Ever wondered how to make bubble tea? Here is a simple bubble tea recipe that shows how you can make this beverage at home!
Bubble tea is one of my favorite things to sip on during the summer. Originating from Taiwan, bubble tea (波霸奶茶/珍珠奶茶) usually consists of sweetened tea with milk and the characteristic chewy tapioca balls, also known as boba (波霸). Bubble tea comes in many flavors: plain tea flavors such as black or jasmine tea; fruit flavors such as strawberry or honeydew; and even taro, which is a root vegetable commonly used in Asian dishes. (You can read more about the history of bubble tea here).
While I enjoy drinking bubble tea, I don’t particularly like the ones sold in the teahouse chains because they contain too much sugar. The good thing is that you can make bubble tea at home easily! In this bubble tea recipe, all you really need is tea, tapioca pearls, milk, and a sweetener.
WHAT KIND OF TEA DO YOU USE?
The best kinds of tea to use are those that have a robust flavor, such as black or jasmine tea. Because you will water down the tea with milk and ice cubes, you want a strong tasting tea that will retain its flavor. I used Numi’s Chinese Breakfast Tea for the recipe, but any strong tea will work. Another tea blend I recommend is equal parts Assam and Ceylon tea leaves.
WHAT KIND OF TAPIOCA PEARLS DO YOU USE?
I typically use this brand of tapioca pearls, which cooks in about 5 minutes. I like that these pearls cook quickly, but the texture could be better. (For reference, slower cooking tapioca pearls can take up to an hour to cook.) You can find these tapioca pearls in Asian supermarkets or on Amazon.
One important thing to note about these quick-cooking tapioca pearls is that you should only cook as many as you need. The pearls stiffen as they cool, so they do not keep well overnight. However, if you leave the pearls in their cooking water, the pearls retain their soft texture for a longer time. In other words, don’t drain the hot water once you are done cooking the pearls. Instead, use a slotted spoon to remove the pearls from the saucepan, and leave any excess pearls in the saucepan.
WHAT KIND OF MILK DO YOU USE? CAN THIS BE DAIRY FREE?
I prefer using whole milk the most because the rich flavor makes the beverage tastier overall. I tried a version of the bubble tea with heavy cream. While the flavor of the tea was even better than the version I made with whole milk, it felt too decadent. Perhaps using half-and-half is a good compromise?
You can also make a dairy-free version with nut milks or soy milk. I tried using canned coconut milk once, and the coconut milk left a funny feeling in my mouth. It felt as if my mouth was coated with a thin layer of coconut fat.
WHAT KIND OF SWEETENER DO YOU USE?
Any kind of sweetener works. However, if you use honey (or any thick syrup), it is best if you mix in the honey while the tea is hot so that the honey can dissolves evenly. The same goes for granulated sugar. Of course, this will mean that you’ll have to approximate how much sweetener you’ll need before the bubble tea is ready for tasting. You’ll probably need at least 2 tablespoons of honey for every 2 cups of tea.
Because everyone has different preferences for sweetness, I recommend preparing simple syrup and having each person add however much simple syrup they want into their drinks. Simple syrup is easy to prepare. Combine 1/2 cup of water and 1/2 cup of sugar in a saucepan and heat to a boil. Cook until the sugar dissolves and turn off the heat. Once the simple syrup has cooled, bottle it up, and it’s ready to be used. Typically, I use about 1 1/2 tablespoons of simple syrup for each drink, just so it tastes barely sweet. Some people might want more syrup in their drink.
CAN YOU MAKE THIS BUBBLE TEA RECIPE AHEAD?
You can steep the tea 1 or 2 days before and store it in the refrigerator. Also, you can make the simple syrup several days ahead. I wouldn’t recommend cooking the tapioca pearls more than an hour ahead because the pearls harden quite quickly.
MORE DELICIOUS DRINKS
- Simple Mango Lassi (so refreshing!)
- Spiced Golden Milk (turmeric milk)
- Red Beet Smoothie (great morning pick-me-up)
How to Make Bubble Tea
I used Chinese breakfast tea for my bubble tea recipe, but any other black tea or strong tasting green teas will also work! For my version of the Jasmine Green Bubble Tea, check out my recipe on Numi's blog!
In the recipe, you may notice that I use 8 tea bags to steep in just 4 cups of water. Because the tea will be watered down with milk and ice cubes, you want to start off with a pretty strong tasting tea.
If you enjoy a lot of tapioca pearls in your drinks, I recommend cooking 1 cup of tapioca pearls instead of the 3/4 cup I listed below. You can also halve ingredients for simple syrup if you don't think you'll need that much.
Ingredients
- 8 bags of black tea or 3 tablespoons loose-leaf black tea
- 4 cups hot water
- 3/4 cup quick-cooking tapioca pearls
- whole milk to serve (or your choice of milk)
- simple syrup to serve (or your choice of sweetener)
For the Simple Syrup (see note 1)
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/2 cup sugar
Instructions
- Prepare the tea: Steep the tea bags or leaves with 4 cups of freshly boiled water. Let the tea sit in water until it cools completely. (See note 2)
- Prepare the simple syrup (if using): Add the water and sugar to a saucepan and quickly stir everything together. Heat the water on medium-high and cook until the water boils and the sugar completely dissolves. Remove the saucepan from heat and let the simple syrup cool before transferring to a jar.
- Cook the tapioca pearls: Bring about 4 cups of water to boil and add the tapioca pearls. Stir the pearls and wait for them to float to the top. Then, cook them for another 5 minutes. Test a pearl to see if it has reached the desired level of softness. Cook the pearls for another few minutes if they are still stiff. Use a slotted spoon to remove the pearls from the hot water. Quickly rinse the pearls with water.
- Assemble the drinks: Strain the tea into a pitcher. Divide the cooked tapioca pearls into 4 large glasses. Next, add a few ice cubes to each glass. Pour 1 cup of the tea into each glass. Add 1 1/2 tablespoons of milk and 1 1/2 tablespoons of simple syrup into each glass. Stir and taste the milk tea. Add more milk or simple syrup to your taste.
- If you are serving the beverage to guests, have a small pitcher of milk and the jar of simple syrup ready so that each guest can adjust their drinks to their taste. The drink is usually served with large boba straws (large enough for the tapioca pearls to go through). If you don't have the straws on hand, you can use spoons to scoop out the tapioca pearls.
Notes
- You will likely have some simple syrup left over, which you can refrigerate for 3 to 4 weeks. You can use any kind of sugar to make simple syrup, such as light or dark brown sugar or coconut sugar. I also like to infuse my syrup with ginger by adding a few slices of ginger to the saucepan as I make the syrup.
- Typically, I leave the tea steeping the entire time so that the tea is strong and bitter. Otherwise, I find that the tea flavor is too faint when I add milk and ice cubes to the drink. Some tea leaves definitely have a stronger bitter flavor. Feel free to remove the tea bags or tea leaves after 5 minutes if you are concerned about the bitterness of the tea.
- If you are making the pearls about an hour ahead, don't drain the pearls from the saucepan. Leave them in the hot water as the heat of the water will help keep the tapioca pearls soft.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1 drinkAmount Per Serving: Calories: 160Total Fat: 1gSaturated Fat: 0.6gCholesterol: 3.1mgSodium: 20.6mgCarbohydrates: 36.9gFiber: 0.3gSugar: 11.9gProtein: 1g
The nutrition information approximates the amount of milk and simple syrup used for the drinks.
Laura says
So excited to try this!! I remember the craze when everyone was meeting for bubble tea. I’d definitely rather make it at home! Thanks Lisa!
Lucia Thomas says
I love the flavor of the taro , do you have a recipe for taro bubble tea?
Lisa Lin says
I do not, but it will be something that I’ll explore!
Lily says
Great write up!
Lisa Lin says
Thanks!
Sl says
The sugar for the syrup, how much to add as it just says 1 sugar table or cup
Lisa Lin says
Thank you so much for catching that! It should say “1 cup sugar.” I have edited the recipe to reflect the correction.
Amelia says
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
Mai says
I tried this recipe and I don’t know if it’s the sweetener that I used, which was honey or the milk that I used. I used soy milk, organic one. But it wasn’t so much of my taste. It’s my first time making milk tea boba with black tea and soy milk so it was all new to my tasting. Whenever I would make it just for fun, I would use Green Tea and Coffee Cream as my milk. However, it was good overall!
Lisa Lin says
Thanks for the feedback, Mai! I have tried it with soy milk before and didn’t like it either. That’s why I recommend using whole milk.
Jengy says
It’s it possible your soy milk was already sweetened and flavored? That would probably make it taste pretty bad.
I’m looking forward to trying this breve!!
Cady says
Any suggestions on how to make grapefruit royal tea? It’s my favorite at the tea shop and I’d love to make it at home!
Lisa Lin says
Hi, Cady! I’ve never heard of that before. What does it taste like?
Beth Knight says
Just made this for my granddaughter, she loves bubble tea. Took a trip to the Korean Market and got the ingredients, made adjustments to suit her taste. Used multi-color tapioca pearls, Fairlife milk and English Breakfast tea. She really enjoyed the treat tonight. Score one for gram!
Kirby says
Depending on the type of teas used, the bags really should be removed. As the leaves steep, they begin to release tannins which make the drink incredibly bitter. More oxidized, robust teas will easily make your drink too bitter if steeped more than the recommended 3-5 minutes. It really does depend on the brand/variety, but beware!
Joan says
This recipe seems super simple and easy to follow.
Good job.
Lisa Lin says
Thanks, Joan!
Tricia says
When shopping at the store I bought regular tapioca balls not “black” can these still be used in bubble tea? What is the difference? Thanks!
Lisa Lin says
Yes, you can! The clear ones are just made of pure tapioca flour and don’t have any additional color added to them.
Mel says
Tastes exactly the same as what you would buy from a bubble tea shop! I used lactose-free milk and added a few spoonfuls of sugar water in mine. I found that leaving the teabags in as the tea cooled had no effect on its taste when all ingredients are mixed in. This recipe is a keeper, thank you!
eatfrysmith says
Why use just boiled water? what is the purpose of just boiled water?
Jordan says
Recently moved to Italy from the United States and I am missing bubble tea SO BADLY!!! I’ve been following and loving your IG for a while now and just came across this bubble tea recipe. I made this recipe for the first time yesterday with boba that a friend mailed me and it was so delicious. I came home today and immediately made another one. Will probably continue having this every day until I run out of my boba stash, LOL! Thanks for the great recipe.
shirley harvey says
What do you do with the tapioca balls
Penny Fleming says
Hi there Lisa-and thanks for providing this recipe! We are going to try it as soon as we ‘ need’ to go to the (Asian) supermarket to purchase the tapioca pearls, since we are doing the social distancing thing! My 15 yodaughter who is obsessed with this tea convinced me to get one via Uber eats but unfortunately it spilt on delivery and ended up costing $12.00- so we can’t wait to try your very helpful recipe!
It provide us a creative goal for the day
Thanks again!
Penny and Natalie.
Lisa Lin says
Hi Penny! Hope you enjoy the bubble tea!
Donda says
You made another excellent recipe. We loved it! Thank you so much.
Susan says
Is it ok to divide the recipe by four and just have one serving? Just got my straws and tapioca pearls from Amazon, but I don’t want to waste any.
Lisa Lin says
Yes, you can divide the recipe by 4 and see if you like the flavor. Then, ramp up if you want more of any ingredient.
Anya says
Should I use regular granulated sugar or brown sugar for the simple syrup?
Lisa Lin says
You can use either!
Michael Feddersen says
You mentioned heavy cream tasting better, but thought it was too decadent. Truth is heavy cream is better for you than all the rest. 😉