Delicious bubble tea recipes to make fresh and delicious boba tea at home.
If you love bubble tea, chances are you have spent more than your fair share of time and money at your local boba tea shops, sampling all the possible flavors and varieties.
While a cup of bubble tea to go can be a lovely treat, we have found an even better way to enjoy this milky drink: making it at home!
Making bubble tea is easy, it gives great satisfaction and it is an easy way to keep under control the amount of sugar and artificial coloring that go into it, without compromising on taste.
Below, you will find delicious and easy-to-make bubble tea recipes and some background information about this popular drink!
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What is Bubble tea?
Bubble tea is a fun and refreshing drink originally from Taiwan and now commonly available in tea shops all over the world.
Bubble tea is not a fizzy drink, as its moniker might suggest.
Rather, bubble tea owes its name to the fact that it is served with a generous serving of tapioca balls.
When presented in the traditional see-through glass or cup, the tapioca balls sit at the bottom of the drink giving it a ‘bubbly’ appearance!
Tapioca balls are also called tapioca bubbles or boba hence bubble tea is also called boba tea.
What is bubble tea made of?
Bubble tea comes in many flavours.
Its most simple form calls for the use of tea leaves, milk, sugar, boba balls and a flavouring agent, often a powder or a syrup.
However, there are many delicious recipes that stray from this original mixture, some going as far as eliminating tea leaves all togheter.
With or without tea leaves, however, the idea behind boba tea stays: that of a fun and refreshing drink with a pretty appearance and a sugary kick perfect for summer.
What is the best tea for bubble tea?
The best type of tea for your boba depends on the additional flavours you are planning on adding.
Tea varieties that work great with boba are:
Black tea: Assam tea and English breakfast tea both work really well to make bubble tea, especially if you are using dairy milk.
Green tea: This is a popular alternative to black tea for boba so if you have a favorite green tea, you can build your boba tea around it.
If you opt for a green tea boba, just be careful when adding milk: many green teas are too acidic and will cause the milk to curdle. Experiment with a small amount of tea before committing!
What milk goes into bubble tea recipes?
Milk is a fundamental ingredient in bubble teas, so much so that you often hear bubble teas being called ‘milk tea’.
The most common type of milk used with black tea for boba is usually full dairy milk however, you can experiment with other types such as oat milk, almond milk and coconut milk, which mixes exceptionally well with most fruit flavours.
How do you cook boba balls
If you are new to making bubble tea at home, you may worry about preparing your boba balls however, cooking the bubbles is easy.
Exact cooking instructions will be on the package however, usually all you need to do is boil the balls into a pot of water for about 5 to 20 minutes, depending on the brand.
You know the bubbles are ready when they gain their characteristic chewy consistency.
Sugar vs honey: what’s the best sweetener for bubble tea recipes?
You can use any sweetener you like in your bubble tea.
Granulated sugar works well and you can add it at any stage during the preparation of your tea.
Honey is also a nice option, although in this case you need to make sure you add it at the end of the cooking process, not during it.
Recipes that call for condensed milk may or may not need the addition of a sweetener and the same recipe may call for more or less sugar depending on how ripe the fruit you use is.
We recommend tasting as you go so you can control the amount of sweetness to your liking.
Delicious bubble tea recipes to try this season
Learn how to make your favorite boba tea at home with this selection of delicious and easy-to-follow bubble tea recipes.
Taking inspiration from milk tea from Taiwan, we share delicious boba tea ideas you can easily make in whatever flavour you like the most.
Almond milk tea is perfect for black tea lovers! With a rich and soothing taste, almond boba tea is delicious hot or iced and it is the perfect choice for boba lovers who prefer a dairy-free milk alternative
Winter melon bubble tea is a fun and refreshing milk tea made with winter melon, milk and boba pearls.
Very easy to make, it has a mild taste and it is traditionally believed to contain several important nutrients that make it one of the most popular bubble tea recipes for the health-conscious boba lovers!
Looking for a perfect purple bubble tea recipe? We've got you covered! Find out how to make your boba tea naturally purple with this delicious ube milk tea recipe.
A delicious and refreshing milk tea perfect for summer! An easy recipe to make strawberry boba tea at home
Easy-to-follow recipe for delicious taro bubble tea! Learn how to use taro to make a yummy milk tea with a mild, nutty flavour
Okinawa milk tea is a delicious hot drink from southern Japan. Made with black tea, milk and brown sugar, it has a rich and warming taste that makes it perfect in the morning but also as an accompaniment to pastries and cakes. With the addition of boba pearls, it also makes a wonderful bubble tea for black tea lovers!
Want to discover more about teas? From medicinal favourites for mamas to those perfect gifts for the tea-lover you’ll find all our favourite tea topics over here.