How to Make Bubble Tea (Boba Tea, 珍珠奶茶)

User Reviews

0.0

0 reviews
Unrated
  • Prep Time

    10 mins

  • Cook Time

    10 mins

  • Total Time

    20 mins

  • Servings

    2

  • Calories

    258 kcal

  • Course

    Drinks

  • Cuisine

    Chinese

How to Make Bubble Tea (Boba Tea, 珍珠奶茶)

Create rich and silky bubble tea at home using this recipe to recreate the drink that you love from bubble tea shops. {Vegetarian, Gluten-Free}

I Made This!

Be the first!

Save this

Be the first!

Ingredients

Servings

Syrup

  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 2 tablespoons hot water

Drink

  • 1/2 cup instant black tapioca pearls (*Footnote 1)
  • 6 black tea bags (or 4 tablespoons / 40 g loose leaf black tea) (*Footnote 2)
  • 2 cups plant-based milk
  • Ice cubes for a cold drink (Optional)
Add to Shopping List

Instructions

To prepare the syrup

  1. Add the brown sugar and hot water into a small bowl. Stir until the sugar dissolves. If the sugar does not dissolve, heat the bowl in the microwave for 1 to 2 minutes then stir again.

To prepare tapioca pearls—the instant type

  1. Bring a small pot of water to a boil. Cook the tapioca pearls according to package instructions. Drain the tapioca pearls and run under cold tap water for a few seconds, to stop cooking. Drain again and transfer into the bowl of syrup. Let marinate while preparing the bubble tea. (*Footnote 3)

Prepare bubble tea

  1. Add 1 cup of boiling water and the tea into a glass or a pot that’s easy to pour from. Let the tea steep for 10 minutes to make a strong tea. Strain tea with a very fine colander or coffee filter (or remove the tea bags).
  2. Add 2 to 3 tablespoons of the tapioca pearls along with the brown sugar syrup into each serving glass. Pour in 1/2 cup of the black tea. Add up to 1 cup of plant milk, or according to your taste.
  3. Stir to mix before drinking. You can adjust the taste by adding more tapioca pearls with syrup, tea or plant milk.
  4. Serve the drink hot, at room temperature, or add ice cubes to serve it cold.

Notes

  • Instant tapioca pearls are easy to cook and they taste the best when served fresh. However, if you want to prepare them a day or more ahead, use the regular type instead. See footnote 4 on how to cook regular tapioca pearls.
  • If you prefer non-caffeinated tea, I found that rooibos tea works really well in this recipe. I love to use loose leaf rooibos tea to make my bubble tea so I can drink it any time of day and it doesn’t affect my sleep.
  • You can use the tapioca pearls once you’ve marinated them for 10 to 15 minutes, or place them in room temperature for half a day, until ready to use.
  • To prepare regular tapioca pearls - Bring a small pot of water to a boil. Add tapioca pearls and stir gently until they float to the top. Cook over medium heat for 15 minutes, stirring frequently to prevent them from sticking, until the tapioca pearls turn tender throughout, but are still a bit chewy in texture. Remove the pan from the stove, cover, and let rest for 15 minutes. Drain tapioca, rinse with cold running tap water to stop cooking, drain again and transfer to the bowl of syrup to marinate. You can use the tapioca pearls now, or store them in the fridge until ready to use. They will taste the best when fresh, but you can store them for a couple days. Their texture will become chewier the longer you let them sit.

Nutrition Information

Show Details
Serving 1serving Calories 258kcal (13%) Carbohydrates 58.8g (20%) Protein 2.6g (5%) Fat 1.3g (2%) Saturated Fat 0.3g (2%) Sodium 3mg (0%) Potassium 16mg (0%) Fiber 2.3g (9%) Sugar 20g (40%) Calcium 15mg (2%) Iron 1mg (6%)

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 2Serving

Amount Per Serving

Calories 258 kcal

% Daily Value*

Serving 1serving
Calories 258kcal 13%
Carbohydrates 58.8g 20%
Protein 2.6g 5%
Fat 1.3g 2%
Saturated Fat 0.3g 2%
Sodium 3mg 0%
Potassium 16mg 0%
Fiber 2.3g 9%
Sugar 20g 40%
Calcium 15mg 2%
Iron 1mg 6%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Genuine Reviews

User Reviews

Overall Rating

0.0

0 reviews
Unrated

Write a Review

Drag & drop files here or click to upload
Other Recipes

You'll Also Love

Homemade Tapioca Pearls (Boba) for Bubble Tea

Asian, Chinese, Taiwanese
5.0 (75 reviews)

AIP Matcha Bubble Tea (Boba)

Asian, Chinese, Japanese
5.0 (3 reviews)

How to make bubble tea

Chinese
5.0 (30 reviews)

Matcha Boba Tea

Chinese
0.0 (0 reviews)

Bubble Tea Recipe, A Chinese Favorite

Chinese
4.9 (21 reviews)

How to make Goji Berry tea drink (Wolfberry tea)

Asian, Chinese, Singaporean
5.0 (9 reviews)

Easy Brown Sugar Boba Matcha Latte

Asian, Chinese, Japanese
5.0 (21 reviews)

How to cook boba pearls

Asian, Chinese, Taiwanese
5.0 (222 reviews)

Taro Boba Drink

Asian, Chinese, Taiwanese
5.0 (12 reviews)

Chinese jujube tea with ginger (Red date tea)

Chinese, Korean
5.0 (15 reviews)

How To Make Tea Powder

Asian, Chinese
5.0 (3 reviews)

Chrysanthemum Tea with Goji Berry

Chinese
5.0 (6 reviews)