to a Large glass (possibly a pilsner glass) about 3/4 or a little more full.  Add 4-5 squirts of the Honey Dew syrup.  Put 2-3 Large spoonfuls of the Tapioca into the glass.  Top off with any kind of milk you would like, I used rice milk.  Place the straw into the cup and stir thoroughly.  Enjoy!

First you need the Tapioca! 

Put about 2 Cups of tapioca in a strainer and shake it around a little bit to get rid of any loose powder

Select a tea that goes with the flavor you want to use

Bring water to a rolling boil

Brew the tea

Add the tapioca and stir continuously

Pour the tapioca into a strainer and run cold water over top

Get the honey out

Add honey to a seal able container

Microwave for 15 seconds

Pour the tapioca into the container and top with water

Pour the brewed tea into the serving glasses about 3/4 of the way full

Add the honey dew syrup to the tea

Add 2-3 spoonfuls of the pearl tapioca

Top with Milk

Pick a wide straw to use

Add the straw to the glass, stir thoroughly and serve!

Bubble Tea: My Addiction

So I have to admit that from the first time that I ever visited San Diego (Back in 2002) I had my first Boba Bubble Tea.  It was in the Asian section that I was taken to by a guy that I was dating at the time.  I was immediately hooked and had to have it several times before we left and missed it desperately.  I had my mom order the stuff and we made some at home for awhile, but then I hadn't had it for years until a little shop started selling it here in Texas.  This reawakened my addiction and recently I decided that I needed to start making my own at home again.  As I rave about bubble tea I get a lot of people inquiring about it, so I decided to do a blog on some of the background of bubble tea to inform everyone who has been deprived of the awesomeness that it bubble tea.


Bubble Tea, Pearl Milk Tea, Boba Milk Tea, Boba Tea, Momi, Momi Milk Tea, etc Originated in Taichung Taiwan in the 1980s and has become so rampant that it is like going to get a soda here in the US.  Boba is slang for large breasts in Taiwan and that is what the large Tapioca pearls were referred to as and how it started being called Bubble Tea (In addition to the bubbles on the surface of the tea caused by shaking of the ingredients).  You may also hear the pearls referred to as ZhenZhu Chinese for Pearl.  In June 2012, even McDonald's started offering Bubble tea in Germany and Austria. 





The teas contain a tea base usually green or black tea, they are then mixed with fruit or a type of milk.  There are also ice-blended variations that are closer to a slushie as well as many powdered or syrup flavors to add a multitude of flavors.  You can use fruit and natural ingredients for a healthier way to make your own flavoring. 

There are hundreds of variations to the flavors and the ways that they can be served, but there is always tapioca and always tea if you want to go traditional.  There are powdered creamers, actual milks, such as dairy, soy, rice, almond, etc.  Flavors can come from syrups, from fruit, from powdered mixes.  Most shops will sweeten their tapioca pearls with simple sugar or honey but I have made it without sweetening many times and it tastes just as delicious. 

The oldest known bubble tea consisted of hot black tea, small tapioca, condensed milk and syrup or honey.  Usually the bubble is a chilled drink but you can have it warm or hot as well and it tastes just as delicious!  The small tapioca was also replaced with the large tapioca.  I have even seen some recipes that called for cubes of coconut jelly to replace the tapioca and for coffee instead of tea.  Essentially the possibilities are endless with over 250 variations readily available.

I have gotten quite a few recipes for flavors from scratch that we will be trying out and I will post a blog in the near future about how to make certain Boba/Bubble Teas and the recipes that we tried and approved of.  Now you know a little bit about Bubble Tea and if you like tapioca pudding and you like tea, I think you will most likely enjoy Bubble Tea.  Some people find it weird to "chew their drink" but if you can get over that, I think that it is awesome and fun and delicious!  I hope that you will at least give bubble tea a try sometime if you ever get the chance.  If you are ever in my area let me know and I will make some up for you!

My three favorite flavors right now are HoneyDew, Cantaloupe, and Hibiscus, but the possibilities are indeed endless!