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by Todd + Diane
Boba Milk tea is always a favorite afternoon drink when we’re craving an alternative to our everyday iced coffee. Slightly sweet and creamy but always refreshing milk tea is s fantastic way to hydrate with a dose of much needed afternoon caffeine.
Boba Milk Tea Recipe
When we’re wanting to have a little more fun with milk teas, we’ll add boba tapioca pearls to it. The chewy balls make it a full meal and it’s so easy to make, you won’t have a need to go to your boba tea shop for a glass. The tapioca boba pearls aren’t for everyone and yeah, they can be a little weird if you’re not used to “chewing” as you drink. The milk tea drink alone is refreshing, not too sweet and wonderfully satisfying. It’s easy to drink and you can customize the sugar level to your liking.
Watch our Boba Milk Tea Recipe Video:
A few years ago we shared our thai iced tea recipe and it’s always a hit with readers. If you’re craving a another sweet drink, give our recipe for thai tea a try. It’s just like what you’d get in the Thai restaurants!
Enjoy and stay cool in this hot weather!
-diane and todd
Number One Tea Mix. This is the mix we commonly find in Asian store around us. It is another delicious option.
Cha Thai Tea Mix. This is our current go-to Thai iced tea mix. Make you Thai tea just like the restaurants!
Reuse-able Cloth Filter. Go traditional with this Thai Tea Filter. Get a second one for coffee too!
Boba Milk Tea Ingredients
These are the boba pearls we find in our local Asian grocery store. They don’t ship great, so sometimes there will be some broken up pearls, but the texture when cooked properly is great.
Great reviews, cooks quicker, and they even have different color options. This one is top on our list of boba to try.
A delicious black tea made with leaves form Yunnan. Prince of Peace is also often a supporter or world relief efforts.
Boba Milk Tea (aka Bubble Milk Tea)
Yield: 2 servings
Prep Time: 10 minutes mins
Cook Time: 1 hour hr
Total Time: 1 hour hr 10 minutes mins
Since you need to chill the tea after brewing, we prefer to make the tea the day before. The boba should be eaten within a few hours of cooking.
Most brands of boba will vary quite a bit in cooking instructions. We have a note at the bottom of the recipe on how we cooked the boba we bought, but please refer to your specific boba packaging for instructions.
4.43 from 7 votes
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Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (76 g) dry tapioca pearls
- 3 cups (720 ml) strongly brewed tea (whatever type of tea you fancy)
- 3-4 Tablespoons (45-60 6) sugar (to taste)
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) milk
- ice (optional)
Instructions
After brewing the tea, add the sugar while the tea is still hot. Stir the tea to dissolve all the sugar. Chill the tea mixture until it’s completely cold. This step is best if prepared the day ahead.
Cook tapioca pearls according to package instructions *see Note below for how we cooked the boba we bought.
Divide the warm tapioca pearls into 2-(16 oz) glasses. Pour the cold tea into the two glasses.
Pour 1/4 cup milk into each of the glasses. Stir with a straw and add optional ice if desired. Enjoy!
Notes
Note 1: Cooking Tapioca Pearls (this is roughly how the tapioca pearlswe bought were instructed to cook- manufacturers will vary on how their product is meant to be cooked):
For 1/2 cup of uncooked pearls, bring 3 cups of water to a boil. Add pearls and cook for20 minutes on a low boil. Turn off heat, cover the pan and soak for 25 minutes in the hot water. (During last 25 min soak time, adding a sweetener like brown sugar or honey will infuse the boba pearls with a rich flavor.)
Strain and rinse. Keep in warm water until ready to serve (use within a few hours of cooking).
Video
Nutrition Information per Serving
Calories: 246kcal, Carbohydrates: 55g, Protein: 1g, Fat: 1g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 6mg, Sodium: 37mg, Potassium: 211mg, Sugar: 22g, Vitamin A: 100IU, Calcium: 77mg, Iron: 0.6mg
Course: Drinks
Cuisine: American, Asian
Calories: 246
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7 comments on “Refreshing Milk Tea with or without Boba”
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aimee — December 1, 2021 @ 12:06 am Reply
we don’t have easy access to boba milk tea where I’m at so I love that I can just make it at home. awesome recipe.
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Harper — February 17, 2020 @ 5:22 pm Reply
I didn’t know it was this easy to make boba milk tea! Thanks for the recipe and the recommendations for the tapioca balls!
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Cory — February 10, 2020 @ 12:19 am Reply
I get to make boba milk tea just to my liking! Thanks for the recipe!
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Ana — April 8, 2019 @ 11:48 pm Reply
I would use regular black tea and instead of buying the thai mixture and add tumeric for color and vanilla for flavor and the tapioca pearls…. I can pass on the tapioca.
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Anna | tea kettles — December 20, 2018 @ 4:36 am Reply
This tea is sound refreshing! I am going to try this by following you. Thanks!
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thefolia — November 15, 2018 @ 10:14 am Reply
Viva la boba…we love boba tea! Happy slurping!
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2pots2cook — August 5, 2018 @ 9:02 am Reply
Perfect, icy refreshing drink for the heat wave we have. Thank you !
