Pearl Milk Tea

Information about Pearl Milk Tea

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Pearl milk tea typically found in Taiwan

Bubble tea is a tea beverage that originated in Taiwan^[1] in the 1980s. A common misconception is that the term "bubble" refers to the tapioca balls in the drink. This is not true as the term "bubble" actually refers to the layer of bubbles that form on top of the drink when it is shaken. The chewy tapioca balls are often called "pearls," and are consumed along with the beverage through a wide straw. Bubble tea is especially popular in many East Asian and Southeast Asian regions such as Taiwan, Brunei, China (including Hong Kong and Macau), Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam and Australia.

Description

Bubble tea is a mixture of iced or hot sweetened tea, milk, and often other flavorings. The distinctive characteristics of bubble tea are the black gummy balls made of tapioca (or, more commonly in East Asia, yam starch), called "pearls" or "boba" or balls that sit at the bottom of the cup. The pearls are larger than those found in tapioca pudding, with a diameter of at least 6 millimeters, but smaller ones are occasionally used. They are generally translucent brown with a darker brown center, although pearls of other colors or 'jelly cubes' have also recently become available.

The original bubble tea consisted of a hot Taiwanese black tea, tapioca pearls, condensed milk, and honey. As this drink became more popular, variations were created. Initially iced versions with a hint of peach or plum flavoring began to appear, then more fruit flavors were added until, in some variations, the tea was removed entirely in favor of real fruits. Today you can find shops entirely devoted to bubble tea, similar to juice bars of the early 1990s. They usually contain colored pearls that are chosen to match whatever fruit juice is used, in addition to brightly colored oversize straws for sucking up the pearls.

Bubble tea is generally split into two types: fruit-flavored teas, and milk teas. Milk teas may use dairy or non-dairy creamers.

The mixtures that make up bubble tea vary. Several examples of flavors are strawberry, passion fruit, mango, chocolate, and coconut, and may be added in the form of powder, fruit juice, pulp, or syrup to hot black or green tea, which is shaken in a cocktail shaker or mixed in a blender with ice until chilled. The mixture is usually combined with milk and cooked tapioca pearls.

Bubble tea bars often serve bubble tea using a machine to seal the top of the cup with plastic cellophane. This allows the tea to be shaken in the serving cup. The cellophane is then pierced with a straw. Other cafÃ©s use plastic dome-shaped lids. Even fruit slushes and smoothies can have boba added to the drinks.

These tapioca pearls are made mostly of tapioca starch, which comes from the tapioca, or bitter-cassava plant. In other parts of the world, the bitter-cassava plant may be called manioca or yuca. Cassava is native to South America, and was introduced to Asia in the 1800s. The balls are prepared by boiling for 25 minutes, until they are cooked thoroughly but have not lost pliancy, then cooled for 25 minutes. After cooking they last about 7 hours. The pearls have little taste, and are usually soaked in sugar or honey solutions.

Variants

An alternative to the traditional tapioca balls are green pearls. Green pearls, as their name implies, are green tapioca balls. They have a small hint of green tea flavor, and are chewier than the traditional tapioca balls. Alternatives to tapioca balls in general are egg pudding, pieces of aloe,coconut jelly or konjac jelly. The jelly is served in small cubes or rectangular strips, and has a pliant, chewy consistency. They may be ordered 'half and half,' in a drink with half pearls and half jelly. There are also other jellies such as lychee jelly, coffee jelly, and rainbow jelly, a fruit mixture sometimes known as composite jelly.

Culture

When ordering, customers may be asked whether they want 'pearls' or 'boba' in their drinks, and both terms refer to the tapioca balls. The tapioca pearls require an hour for preparation, and they expand considerably when cooked. After they are cooked through but before they become too soft, the pearls are drained and poured into a sugar-water solution, and are ready for use.

Some cafes use a non-dairy milk substitute, instead of milk because many East Asians are lactose intolerant. ^[2] This adds a distinct flavor and consistency to the drink.

As time has moved on new generations of bubble drinks have come into being, such as, the 'Snow Bubble.' This 'Snow Bubble' drink is a slushie-like drink where you choose one of many fruit flavors and it is mixed in with shaved ice to make a smooth refreshing drink, after that the boba balls can be added from their assorted types, black boba which are the original, colored, lychee bubbles, and rainbow boba; some of the many that are offered today.

Availability

Bubble tea is available at small dedicated cafes and some restaurants. Bubble tea kits for making bubble tea at home can be purchased from online shops. Most bubble tea shops serve a variety of drinks, including coffee, juices, fruit smoothies, and fruit freezes, which are sometimes also called bubble tea, though they do not contain any tea ingredients. These drinks can include flavors less familiar to non-Asians, such as taro, honeydew, or lychee, as well as the more familiar chocolate, Ovaltine, Milo (in Australia), Horlicks (in England), or strawberry. Hot bubble tea with pearls are also common, though coconut or konjac jelly are usually not added to hot drinks.

History

There are two shops that claim to be the first creator of Bubble Tea. One is Liu Han Chie who worked in Chun Shui Tang teahouse(春水堂)Taichung City, Taiwan in the early 1980s, and experimented with cold milk tea by adding fruit, syrup, candied yams, and tapioca balls. Although the drink was not popular at first, a Japanese television show generated interest among businessmen. The drink became well-known in most parts of East and Southeast Asia during the 1990s.

An alternative origin is the Hanlin(翰林)Teahouse in Tainan City, Taiwan, owned by Tu Tsong He Hanlin Bubble tea is made by adding traditional white fenyuan which have an appearance of pearls, supposedly resulting in the so-called "pearl tea." Shortly after, Hanlin changed the white fenyuan(粉圓) to the black, as it is today.

In the late 1990s, bubble tea began to gain popularity in the major North American cities with large Asian populations, especially those on the West Coast and East Coast and in Texas. The trend in the United States started by Lollicup in the city of San Gabriel, California and quickly spread throughout Southern California. The beverage has received much attention from mainstream American media, including covers on National Public Radio show Morning Edition and the Los Angeles Times. Bubble tea has spread internationally through Chinatowns and other overseas Asian communities.

In the U.S., major chains such as Boba Bee in Chicago are expanding into suburban areas, particularly those with large Asian populations. Bubble tea can also be found in major European cities such as London and Paris. Bubble tea is also gaining in popularity in Canada, particularly in and around the cities of Vancouver, British Columbia; Toronto, Ontario; and Montreal, Quebec where there are large Asian-Canadian communities. It is also gaining popularity in Australia, especially in Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne where there are also high concentrations of Asian immigrants and descendants.

Names

The Chinese term for bubble tea is actually "Pearl milk tea" (Traditional Chinese: 珍珠奶茶; Hanyu Pinyin: zhēnzhū nǎichÃ¡; Tongyong Pinyin: jhenjhu nǎichÃ¡). "Bubble Tea" in Chinese actually refers to a modern method of beverage preparation: to efficiently and homogenously mix various ingredients in these drinks (e.g., sugar, powdered milk, tea, and ice), drink makers often shake the tea up as bartenders do with cocktails. Thusly prepared, a layer of foam forms on the surface, and any tea so prepared can be called bubble tea. "Foam black tea" (Traditional Chinese: 泡沫紅茶; Simplified Chinese: 泡沫红茶; Pinyin: pÃ omÃ² hÃ³ngchÃ¡; literally "bubble black tea") and "foam green tea" (Traditional Chinese: 泡沫綠茶; Simplified Chinese: 泡沫绿茶; Hanyu Pinyin: pÃ omÃ² lǜchÃ¡; Tongyong Pinyin: pÃ omÃ² lyÃ¹chÃ¡;literally "bubble green tea") are also common drinks made by shaking sweetened tea. After pearl milk tea was brought to non-Asian countries, it was given the name "bubble tea." Since the most notable difference between bubble tea and other tea is the tapioca at the bottom of the drink, some assumed that the "bubble" in "bubble tea" referred to these pearls, though the frothy layer created from shaking the drink is what gives "foam (or bubble) tea" its name. The pearls in "pearl milk tea," however, do refer to the tapioca "pearls."

Different names

Bubble (milk) tea has many other names, including:

Chinese

泡沫紅茶 (Pinyin: pÃ omÃ² hÃ³ngchÃ¡): "bubble black tea", used mainly in Taiwan
泡沫奶茶 (Pinyin: pÃ omÃ² nǎichÃ¡): "bubble milk tea", used mainly in Taiwan
珍珠奶茶 or 珍奶) (Hanyu Pinyin: zhēnzhū nǎichÃ¡; Tongyong Pinyin: jhenjhu nǎichÃ¡): "pearl milk tea", in Taiwanese (Min Nan) and Chinese usage
波霸奶茶 (Hanyu Pinyin: bōbÃ nǎichÃ¡; Tongyong Pinyin: bobÃ nǎichÃ¡): "large pearls milk tea", used mainly in southern Taiwan for the large-pearl kind; tea with smaller pearls is called "pearl milk tea"
黑珍珠奶茶 (Hanyu Pinyin: hēi zhēnzhū nǎichÃ¡; Tongyong Pinyin: hei jhenjhu nǎichÃ¡): "black pearl milk tea" (less common)
(奶)茶珍珠 (Hanyu Pinyin: (nǎi) chÃ¡ zhēnzhū; Tongyong Pinyin: (nǎi) chÃ¡ jhenjhu): "(milk) tea pearl" (less common)

English

pearl (milk) tea or drink
tapioca milk tea drink
milk pearl tea or drink
black pearl (milk) tea or drink
(milk) tea pearl
boba (milk) tea or drink
Chooba tea or drink
tapioca (milk) tea or drink
bubble tea
bubble milk

Others

TrÃ sữa trÃ¢n chÃ¢u (Vietnamese): literally "pearl milk tea"
보바 드링크, 보바 티, 버블티 (Korean): literally "Boba drink/tea", "bubble tea"
タピオカティー (Japanese): transliterated "tapioca tea"
ชาไข่มุก, ชามุก (Thai): literally "pearl tea"
SAGO (Tagalog): literally "tapioca pearls" (Sago at Gulaman "Tapioca Pearls & Agar-Agar Jelly" are the popular version of Bubble Tea in the Philippines)

References

1. ^ The History of Bubble Tea
2. ^ Chao, Julie. "Taiwan tapioca tea on tap." San Francisco Examiner. December 12, 1999.

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