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Create rich and silky bubble tea at home using this recipe to recreate the drink that you love from bubble tea shops. {Vegetarian, Gluten-Free}

How to Make Bubble Tea (Boba Tea, 珍珠奶茶)

Create rich and silky bubble tea at home using this recipe to recreate the drink that you love from bubble tea shops. {Vegetarian, Gluten-Free}
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Course: Drinks
Cuisine: Chinese
Keyword: restaurant-style
Servings: 2
Author: Maggie Zhu

Ingredients

Syrup

  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 2 tablespoons hot water

Drink

  • 1/2 cup instant black tapioca pearls (*Footnote 1)
  • 6 black tea bags (or 4 tablespoons / 40 grams loose leaf black tea) (*Footnote 2)
  • 2 cups plant-based milk
  • Ice cubes for a cold drink (Optional)

Instructions

To prepare the syrup

  • Add the brown sugar and hot water into a small bowl. Stir until the sugar dissolves. If the sugar does not dissolve, heat the bowl in the microwave for 1 to 2 minutes then stir again.

To prepare tapioca pearls—the instant type

  • Bring a small pot of water to a boil. Cook the tapioca pearls according to package instructions. Drain the tapioca pearls and run under cold tap water for a few seconds, to stop cooking. Drain again and transfer into the bowl of syrup. Let marinate while preparing the bubble tea. (*Footnote 3)

Prepare bubble tea

  • Add 1 cup of boiling water and the tea into a glass or a pot that’s easy to pour from. Let the tea steep for 10 minutes to make a strong tea. Strain tea with a very fine colander or coffee filter (or remove the tea bags).
  • Add 2 to 3 tablespoons of the tapioca pearls along with the brown sugar syrup into each serving glass. Pour in 1/2 cup of the black tea. Add up to 1 cup of plant milk, or according to your taste.
  • Stir to mix before drinking. You can adjust the taste by adding more tapioca pearls with syrup, tea or plant milk.
  • Serve the drink hot, at room temperature, or add ice cubes to serve it cold.

Notes

  1. Instant tapioca pearls are easy to cook and they taste the best when served fresh. However, if you want to prepare them a day or more ahead, use the regular type instead. See footnote 4 on how to cook regular tapioca pearls.
  2. If you prefer non-caffeinated tea, I found that rooibos tea works really well in this recipe. I love to use loose leaf rooibos tea to make my bubble tea so I can drink it any time of day and it doesn’t affect my sleep.
  3. You can use the tapioca pearls once you’ve marinated them for 10 to 15 minutes, or place them in room temperature for half a day, until ready to use.
  4. To prepare regular tapioca pearls - Bring a small pot of water to a boil. Add tapioca pearls and stir gently until they float to the top. Cook over medium heat for 15 minutes, stirring frequently to prevent them from sticking, until the tapioca pearls turn tender throughout, but are still a bit chewy in texture. Remove the pan from the stove, cover, and let rest for 15 minutes. Drain tapioca, rinse with cold running tap water to stop cooking, drain again and transfer to the bowl of syrup to marinate. You can use the tapioca pearls now, or store them in the fridge until ready to use. They will taste the best when fresh, but you can store them for a couple days. Their texture will become chewier the longer you let them sit.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving, Calories: 258kcal, Carbohydrates: 58.8g, Protein: 2.6g, Fat: 1.3g, Saturated Fat: 0.3g, Sodium: 3mg, Potassium: 16mg, Fiber: 2.3g, Sugar: 20g, Calcium: 15mg, Iron: 1mg