The Taiwanese drink known as bubble tea is created by combining tea with milk, fruit, and fruit juices, followed by the addition of scrumptious tapioca pearls and a vigorous shaking. Bubble tea London is very popular an on demand right now.
Although bubble tea has just recently become popular in the United Kingdom, it has been a favorite beverage (served either hot or cold) in nations such as Taiwan as far back as the 1980s.
Where Did the Bubble Tea Come From?
Bubble tea, also known as pearl milk tea or boba milk tea, is a type of tea-based drink that originated in Taiwan. It is made with tea, milk or fruit-flavored syrups, and tapioca pearls, which are small balls of tapioca that have a chewy texture.
The origins of bubble tea can be traced back to the 1980s, when it was first created by a tea shop owner in Taiwan who added tapioca pearls to cold tea as a way to attract customers. The drink quickly became popular and spread to other parts of Asia and beyond, becoming a worldwide phenomenon.
The History of Bubble Tea
There is no substantiated proof that bubble tea was invented; nonetheless, like to other types of tea, there is a legend around its creation. According to one urban legend, the cocktail was invented in Asia sometime in the 1980s.
Just pay a visit to Taiwan or Hong Kong, and you won’t be able to avoid seeing the one-of-a-kind bubble teashops that are located on almost every corner. In the 1980s, Taiwanese tea stalls were increasingly popular as a post-work pick-me-up and place to hang out in Taiwan and elsewhere in Asia.
Because of this, there was a certain level of competition in the tea industry, and as a result, businesspeople began looking for and coming up with ever more imaginative variants on their teas and drinks.
It is reported that a teahouse in Taichung known as Chun Shui Tang was the first to serve cold Chinese tea, taking the concept from Japanese-style iced coffee.
A short time later, while Ms. Lin Hsiu Hui was working as the product development manager for Chun Shui, she found herself uninterested while attending a staff meeting. She made the snap decision to combine her Assam iced tea with the Taiwanese treat known as fen yuan, which is a tapioca pudding that has been sweetened. She then proceeded to consume the mixture.
Because it was so tasty, they made the executive decision to include it on the menu, and it quickly became the most popular item at the franchise. Almost immediately after seeing the popularity of this beverage at a single teahouse, concessions all across Taiwan began adding tapioca pearls and a variety of fruit flavors to their iced teas.
Its fame first began in Taiwan and has since extended to China, Australia, the United States, and most recently, right here in the United Kingdom.
What Are Bubbles in Pearls Bubble Tea?
The pearls of tapioca, which are found at the bottom of the cup, have a gelatinous consistency that is like that of chewing gum or jelly. You may acquire pearls in a variety of flavors, and although they are often black, they can also be white or translucent. This gives the drink an appearance that is somewhat reminiscent of a passionfruit.
How Would You Describe the Flavor of Bubble Tea?
A delectable delicacy that is sweet, refreshing, and cold all at the same time. You have the option of selecting from a wide range of flavors, much as there are a variety of teas and fruits.
The Description of a Bubble Tea
Bubble tea may be prepared in a broad variety of different ways, and is often served in see-through cups so that its bubbly characteristics can be admired. In addition to the aforementioned variety of fruit infusions and teas, fresh fruits, crushed ice, and milk are often used in what may be described as a very upscale version of the classic milkshake. After putting all of the ingredients in the container, you need to give it a good shake so that everything can combine. James Bond would find this acceptable.
How to Make Bubble Tea?
STEP 1: Boiling and Cooling Water
Pour the boiling water over the teabags or loose tea leaves, and let the mixture to steep for ten to fifteen minutes. Tea should be allowed to cool to room temperature once the tea bags or leaves have been removed and discarded.
STEP 2: How to do Boil Water and Prepare for Bubble Tea
- After bringing a small saucepan containing 500 milliliters of water to a boil over a heat setting of medium, add the tapioca balls to the pot.
N.B. (Make sure that as boba, are not adhering to the pan’s side by stirring the water with a rubber spatula and checking on them periodically.)
- After increasing the heat to bring the liquid to a rolling boil for two minutes,
N.B. (Turn off the heat but continue to leave the pan on the burner with the lid on for an additional two minutes. )
- To reduce the speed at which the boba will cook, drain it in a sieve while holding it over a bowl filled with warm water from the faucet for approximately 20 seconds.
N.B. (To prevent the boba from sticking together and to ensure that they are cooling down in an equal manner, use the same spatula to carefully move it about in the mesh. )
- Once they are cold enough to touch, place them in a mixing dish, add the 1 tsp of dark brown sugar, and stir the mixture until it is completely incorporated.
STEP 3: How to Cool Hot Water for Bubble Tea
In order to prepare the sugar syrup, combine fifty grams of dark sugar with sixty milliliters of water in the same saucepan while it is heated over a medium flame. Make sure that all of the sugar has dissolved before bringing it to a boil while stirring it slowly.
Remove the pan from the heat and let it to cool down. As it becomes colder, it will get more viscous. This recipe yields around
- 212 servings, or
- 80 milliliters, of syrup.
Any extra syrup may be stored in a jar and placed in the refrigerator for up to one month. After adding the cooked boba, stir everything together until it is completely covered. Up to three hours of storage time might be allowed for the covered boba. Do not refrigerate since doing so will cause them to become rigid.
STEP 4: Finally Prepare and Serve Bubble Tea
Gather the ingredients for the bubble tea. Put the sweetened boba in a drinking glass that holds 485 milliliters, or if you want to enjoy it with someone else, use two smaller glasses. Make the wall of the glass seem like marble by twirling the boba in a circular motion.
After the tea has been made, add one tablespoon of sugar syrup to the container. After adding a half cup of ice to the glass, use a metal spoon to swirl the contents of the glass so that the syrup and the tea are well combined. However, take care not to remove the sticky marbled effect that has formed on the inside of the glass. Serve with a boba straw and top with two hundred milliliters of ice cold milk.
The Best Places in London to Get Authentic Bubble Tea
1. Dragon Cat Cafe: Unique Taste of Taiwan
Due to its excellent bubble tea made with subtle, not-too-sweet flavors, this endearingly named small Hammersmith establishment has gained a cult following. Worship at the temple of dairy with jasmine green tea topped with pink salt cream or a luxurious crème brulée tea covered with burnt brown sugar; cream cloud tea is a specific specialty.
Additionally, there is a delectable variety of trendy Taiwanese foods, such as wheelcakes, katsu burgers, and basil fried chicken.
2. Xing Fu Tang: Traditional Delicacy that Older Generations in Taiwan
Visit Xing Fu Tang, which prepares batches of the “pearls” in bubble tea hourly in a huge cauldron, if you want to see how they are genuinely prepared. This high-end Taiwanese chain takes pride in favoring natural flavors and actual tea over artificial flavors and preservatives. The house specialty is a brown sugar milk with freshly blowtorched sugar on top, similar to crème brulee.
3. Kissaten : Best for Japanese Traditional Tea
Even though this Japanese-style bubble tea business in Soho is more expensive than others, it’s worth it for the unique flavors and toppings. These include a variety of matcha-flavored beverages as well as their signature housemade honey tapioca pearls and yoghurt bursting pearls. Learn why this restaurant frequently has lengthy lines by placing your order through a screen.
4. Cuppo Bubbo : Best Fruity or Milky Bubble Tea
With seats set around a huge money tree plant, this elegant Herne Hill café provides more places to relax and stay than your typical bubble tea shop. The emphasis is on authentic, freshly brewed tea, and the rose bubble tea is a standout since it contains actual rose petals. And for those who adore all things creamy, there are also delectable cheese crown alternatives.
5. Biju: Try the Latest Craze: Biju Bubble Tea
This upscale bubble tea shop brags about utilizing only organic milk (no powder) and freshly brewed loose leaf teas (rather than being made in batches). With a significant selection of matcha-based flavors as well as Earl Grey and Rooibos alternatives, this purist approach results in beverages with an appreciably complex flavor.
6. Bubbleology: Best for Organic Tea
The mission of London’s first bubble tea establishment, Bubbleology, which debuted in 2011, was to introduce this metropolis to the chewy, bouncy delights of tapioca pearls.
The company’s current USP is that they very much provide boozy bubbles nowhere else in the area. You may sip alcoholic beverages like the Bailey’s caramel kiss at their Soho bar. These are opulent cocktails for individuals with a genuine sugar craving, whether you want to stick to daytime alternatives like the banoffee pie or not.
7. Boba Coma: Exclusive and Innovative Bubble Tea
South Asian-inspired bubble teas are served at this Leyton establishment by proprietors who combine Taiwanese and cultural traditions to produce kulfi, karak, and rose-flavored drinks. A kinda-cool, kinda-terrifying boba painting makes this establishment stick out from the throng as a bubble tea destination.
8. Quaker Street Coffee and Bubble Tea
A hip cafe in Shoreditch that offers straightforward coffee, bubble tea in London, cakes, pastries, and local artwork. The vivid murals were painted by London artist Suflo, and a different artist’s work is displayed on one wall each month.
9. Cuppacha: Best Bubble Tea shop Newport Court Area, London
Almost every day of the week, you’ll notice a huge line of customers waiting outside Cuppa Cha in Chinatown, which has been dishing up cupp bubble tea for almost ten years. Although the little shop isn’t a place to loiter, it does sell a variety of drinks that are hard to obtain elsewhere. Their butterfly pea ombré beverages have to be the loveliest items on the menu, featuring color combinations reminiscent of a sunset that are perfect for Instagram. There are also really delicious, well-liked specialties, such as the Oreo-topped series.
Final Verdict
The bubble tea flavours is similar to that of a well-balanced, sweet, milky beverage with a hint of boba pearls. Despite being sweet, it isn’t too sweet since teas balance the sweetness and creaminess of the boba tastes. In most cases, boba cafés will brew a tea concentrate and utilize that as the foundation for their milk teas. You may taste strong black teas, delicate green teas, or even lighter jasmine teas, depending on the type of tea they use. Even herbal teas have been known to appear in some beverages.
