Ingredients
For the Milk Tea
- 6 cups whole milk
- 6 English Breakfast tea bags
- 1/3 cup dark brown sugar, packed
For the Tapioca Pearls
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/4 cup muscovado sugar, packed
- 1 cup tapioca starch, plus more for dusting
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
For the Braising Syrup
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 1 cup muscovado sugar, packed
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Make the Milk Tea
First, make the milk tea so it has time to chill. In a saucepan, combine the whole milk, tea bags, and dark brown sugar.
Heat the mixture over medium heat until it’s steaming, but not boiling. Remove it from the heat and let the tea steep for ~15-20 minutes.
Strain out the tea bags and transfer the milk tea to a pitcher or jar; Refrigerate until completely cold.
Prepare the Tapioca Pearl Dough
In a small pot, bring the water and muscovado sugar to a rolling boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar completely.
Reduce the heat to low and add all the tapioca starch and kosher salt at once. Use a sturdy spatula to stir vigorously. A sticky, brown dough will form quickly. Continue to cook and stir the dough over very low heat for ~3-5 minutes.
Scrape the hot dough onto a clean counter. It will be very sticky, but will become easier to work with as it cools slightly. If it’s unmanageable, knead in a tablespoon of extra tapioca starch.
Divide the dough into four equal portions.
Roll and Cook the Pearls
Working with one portion at a time, roll the dough into a long, thin rope, about 1/4-inch in diameter. Use a bench scraper or knife to cut the rope into 1/4-inch pieces.
Roll each piece between your palms to form a small ball. Place the finished pearls in a bowl and toss them with a little extra tapioca starch to prevent sticking.
Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil. Add the fresh pearls and stir immediately to keep them from clumping at the bottom. Boil for 20 minutes.
Once cooked, use a slotted spoon to transfer the pearls to a bowl of ice water. This stops the cooking and gives them a chewier texture.
Braise the Pearls and Assemble the Drink
In a small saucepan, combine the water, muscovado sugar, and kosher salt for the syrup. Bring it to a boil.
Drain the pearls from the ice water and add them to the boiling syrup. Reduce the heat to a simmer and let the pearls braise for ~20-25 minutes. The liquid will reduce to a thick, dark syrup. Stir in the vanilla extract.
To assemble, tilt a serving glass. Spoon some of the warm, syrupy pearls into the glass, letting them coat the sides to create streaks.
Fill the glass with ice, then pour in the cold milk tea.
Serve immediately.
Brown Sugar Bubble Tea (Boba)
Ingredients
For the Milk Tea
- 6 cups whole milk
- 6 English Breakfast tea bags
- 1/3 cup dark brown sugar packed
For the Tapioca Pearls
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/4 cup muscovado sugar packed
- 1 cup tapioca starch plus more for dusting
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
For the Braising Syrup
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 1 cup muscovado sugar packed
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Heat milk, tea bags, and brown sugar until steaming. Steep 15-20 minutes, strain, and refrigerate.
- Boil water and muscovado sugar in small pot. Add tapioca starch and salt, stir until dough forms. Cook 3-5 minutes.
- Transfer dough to counter, divide into 4 portions.
- Roll each portion into 1/4-inch rope, cut into 1/4-inch pieces. Roll pieces into balls, dust with tapioca starch.
- Boil pearls in water 20 minutes, transfer to ice water.
- Make braising syrup: boil water, muscovado sugar, and salt. Add drained pearls, simmer 20-25 minutes until syrup thickens. Stir in vanilla.
- Spoon warm pearls into tilted glass, coating sides.
- Add ice and cold milk tea.
