This Is How You Can Make Your Favorite Milk Tea At Home

The milk tea craze may have come and gone but it’s still a beloved drink. Whether you’re a fan of the drink only when the sun is out or truly a milk tea fan ever since, it’s a drink that’s easy to enjoy. 

What’s great about it is that it’s quite easy to recreate because the most basic recipe is simple. It’s what you add in that makes each variant delicious and different. The most important part is that you use the tea that you love. The milk, flavor powders, and even the simple sugar syrup (which is really easy to make, too!) are easily added to make it special.

First, if you’re wondering how do you make simple syrup, here’s how to make it:

A syrup more easily dissolves into mixtures compared to sugar granules.

Photo by Pixabay

Simple Syrup Recipe

• Mix 1 cup water and 1 cup white sugar into a saucepan. Place over medium heat and bring to a boil, stirring until all the granules of sugar have dissolved. Remove from the heat and transfer to a squeeze bottle and letting it cool completely.

If you want to flavor it with extracts, stir it in off the heat before pouring the mixture into the squeeze bottle.

Now that you have your simple syrup, time to make some milk tea! Schedule a trip to a baking supply store, visit an online shop, or your local supermarket for some specialized milk tea powders, tea bags of your choice, and some tapioca pearls.

Once you have those, here are some basic milk tea recipes that you can make at home:

Basic Milk Tea Recipe

• 2 bags black tea
• 1 cup hot water
• 2 tablespoons non-dairy creamer or powdered skim milk
• Simple syrup, to taste
• 1/2 cup ice, more as needed
• Tapioca pearls**, cooked, as needed
•  
• 1 In a large bowl, steep the tea bags in the hot water for 5 minutes. Remove the tea bags and discard. Add the creamer and simple syrup to taste, and stir to mix and dissolve.
•  
• 2 Add and stir in ice to cool off mixture then transfer to a serving glass filled with tapioca pearls. Serve immediately.

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Wintermelon is a sweet melon that is native to Japan. It’s sweet and makes a fantastic flavoring to creamy milk tea. 

Wintermelon Milk Tea Recipe

• 1/4 cup wintermelon milk tea powder*  
• 1 1/4 cups cold water
• Ice, as needed
• Tapioca pearls**, cooked, as needed
•  
• 1 In a blender, mix wintermelon milk powder and cold water until dissolved. Pour into a tall glass with pearls and ice. Serve immediately. 

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Taro is a root crop with an earthy flavor, just like ube. However, it’s not ube but instead is a variety of gabi with purplish hues.  

Taro Milk Tea Recipe

• 1/4 cup taro milk tea powder*
• 1 1/4 cups cold water
• Ice, as needed
• Tapioca pearls**, cooked, as needed
•  
• 1 In a blender, mix taro milk powder and cold water until dissolved. Pour into a tall glass with pearls and ice. Serve immediately.

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Tea bags contain various dried leaves to give you the best-tasting infusion.

Photo by Pixabay

Tea leaves can be roasted! All you’ll do is a light toasting of the already dried leaves, just like you would if toasting sesame seeds or whole spices, until a toasted flavor emerges from the leaves.  

Roasted Milk Tea Recipe

• 2 bags black tea
• 1 cup hot water
• 2 tablespoons non-dairy creamer or powdered skim milk
• Simple syrup, to taste
• 1/2 cup ice, more as needed
• Tapioca pearls**, cooked, as needed
•  
• 1 Open tea bags and place leaves in a dry frying pan. Place over medium heat and lightly roast until fragrant, about 2 minutes, stirring regularly. Remove from the heat.
•  
• 2 In a large bowl, steep the roasted tea leaves in the hot water for 5 minutes. Strain tea leaves using a strainer or sieve and discard leaves. Add the creamer and simple syrup to taste to the brewed tea, and stir to mix and dissolve.
•  
• 3 Add and stir in ice to cool off mixture then transfer to a serving glass filled with tapioca pearls. Serve immediately.
•  

Coconut cream adds a tropical flavor to drinks.

Photo by Pixabay

Coconut is a fantastic flavor for milk tea! It’s a wonderfully warm nutty flavor that complements and adds creaminess to the herby tea. 

Coconut Milk Tea

• 2 bags black tea
• 1 cup hot water
• 2 tablespoons coconut cream
• Simple syrup, to taste
• 1/2 cup ice, more as needed
• Tapioca pearls**, cooked, as needed
•  
• 1 In a large bowl, steep the tea bags in the hot water for 5 minutes. Remove the tea bags and discard. Add the coconut cream and simple syrup to taste, and stir to mix and dissolve.
•  
• 2 Add and stir in ice to cool off mixture then transfer to a serving glass filled with tapioca pearls. Serve immediately.

Curious where to go for more ingredients? Try these places: 

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*Wintermelon Millk Tea powder (P168/1kg) and Taro Milk Tea powder (P182/1kg) InJoy products are available at Negosyong Bayan outlets located in Baclaran, Cainta, Caloocan, Manila, and San Juan in Metro Manila as well as in Batangas and Cebu. Visit doxo.com.ph or call (632) 861-9670 and (63947) 583-0203 for more information.

**Tapioca or milk tea pearls are available at Negosyong Bayan outlets (P81/1kg) and Restaurant Depot (P72/1kg). 

Restaurant Depot is a membership-only ingredients and supply store located on 2946 F.B. Harrison St, Pasay. Visit facebook.com/restaurantdepotph or restaurantdepot.com.ph for more information.