Homemade Tapioca Pearls (Boba) for Bubble Tea

For visual step-by-step photos, refer to the body of the post.

Brown sugar "syrup:"

1. Place brown sugar into a jar or small bowl. Set aside.

Make the tapioca pearls:

1. Place tapioca starch into a bowl.
2. Add in activated charcoal (if using, optional).
3. Add boiling hot water to the tapioca starch. (Water must be hot or the mixture will not form).
4. Stir the hot water quickly into the tapioca starch with a spoon or spatula until it becomes a shaggy dough.
5. Use your hands to knead the dough until it becomes smooth and not chalky (similar to the texture of play-doh). (It may look dry at first. Don't add too much water at first or else your mixture will turn into a gooey mess).
6. If the dough is a little too dry, add a little bit of water to it and knead until it comes together. Conversely, if it's too wet, add a touch of tapioca starch. It should tacky and not too sticky.
7. Form the dough into a long rope about 1 cm in diameter, and use a dough scraper or sharp knife to cut into 1 cm pieces.
8. Roll the pieces into 1 cm pearls with your hands. (The tapioca balls will expand slightly when cooked).
9. Place the tapioca pearls onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or dusted with some tapioca flour.

Cook the tapioca pearls:

1. In a small pot, bring 1 L of water to a rolling boil and add the tapioca balls into the boiling water.
2. Cook the pearls for 6-7 minutes, until they float to the top. Be careful not to overcook or it will turn to mush. You still want a slight chew to the pearls.
3. Use a slotted spoon to remove pearls and place the cooked tapioca pearls into the brown sugar. Give the mixture a stir.
4. Tapioca pearls are now ready to use in your drink of choice.