Thai Iced Tea with Boba (Thai Bubble Tea)

5 from 2 votes

Make your own decadent Thai iced tea with boba at home in a few easy steps.

Prep Time5

Cook Time12

Total Time17

Course: Drinks

Cuisine: American, Taiwanese

Servings: serving (16 ounces)

Author: Jee Choe

Steep Thai tea mix and black tea in hot water for 5 minutes. 
Set the water temperature to 195°F if you're using an electric kettle with a temperature setting. Use filtered water when possible.
Strain tea leaves. Stir in brown sugar.
Set aside to cool.

Boil water and add tapioca balls.
Boil water in a saucepan on the stovetop then add tapioca balls. Cook on medium-high heat for 8-10 minutes. Stir occasionally.
(Follow directions on your tapioca ball packaging if you're using a different brand than the one I’m using.)
Drain tapioca balls.
Cool slightly, until tapioca balls aren't too hot to eat. They should still be quite warm.

Combine sweetened condensed milk and evaporated milk.
In a separate cup or bowl stir together sweetened condensed milk and evaporated milk. Set aside.
Put warm tapioca balls into a glass then add ice. Pour in tea. Top with milk mixture.
Serve immediately. Stir before drinking. Use a wide straw to drink.

Thai iced tea is perfect to serve with spicy food since it's sweet and milky to balance out the heat.
A blend of black tea and spices, Thai tea mix what gives this drink the distinctive Thai iced tea flavoring and bright orange color.
The Thai tea mix with black tea can be made ahead of time and stored in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Don't add any milk until the drink is ready to be served.
Even though there's black tea in the Thai tea mix, I like to boost the tea flavor by adding black tea. Use loose tea, tea sachets, or tea bags.
Any sugar can be used, but I prefer brown sugar in drinks with black tea.
Don't replace evaporated milk with regular milk since it won't taste quite the same.
Bubble tea is best when the tapioca balls are just made and still warm so assemble the drink and serve it immediately.
Tapioca balls start to harden as it cools, making them harder to chew. After about 4 hours of cooking them, they'll be too hard to eat so they can't be made ahead of time.
All bubble tea is served with a wide straw, to get a few tapioca balls with each sip of the tea.
This recipe will make 16 ounces (2 cups), so make sure to have a large enough glass.