After becoming addicted to the phenomenom that is Taiwanese Bubble Tea recently, I decided I wanted to recreate the unique experience for myself at home. Thanks to this article on how to make homemade bubble tea I went on a mission to my local Asian store in search of tapioca pearls. There was a coloured variety, a black pearl variety and a purple "new sago" variety. Since my initial visit I have now tried all three types, but here's the packaging for the coloured tapioca pearls. The colours are achieved through the use of e-numbers.
Having aquired the tapioca pearls I then bought some Lift Instant peach flavour tea. Not the tastiest of flavoured teas by a longhsot, but considering this heatwave we've been having it did the job nicely when mixed with lots of cold water.
I cooked the tapioca pearls in boiling water as instructed for about 5 minutes, and made a simple sugar syrup to keep them fresh.
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| Tapioca before cooking |
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| Cooked tapioca coated in sugar syrup |
Et voila! Homemade bubble tea!
Maybe not the most accurate or sophisticated replication of Bubble Tea in the world but it was a very refreshing drink, and perfect during this heatwave we're currently experiencing. I really enjoyed slurping the tapioca pearls through the straw - so addictive!
Since my initial experiment I've also made a mango smoothie with black tapioca pearls. I blended together mango, ice and coconut milk and added cooked black tapioca. It tasted delicious, and so refreshing!
Have you tried Bubble Tea? If so what is your favourite combination?