In This ArticleView AllIn This ArticleWhat Is Boba Tea?Origins and HistoryNutritional Value & Healthful BenefitsHow to Make ItWhere Can I Buy It?What Goes Well with It?
In This ArticleView All
View All
In This Article
What Is Boba Tea?
Origins and History
Nutritional Value & Healthful Benefits
How to Make It
Where Can I Buy It?
What Goes Well with It?
Close
Photo: Getty Images / ugurv
Boba tea, aka bubble tea, is a unique blend of tea, milk, sugar and chewy tapioca pearls that is refreshing and satisfying. Born in Taiwan, the beverage has gone on to find fans around the world and now comes in hundreds of flavors and styles. Here’s everything you should know about what boba tea is, what it is made of and even how to make it yourself.
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Boba tea is made of tea, milk, water, sugar and tapioca pearls. Iced sweet milky tea is given a good cocktail-style shake, after which tapioca pearls are added. Typical versions use black, green or oolong tea, although recently, more flavors and types have appeared. These range from mocha to fruit-flavored milks with pearls that can be black, white or fruity. Most boba tea is sweet and milky, and the milk can vary from whole milk to nonfat, coconut to almond. Others, such as the fruit-infused versions, might not even contain tea or milk.
However, it is those tapioca pearls that are boba tea’s defining characteristic. Nestled at the bottom of each glass, their chewy texture is what makes this unique beverage such a fan favorite. Made from cassava starch mixed with boiling water, the resulting dough is rolled and cut into balls and cooked again in either a brown sugar syrup to achieve the characteristic black color or a plain sugar syrup for white or other flavored pearls. This also gives the boba just a hint of sweetness.
Popping boba, on the other hand, is made either from agar-agar powder, a seaweed extract or calcium compounds, fruit juice, water and a sweetener. These pearls burst with refreshing fruit juice when bitten and are a more recent addition with the advent of fruit-based boba teas.
Other additions can include grass,aloeor coffee jellies, taro or sweet potato balls, fresh fruit or red beans, among others.
Origins and History of Boba Tea
Sweet milky tea and tapioca pearls each have a long history in Taiwanese cuisine. The blend of tea and milk was perfected in 1949 when Chang Fan Shu, a former bartender, opened a tea shop. Using his mixology skills and a cocktail shaker, he created a perfect blend of tea and milk topped with a fine froth (the original bubbles in bubble tea) that customers loved.
Meanwhile, tapioca pearls were a popular dessert topping, especially on Taiwan’s fruit- and fresh crème-smothered shaved ice extravaganzas. Made from cassava, a South American plant that came to Taiwan during Japanese rule from 1895 to 1945, the chewy pearls were favored for their colorful contrast.
The term “boba” has a clear history, though. The bigger-than-usual black tapioca balls borrowed their moniker from a Chinese slang term which was also the nickname for Amy Yip, a Taiwanese movie actress and sex symbol of the same era, famed for her ample bosom.
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Made from cassava starch or a seaweed extract, the pearls are naturally gluten-free and vegan.Cassavais a good source of vitamin C, an antioxidant that can reduce inflammation and support collagen production. It is also a source of fiber and vitamin B6, which helps with brain development and supports nervous system and immune system health.
How to Make Boba Tea
Boba tea is simple to make, and with a bit of time, patience and practice, you can tailor the recipe to your taste buds' preferences.
Steep your favorite tea in boiling water for 5 minutes for maximum flavor. You can also cold-brew the tea, letting it sit for upward of 12 hours in the refrigerator for a slightly less bitter and less caffeinated base. Blend it with your preferred milk to taste and add sugar syrup (typically a mix of equal amounts of white and brown sugar with twice the amount of water heated in a pan until dissolved). Then, boba tea pearls are added for a picture-perfect homemade boba tea.
Boba tea kits are another option. Some people enjoy purchasing them from Costco,Sam’s CluborTrader Joe’s. They are especially nice for beginners who want to learn the steps to creating a unique brew without any guesswork.
Where Can I Buy Boba Tea?
These days, boba tea can be found in almost any city and its suburbs anywhere in the world. In the U.S. alone, there are more than 5,500 shops, with the market only expected to grow.
Boba tea kits or the ingredients—tea, fruit juice, sugar, cassava starch (or tapioca pearls) and milk—are available in shops or online. Popping boba can also be ordered online or made at home with items purchased at specialty shops or online.
What Goes Well with Boba Tea?
Boba tea might be enough on its own and filling, but in Taiwan and areas where it’s been a staple for a while, it’s often enjoyed with a snack such aspopcorn chicken, fish balls or coconut crackers. Some like to add sweets with sweets: muffins or cake. Others suggest dumplings, sandwiches, noodles orsushi.
The Bottom Line
Boba tea is a refreshing beverage phenomenon full of sweetness and chewiness that comes in an endless variety of flavors and styles. While you can make it at home and build it to your own liking, more tea and coffee shops are offering it, so it’s easier to pop out on a break for some delicious fun. And if you haven’t tried boba tea, you might just discover your new favorite beverage.
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