Brown sugar bubble tea with tapioca pearls

This is the drink that made Taiwan world-famous on Instagram: a glass with dark tiger stripes of syrup painted down the inside, and a base of soft, chewy tapioca pearls. I love it because it’s somewhere between a cup of tea and a dessert. The pearls are allowed to soak in a thick brown sugar syrup, making them caramel-glazed and almost sticky, and on top of them, you pour cold milk and a little tea. You don't need a machine or special equipment, just a pot and a bit of patience.

• Cuisine: Taiwanese
• Time: 30-45 minutes
• Servings: 2 large glasses
• Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

1. Bring plenty of water to a boil in a pot. Add the dry tapioca pearls and stir gently to prevent them from sticking to the bottom.
2. Cook the pearls according to the time on your package - typically 20-30 minutes - and let them steep covered for an additional 15 minutes. They should be completely transparent with no white core in the middle.
3. Strain the pearls and quickly rinse them in cold water to stop the cooking process.
4. Melt dark muscovado or brown sugar with a little water in a small saucepan until it becomes a thick syrup. Toss the warm pearls in the syrup and let them soak for 5-10 minutes to absorb the sweetness.
5. Brew a strong cup of black tea, preferably twice as concentrated as you would normally drink it, and set it aside to cool.
6. Distribute the pearls and syrup into the bottom of two tall glasses. Rotate the glass while scraping the syrup up the sides with a spoon – this is how the classic stripes are created.
7. Fill the glass with ice cubes, pour in the cooled tea, and top with cold milk.
8. Serve immediately with a wide straw so you can slurp up the pearls.

Tips

• Tapioca pearls are only good the same day they are cooked. In the refrigerator, they become hard and mealy, so only make what you will drink.
• If you want the richly creamy café version, use sweetened condensed milk or oat milk with cream instead of regular low-fat milk.
• Brew the tea extra strong – it will be diluted by both ice and milk, and a weak tea will disappear completely in the sweetness.
• Be careful not to overcook the pearls if you have already let them steep. If overcooked, they will disintegrate and lose their chewiness.