The bubble tea recipe
for your table
Bring plenty of water to the boil and cook the tapioca pearls in it for twenty to thirty minutes. Stir during the first minute, otherwise they’ll stick to the bottom. Check the package, though, as quick-cooking pearls are ready in about five minutes.
Remove the pan from the heat and let the pearls rest with the lid on for another twenty to thirty minutes. Only then will they be soft and springy all the way through. Drain them and briefly rinse them under cold water so they don’t stick together.
Scoop the drained pearls into a bowl and stir in cane sugar syrup until they shine. Leave them in it for at least ten minutes: the syrup sweetens them and keeps them supple. Then spoon them, along with some of the syrup, into the bottom of the glass.
Fill the glass halfway with ice cubes, pour the cold tea over them and slowly let the cold milk run through it. Stir only when you’re about to drink it, using a wide straw that the pearls can fit through.
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The story
Bubble tea comes from Taiwan, where it was invented in the 1980s in teahouses that sold cold, shaken tea. Two establishments both claim the invention, and neither ever had it officially registered. The name does not refer to the pearls but to the layer of foam that forms on the tea when it is shaken; the pearls themselves are called boba. From Taiwan, the drink first spread across East Asia and then around the rest of the world, with shops offering dozens of flavors side by side. The foundation remained the same throughout: tea, sweetness, pearls, and plenty of ice.
The right glass
Bubble tea calls for a glass that is tall enough for ice, tea, and milk, and wide enough for the pearls to lie loosely on the bottom instead of piling up. Forty-nine centilitres is a comfortable size for this: the ice keeps the tea cold, and you can stir without spilling. The straight, wide shape of a can glass works just as well and shows the pearls most clearly. Looking for something for hot tea? Take a look at the tea glasses.
Bormioli Rocco America'20S Highball Glass 49 cl (6 pieces)
Onis Can Cocktail Glass 47 cl (6 pieces)
Both sets together € 48,94.
The right tools
For bubble tea, in addition to the glass, use large ice cubes from an ice cube mold, a long bar spoon to get the pearls from the bottom, and reusable glass straws. These are the bar tools we use ourselves; you can find everything in our bar tools & cocktail sets.
Glassware set (our choice 01) + 3 bar tools together € 72,80.
How do you make bubble tea for adults?
Bubble tea is naturally alcohol-free. To turn it into an adult drink, stir a splash of liqueur into the glass. Well-known bottles include Malibu and Baileys. On each drink page, you can read the alcohol percentage, what it tastes like, which cocktails it works well in, and which glass you need.
Variations & twists
Replace the black tea with jasmine tea or oolong and the drink becomes much more floral. After regular milk tea, taro, matcha, and brown sugar are the best-known flavors. For fruit tea, leave out the milk and use passion fruit, mango, or peach syrup with cold green or black tea; the pearls are also easier to see that way. Popping boba containing fruit juice does not need to be cooked and is a quick alternative to tapioca. Looking for more inspiration? Browse more than 100 cocktail recipes.
Serving tip
Put the glass in the freezer for fifteen minutes and fill it just before serving, because pearls left in ice-cold tea for too long become chewy. Serve it with a wide straw, otherwise the pearls will not fit through. Finish the drink on the day you cook the pearls, because once pearls have become cold, you cannot soften them again.
Good to know
How long should tapioca pearls cook?
Dried pearls cook for twenty to thirty minutes in plenty of water and must then continue cooking off the heat with the lid on for the same amount of time. This resting time is not unnecessary: without it, the center remains hard and white. The package states the cooking time for that brand, and quick-cooking pearls are ready after about five minutes of cooking plus five minutes of resting.
Why do you have to eat the pearls the same day?
Tapioca is starch, and starch hardens as soon as it cools. This happens fastest in the refrigerator: the pearls become chewy and reheating them will not really soften them again. So cook only as much as you will drink that day and keep the rest of the bag dry. Cooked pearls stay good for a few hours in syrup at room temperature.
Milk tea or fruit tea?
Milk tea is the best-known variety: strong black tea or oolong with milk added, creamy and sweet, usually with tapioca pearls. Fruit tea leaves out the milk and uses fruit juice or syrup with green or black tea instead. It is fresher and brighter in color, and is more often paired with popping boba or jelly pieces than with tapioca.
Why do you need a wide straw?
Cooked tapioca pearls are about eight to ten millimeters thick. They will not fit through a regular six- or seven-millimeter straw, so you will keep sucking without anything coming through. A bubble tea straw is therefore around twelve millimeters wide and often cut at an angle, allowing you to pierce the foil of a sealed cup with it.
How do you brew the tea strong enough?
Use about twice as much as you would for an ordinary cup, because ice and milk dilute the tea considerably. Steep black tea for three to five minutes, then remove the tea bags; steeping it longer makes it bitter rather than stronger. Then cool the tea properly before it goes into the glass.
Frequently asked questions
How long should you cook tapioca pearls?
Boil them in plenty of boiling water for twenty to thirty minutes, then remove them from the heat and let them continue cooking with the lid on for another twenty to thirty minutes. Only then will they be soft all the way through. Check the packaging, though: quick-cooking pearls are ready after about five minutes of boiling plus five minutes of resting.
Can you make bubble tea ahead of time?
The tea and syrup can be prepared in advance, but not the pearls. Feel free to brew the tea a day ahead and store it covered in the refrigerator, so it is cold right away. Cook the pearls on the day itself and store them at room temperature in syrup; in the refrigerator, they become hard and cannot be softened again.
What is the difference between milk tea and fruit tea?
Milk tea is strong black tea or oolong with milk added, creamy and usually containing tapioca pearls. Fruit tea leaves out the milk and uses fruit juice or syrup with green or black tea, making it fresher and more translucent. Fruit tea is more often combined with popping boba, while milk tea is paired with tapioca.
Which glass and straw do you use for bubble tea?
A tall glass of around fifty centiliters, wide enough for the pearls to lie loosely on the bottom and for plenty of ice to fit in. The straw should be wider than a regular straw, around twelve millimeters, because cooked pearls are eight to ten millimeters thick.
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