What is bubble tea?
Ever since it debuted in Taiwan in 1985, bubble tea has captured a rapt audience everywhere it goes. Bubble tea refers to the genre of frothy and refreshing concoctions, usually of tea and a myriad combination of other flavors, served with or without milk or cream, with or without tapioca pearls.
Because tapioca pearls seem to be the common denominator among all these various beverages, the term "bubble" in "bubble tea" has now come to refer to the tapioca pearls.
Originally, however, the term "bubble" indicates the froth or head created by the vigorous shaking method of preparation - a unique way of preparing a unique drink.
Also known as BOBA TEA, TAPIOCA TEA, PEARL MILK TEA, QQ DRINKS
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How do I make bubble tea?
Because the name "bubble tea" can refer more to a genre or category of drink rather than a specific beverage, sometimes leading to a lot of confusion among devotees and initiates alike, we at Bruce&Clark have devised a system called the Bruce&Clark Bubble Tea Schema®.
The Schema is intended to be a conceptual framework for the understanding of bubble tea, as well as the methodological basis for the preparation of bubble tea beverages.
To make bubble tea, combine all COMPONENTS together:
LIQUID + FLAVOR + SWEETENER + TEXTURE
= Water/Tea & Ice + Flavored Powder/Syrup + Sugar Syrup or Honey + Choobee™ or Tapioca Pearls
Read the Bruce&Clark Bubble Tea Schema for more information.
Use our recipes to make delicious bubble tea drinks.
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Do you always have to add tea?
No, it is not necessary to add tea to every drink.
Although the name "bubble tea" strongly connotes the presence of tea in every beverage, bubble teas may or may not come with tea, depending on the customer or the bubble tea maker's preference.
Tea adds a depth, complexity and smoothness to the final beverage, however.
We at Bruce&Clark recommend adding a shot of tea to their bubble tea drinks.
We encourage our clients to experiment mixing and matching various other ingredients to come up with their own formulations and signature blends.
Bubble tea making can be likened to cooking in this aspect, almost an art form: the sublimity of the final beverage rests on your creativity and imagination.
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What kind of tea should I use for bubble tea beverages?
Most bubble teashops use two basic kinds of tea in all their beverages:
- Red tea (also called, confusingly enough, black tea)
- Jasmine green tea
Unless very familiar with tea, we recommend starting out with these two kinds of tea.
Red tea “rounds” out the drink, making it smoother and mellower;
Jasmine Green Tea “brightens” up the drink, making it lighter and sprightlier on the tongue.
Red tea works best with "earthy" flavors such as Taro, Sesame, Red Bean, Green Bean, etc.
Jasmine green tea works best with "fruity" flavors such as Lychee, Pineapple, Honeydew, etc.
However, we encourage all our clients to experiment with tea and come up with the combinations they like best. Part of the fun is experimentation.
We also carry other kinds of teas. If you have a particular tea in mind, please contact us to inquire. Chances are, we have the tea you want as well.
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What is Original Pearl Milk Tea?
Original Pearl Milk Tea is how bubble tea was first conceived:
brewed tea, sweetener, plus milk or creamer are shaken with ice.
Original Pearl Milk Tea recipe
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What is the difference between cream-based and sour-based powders?
Milky Flavored Bubble Tea (RECIPE) needs milk or creamer (Refined Creamer Powder) to achieve the right consistency in the final beverage. They should be smooth and creamy, going down with the right finish. It should never be watery.
Thirst-quenching Flavored Bubble Tea (RECIPE) does not require the addition of milk or creamer. In fact, milk or creamer should not be added as this would cause curdling. Sour Flavored Powders (SFP) are especially good with tea.
note: Flavored Syrups (FS) are used in the same way as Sour Flavored Powders (SEE BELOW).
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How do I use flavored syrups?
Flavored Syrups (FS) are another flavor component.
They work just like Sour Flavored Powders:
- do not require the addition of milk or creamer
- especially good added to a tea-based drink to charge up the final beverage
(e.g. a lychee bubble tea)
Use them in THIRST-QUENCHING FLAVORED BUBBLE TEA.
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What are the different types of tapioca pearls?
Tapioca pearls vary greatly in quality.
At Bruce&Clark, we make sure that the tapioca pearls we import into North America are made from the finest ingredients and manufactured according to strict standards.
Black Tapioca Pearls
- the most popular kind of tapioca pearls for bubble tea
- made from tapioca starch, brown sugar, and caramel
Our tapioca pearls are vacuum-sealed to preserve freshness. An unopened bag of tapioca pearls has a shelf life of about six months, while opened bags have a shelf life of a week.
We usually do not recommend opening a bag until at the time of cooking because tapioca pearls are unusually sensitive to changes in humidity and moisture. If by chance you do not cook the whole bag, close and seal the bag of remaining tapioca pearls immediately to prevent losing freshness.
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What are Choobees™? What is coconut jelly?
Choobee™ exclusively from Bruce&Clark
- no-cook texture component
- "firmer", not as "elastic"/"chewy" as tapioca pearls
- fun, cube shapes
- available in different colors
- matches any bubble tea flavor
Coconut jelly
- another texture component
- available packed in different flavors
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What other texture components can I add to bubble tea drinks?
Texture components provide that unique textural difference that is bubble tea.
Although not chewy enough in our opinion, some shops offer soy pudding and flavored soy pudding as additions to the basic bubble tea drink.
There are various other jellies that one can add, like grass jelly, almond jelly, and so on.
Each bubble tea maker and each bubble tea drinker is constantly redefining what counts as bubble tea: the limit here is our imagination - and this is what makes bubble tea an extremely fun, innovative, and exciting product.
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