Bubble Tea was originated in Taiwan and now has become a popular drink worldwide! It is a tea-based drink and/or mixed with milk thus “milk tea”, that is accompanied with chewy tapioca pearls or commonly known as “boba” or “pearls”, but it can with go with other toppings or sinkers as well such as puddings, QQ jelly, aloe vera, grass jelly, rock salt and cheese, etc.
Bubble tea has many variants and flavors to choose from but the most popular flavor nowadays are “Pearl Milktea” and “Brown Sugar Milktea”.
Since anyone that has been craving for some milk tea during these trying times and the lack of accessibility to our favorite boba shops has intensified these cravings, the DIY boba kits became popular and bloomed during this pandemic and we can now get ourselves a cup of milk tea. Just one tap away from that boba shop that is offering a DIY boba kit and voila you can enjoy it at the comforts of your home without the worrying of going outside.
These DIY kits may vary from stores. They may offer a DIY kit with different flavors to choose from while the other will be just the flavor of the tea you ordered or a pre-arranged one – meaning this can be their best-seller or their new flavor. The price ranges of these DIY kits may also vary from the sizes available (16 oz. or a 1 liter) and the number of servings (1 cup or 20 cups).
Now I know you’re all excited to know what’s inside a DIY boba tea kit. Here it is:
MILK TEA POWDER or LOOSE LEAF TEA
· Some shops uses authentic tea leaves while the other uses powdered teas, so before placing an order it’s better to ask what they use because preparing the teas and the process will be different from each other.
· An instruction guide will be included on how to steep the tea leaves or to prepare the powdered ones.
· There are variety of flavors to choose from like Classic, Wintermelon, Okinawa, Matcha, Taro, Chocolate, Oolong, Earl Grey, Jasmine, etc.
RAW or UNCOOKED BOBA (TAPIOCA PEARL)
· An instruction guide will also be included on how to prepare the boba at home. Since a cooked boba should be consumed within the day it was cooked.
· This will also depend on how you wanted your tapioca pearls to be cooked – tender or a bit less chewy.
SYRUP (BROWN SUGAR SYRUP)
· Some boba shops they may include a syrup – it’s basically like an alternative for sugar. For those who wanted their milk teas to be sweet or semi-sweet.
CUPS WITH LID & STRAWS
· For that authentic feels while enjoying your DIY boba tea at home.
We are no stranger when it comes to bubble milk tea cravings most especially during this pandemic. We all deserve to treat ourselves from time to time but also do remember to drink bubble milk teas in moderation since it’s high in sugar.
Enjoy in creating your DIY boba milk tea