An easy to follow purple yam milk tea recipe, to help you make delicious ube bubble tea at home.
Ube bubble tea is a delicious milk tea made with ube, a root vegetable also known as purple yam.
Ube milk tea has a mild, sweet, slightly nutty flavor and a vibrant purple colour that quickly made it popular with bubble tea drinkers looking for a fun-looking as well as a delicious drink.
Unlike taro milk tea, which usually gets its color from the addition of artificial colouring, ube milk tea is naturally purple, thanks to its star ingredient: purple yam!
This is an easy-to-follow recipe to make this fun drink at home.
Purple yam milk tea recipe: pin this!
As Amazon affiliates, we earn from qualifying purchases.
What is Ube?
Ube is a root vegetable from the Philippines, part of the yam family.
Ube is similar in appearance to a sweet potato but has a distinctive purple color that is unique to it.
The official Latin name of ube is Dioscorea Alata, however, you usually find this vegetable referred to as purple yam or also greater yam.
What does ube taste like?
Ube / purple yam has a mild, sweet taste with a hint of nuttiness.
This delicate flavor and its peculiar colour have quickly made it popular as a base for bubble tea.
Purple yam complements particularly well the taste of milk and coconut milk and the addition of tapioca chewy balls has quickly made it one of the most popular bubble teas.
How do you make purple yam milk tea?
There are many ways to make purple yam milk tea, some that foresee the use of jasmin tea and some that only use purple yam and milk.
Here at Mama Loves a Drink, we like our purple yam tea the most when done with fresh purple yam.
Should this be hard to find in your local Asian produce store, you can also order purple yam jam or powder online and use those instead.
What you need for this ube milk tea recipe
To make ube milk tea you need the following ingredients and tools:
- Purple yam
- Condenses milk
- Coconut milk
- Sugar
- Tapioca boba balls
- Ice cubes
You will also need two pots and a good blender.
To serve, we like to use tall glasses and chunky straws.
How to make ube milk tea recipe
- Use a sharp knife to peel your purple yams, then chop them into large pieces, rinse and place in a pot.
- Add water and bring it to a boil: let it cook until you can pierce the ube easily with a fork. At that stage, drain the water and put the chunks into a large milkshake blender.
- Use the same pot to cook your condensed milk, coconut milk and sugar until they become a smooth mixture, then add them to the blender.
- Blitz it at full speed until you obtain a smooth consistency you can drink.
- Leave your drink to rest and, while it cools down, get started with the tapioca balls.
- Take the same pot you used for the yam, fill it with water and bring it to boiling point. Add your desired amount of boba balls and let them cook until they turn black and of a chewy consistency.
- Once ready, use a strainer to get rid of the water and rinse them well to stop the cooking process and cool them down a little.
Now you are ready to assemble your tea!
- Add a handful of tapioca balls to a tall glass, then add your ube mixture and finish with ice cubes and a colorful straw. Serve immediately.
Purple yam milk tea recipe: make ube bubble tea at home
A deliciously refreshing ube bubble tea recipe to make this fun purple yam tea at home
- Total Time: 55 minutes
Ingredients
- 200 gr ube/purple
- 150 ml condensed milk
- 300 ml coconut milk
- Sugar (to taste)
- Boba balls
- Water for boiling
- Ice cubes
Instructions
Using a sharp knife, carefully peer your purple yams and then rinse them under cold running water.
Chop them into large pieces and then place in a pot: add just enough water to cover the chunks and bring to a boil.
Let the yam cooked until tender, then drain and place in a tall milkshake blender. Let it cool.
Using the same pot you cooked the yam in, heat up your condensed milk, milk of choice and sugar: let them cook until they form a smooth drink and add them to your blender.
Close carefully and then blitz until they turn into a smooth drink. Let is cool.
Take a clean pan and bring water to a boil. Add your tapioca balls and let them cook following cooking instructions: they are ready once they are black and floating gently.
Use a strainer to train the water, the run your tapioca balls under cool running water to stop the cooking process and cool them down.
Now you can assemble your drink!
In a tall glass, add your boba balls, the milky mixture and finally ice cubes. Add a chunky straw and serve!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Category: Tantalising Teas
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.