[1] Bubble tea; bubble coffee looks pretty much the same (photo © Twinings).
[2] Strawberry “bubble tea.” The fruit drinks are a “freeze” made in a blender with tea, fresh fruit, simple syrup, ice and tapioca balls (photo © Dream Big Photos | IST).
[3] Matcha bubble tea. Here’s the recipe from Two Sleevers (photo © Two Sleevers).
[4] Traditional tapioca pearls, called boba in Japan and Taiwan, are sold dehydrated and require a few minutes of rehydration (Nibble Photo).
[5] Popping boba, a newer invention filled with fruit juice, were created as a fun garnish. These are available in five fruit flavors (photo © Brexonic | Amazon).
[6] Cold brew coffee with boba. You can even buy coffee-flavored boba! Here’s the cold brew recipe from The Movement Menu (photo © The Movement Menu).
[7] A fun garnish.
[8] Celebrate birthdays with bubble tea and bubble cake. Here’s the recipe (photo © Bubblehead 17 | Food.com).
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Originally found only in Asia and in Chinatowns in some cities in the U.S. (and elsewhere), bubble tea emporiums have been popping up nationwide over the past decade (photo #1).
They sell variations of sweet, milky black, or green tea made with milk, non-dairy creamer, or plant-based milk, in “original” or a choice of flavors.
There are also fruit teas, which blend fruit and tea into a colorful drink (photo #2).
And now, there’s bubble coffee, too. The recipe below works with both.
April 30th is National Bubble Tea Day.
Below:
> The difference between bubble tea or and milk tea.
> The recipe for bubble tea or coffee.
> The history of bubble tea.
> More uses for boba (the tapioca pearls).
> The two different types of boba: traditional and popping.
Elsewhere on The Nibble:
> The different types of tea: a photo glossary.
> The history of tea.
> The year’s 23 tea holidays.
> The year’s 25 coffee holidays.
THE FUN OF BUBBLE TEA & BUBBLE COFFEE
At the bottom of each are large, chewy tapioca boba or “bubbles.” There are also alternative choices, popular in Asia, that include agar jelly, fruit jelly and grass jelly (like Jell-O).
The customer can choose a regular, looking like iced tea or coffee, or an ice-blended version that is frozen and then put into a blender, creating a slush.
The bubbles/boba/pearls are sucked up through tapioca pearls through a wide straw.
And now, today’s tip: You don’t have to seek out a bubble tea shop. You can make your own “original” version at home.
A benefit for those cutting back on sugar: You can use noncaloric sweetener or drink it without sweetener; although sweetness is part of the fun.
You can buy the boba and the straws in Asian markets or on Amazon. The boba are available in black, white, and colors.
If you can’t find fat straws, you can scoop out the pearls with an iced tea [long] spoon.
And…you can also make bubble coffee! The recipes follow, along with the history of bubble tea.
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN BUBBLE TEA & MILK TEA
Milk tea is a broad category of beverage that simply refers to any tea (black, green, oolong, white) combined with milk (dairy, creamer, or plant-based) and usually a sweetener. If it seems obvious, we include it here just because some sources reference “milk tea” when talking about bubble tea.
Bubble tea is a specific evolution of milk tea that originated in Taiwan in the 1980s (the origin story is below.
The “bubble” refers to two aspects:
The frothy bubbles created when the drink is vigorously shaken with ice.
The addition of the chewy tapioca “pearls” (boba) at the bottom of the glass.
The fun of the drink is sucking up the the boba through the extra-wide straw provided, and chewing them in-between sips.
RECIPE: BUBBLE TEA OR COFFEE
Ingredients For 2 Servings
1 cup tapioca pearls
4 cups freshly brewed strong black or green tea, or coffee
1 tablespoon sugar or honey, equivalent noncaloric sweetener, or 1/2 tablespoon agave
Ice cubes, for shaking
1/2 cup whole milk or milk of choice
Preparation
1. SOAK the tapioca pearls to reconstitute, according to the package instructions. Once fully softened, drain them and set aside. Tapioca pearls are best used within a few hours of reconstituting.
2. BREW the tea or coffee. is still hot, add the sugar and stir to dissolve completely. Let cool and then refrigerate until completely chilled, about 2 hours.
3. TO SERVE: Place the tapioca pearls at the bottom of 2 glasses. Use a cocktail shaker to shake together the ice, milk, and tea. Strain into the cups and serve with a straw or spoon.
Variations
Add a splash of pure vanilla extract to the milk (or use vanilla almond or soy milk).
Add a splash of dark rum, Irish cream or vanilla liqueur; for bubble coffee only, chocolate or coffee liqueur.
Instant Pot Use: Here’s the technique for Instant Pot Bubble Tea.
THE HISTORY OF BUBBLE TEA
Bubble tea is a sweet, cold, black, or green tea drink created in 1983. The history of bubble tea says that Mr. Liu Han-Chieh, proprietor of the Chun Shui Tang teahouse in Taichung, Taiwan, introduced tapioca pearls.
Prior to then, tea was not served cold in Taiwan. Liu Han-Chieh actually got the idea when visiting Japan, where he saw coffee served cold. He began to serve iced tea.
In 1988, his product development manager, Ms. Lin Hsiu Hui, was sitting in a staff meeting with a glass of iced Assam tea and a bowl of sweetened tapioca pudding called fen yuan. For fun, she poured the tapioca balls into her iced tea, and the rest is history.
The new food fad was especially popular among school children, who liked the boba in cold, milky, flavored tea drinks. The teas became available in many flavors, made with flavored powders that give color to the drink.
The large, chewy pearls are now made in gray-black, beige-white, and colors. The tapioca pearls look like bubbles, and earned the drink the name, “bubble tea.”
Other names include black pearl tea, boba, boba drink, boba ice tea, boba nai cha, pearl ice tea, pearl milk tea, pearl shake, pearl tea drink, tapioca ball drink, zhen zhou nai cha, plus initials: BBT, PT and QQ (which means “chewy” in Chinese).
When you make your own, you can pick a signature name (e.g., TBT for Tad’s Bubble Tea).
Today, bubble tea shops serve a choice of tea (e.g., classic milk tea, jasmine milk tea, matcha, Mexican horchata, made of ground raw rice spiced with cinnamon), a choice of toppings (boba—tapioca balls), almond jelly or grass jelly (a gelatin similar in texture to Jell-O), sweet red beans and others.
Customers can specify the sweetness level.
Some shops even offer organic, soy, and almond milk, plus lactose-free cow’s milk. Some companies used powdered teas and milk, others fresh-brewed tea and whole milk.
They all taste good!
The Name “Boba”
Boba is a Chinese word that does not relate to tea. Its origin regarding the tea is a colorful piece of 1980s Taiwanese slang.
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In the 1980s (when bubble tea was invented in Taiwan), “boba” was Taiwanese slang for a buxom woman or a sex goddess. It was specifically associated with the Hong Kong action star Amy Yip, who was nicknamed the “boba” of the film industry.
When bubble tea shops in Taiwan began to transition from the original small tapioca pearls (called zhēnzhū, “pearls”) to the larger, 10mm pearls used today, a street vendor in Tainan, a city on Taiwan’s southwest coast, allegedly used the slang “boba” to describe the larger size of the pearls as a cheeky marketing gimmick.
While it may seem harmless today, four decades ago the “buxom” analogy was slightly risqué, which fit the youthful, fun vibe of the emerging tea shop culture.
In the U.S., “boba” crossed the ocean with the Taiwanese diaspora and became the dominant term in California and eventually most of the U.S.
On the East Coast of the U.S. and in the U.K., “bubble tea” appears more frequently than “boba.”
In Taiwan and on Mainland China, the more common term is zhēnzhu nǎichá, which literally means “pearl milk tea.”
THE TWO DIFFERENT TYPES OF BOBA
[9] Chart © The Nibble
Most people hear “boba” and think of the dark, chewy balls at the bottom of bubble tea. But there are actually two very different worlds of boba: tapioca pearls and popping boba.
Tapioca pearls, the traditional boba, are essentially a snack you have to chew—that’s the appeal. They’re sold dehydrated. If you undercook them, they’re hard in the middle; if you overcook them, they become mushy.
Tapioca pearls/boba traditionally required 20-40 minutes of boiling to turn from hard to pleasantly chewy (see photo above). With the growth of the category, many 5-minute and microwavable versions are available.
Per the history of bubble tea, also above, they date to 1983.
Popping boba have a thin skin (made from algae extract) that holds a fruit juice center (photos #5 and #7). They don’t require chewing, they just burst when you squeeze them against the roof of your mouth. They’re used for cocktails and desserts.
Popping boba evolved out of Taiwan’s bubble tea culture, but surprisingly, given its recency (likely the 1990s or early 2000s), no single inventor or precise year is firmly established. They were created using the molecular gastronomy* technique of spherification, which drops fruit juice mixed with algae extract into a calcium bath. They are ready to eat immediately.
[10] How else would you use your boba (© The Nibble)?
MORE USES FOR BOBA
Sweet Uses
Since Americans have had access to boba pearls at home, creative uses have exploded. Some examples:
Breakfast: Top yogurt parfaits or açaí bowls. Soak them in a bit of honey or maple syrup first.
Pudding: Stir into rice pudding; place at the bottom of a dish before adding chocolate pudding (or any flavor).
Ice Cream & Sorbet: A topping or bed.
Savory Uses
Fritters: Mix cooked boba with mashed potatoes, peanuts, and spices, then deep-fry them. (In India, tapioca pearls (known as sabudana) are often used in savory dishes:
Salad garnish: Add a tablespoon of pearls to a cold noodle salad or even a green salad for fun and texture.
Stir-frys: Toss into a vegetable stir-fry at the last second. They’ll absorb the savory soy or oyster sauce to become little flavor “dumplings.”
Drinks
Fruit slushies and aguas frescas.
Soft drinks: From sophisticated Italian soda to ginger ale to flavored sparkling water.
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*Molecular gastronomy is the scientific study of the physical and chemical transformations of ingredients that occur during cooking. The term was coined in 1988 by physicist Nicholas Kurti and chemist Hervé This, to explore the science behind culinary processes. Since then it’s been applied to create innovative, avant-garde dining experiences like those of Chef Ferran Adrià at the famous El Bulli in Spain (now closed), Heston Blumenthal at The Fat Duck in the U.K., and Grant Achatz at Alinea in Chicago. By using tools like liquid nitrogen or techniques like spherification, chefs manipulate textures and flavors to surprise diners, transforming traditional dishes into artistic, sensory experiences. Key techniques and ingredients include:
> Spherification: Creating caviar-like beads with liquid centers, often using sodium alginate and calcium chloride.
> Liquid Nitrogen (-196°C): Instant freezing for ultra-smooth ice creams or to create powders.
> Foams & Airs: Using lecithin or a nitrous oxide (N₂O) siphon to create stable, flavored foams.
> Sous-vide: Cooking vacuum-sealed food at low temperatures to ensure precise, uniform cooking.
> Gelification: Using agents like agar-agar or gelatin to create gels.
> Powdering: Turning high-fat liquids into powders using maltodextrin.
[11] Rehydrate the boba and spoon them into a glass (© The Nibble).
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