How to make bubble tea - the "real" (tea-less) version? Is there a way to create the powdered flavoring?

Question

I've been unsuccessful thus far in recreating Khmer bubble tea, or the pastel-colored bubble tea one can find at many small cafes and stands.

The specific kind of bubble tea I'm looking to make uses the following:

• flavored sugar powder/creamer
• ice
• water
• tapioca pearls in syrup

Can anyone lead me to the proper way to make the flavored powder/creamer? I'm NOT looking for any varieties with fresh fruit, tea, honey, or anything else. This is an original variety of bubble tea (obviously with no real tea!) from Southeast Asia, and I can't seem to recreate it. My combinations of creamer, extracts, and sugar have failed thus far, resulting in a sugar water with little actual flavor. I'm looking for what might be a place to find the actual powders, or a possible makeup of the ingredients used. The result should be a bright color, a more creamy than watery texture, and full-bodied flavor.

A photo of the bubble tea (bright colors, hand mixed, not sealed by a machine) can be found here.

There are ways to order giant packs of the flavored powder/creamer online, but I really don't want to pay $15 for a pound of one flavor if I can create a version of it myself. Any ideas?

Answer 1

You can try finding the powder at an Asian grocery store. The one I frequent has a section of powders that seem like they might be geared more toward a consumer than a restaurant. I just checked: it's a one pound bag. I was able to buy just the one bag, but it was a while ago, so I don't recall the price. According to the bag, the ingredients are Non-dairy creamer, (whatever flavor - I have strawberry and almond) powder, glucose, and coloring. Even though it says it has glucose, you're still supposed to add sugar according to the directions (and it definitely needs it).

As for creaminess, you might consider trying milk/soy milk/almond milk, etc. instead of water. When ever I've made it, it turned out much better like that. The directions call for extra non-dairy creamer, but the recommended amount didn't seem to be enough, so the next batch, I just made it with soy milk (no particular reason for soy over regular: I just don't have regular on hand).

Answer 2

As for powders: I'm from FL (east coast) and I have found it in asian markets, although not in many flavors, but you can get consistent results from other powdered drinks found in your supermarket. I'd suggest strawberry or chocolate Nesquik, or instant coffee, or even slimfast powders come in a few flavors, or chocolate, caramel, strawberry, raspberry or other flavored syrups found in the deserts aisle to mix in with the milk/creamer and tea of your choice. You can also check out vitamin and fitness or health food stores for flavored powder drinks.

Also, since it's a cold drink, a simple syrup will mix in easier than sugar granules. A simple syrup recipe is made by just boiling water, then stirring in sugar until it dissolves. I prefer using brown sugar for my syrup for tapioca pearl drinks. (The black pearls are made with brown sugar)

Traditionally, Boba tea was made from tea, creamer, sweetener with pearls added. (Tip: Herbals like Rooibos you can steep forever, but tea shouldn't be steeped more than 4min as it becomes bitter tasting) Now, often the whole tapioca drink concoctions are made from powders: powdered flavoring (Taro, coconut, lychee, mango, strawberry, orange), with or w/o powdered green or black tea for a base, with sugar, and powdered creamer, shaken with ice, and then poured over the pearls.

In summary, for most bubble tea drinks use tea, not water, to mix in your powders. Don't oversteep your tea. Don't under cook your pearls. For your quest, I'd say vitamin or health food stores are most likely to have your flavored powders (I suggest Vega Health Optimizer- Vanilla Chai is very yummy) Otherwise flavored powders specifically for bubble tea can be found online. Enjoy the journey!

Answer 3

If you're willing to go the molecular gastronomy route, tapioca maltodextrin will turn just about any fat-based substance into a powder. WillPowder sells some for $10/pound or a few bucks an ounce, and they sell on Amazon too.

Otherwise, I'd say you ought to be able to use coffee nondairy creamer or powdered milk to create your own blend. Add dry flavorings to taste, and liquids should be able to mix straight in.

A third route would be to use a freeze-drying machine or very slow stove/oven evaporation to produce your own dry mix.

Answer 4

I'm not sure if you still need help on creating the bubble tea, however, what I have learned is that in order to create the bubble tea, you use approximately 1 tsp of the flavored powder for one serving (adjustable to your taste) and some water, about 2 tbsp, to blend the powder (hot water is recommended to better break down the powder). Most people use a cocktail shaker, but as I don't have one, I use any closed cup as an alternative for the next step. Now that you have the powder mixed with the water, add milk and ice as well, THEN MIX! Afterwards, you pour the drink into the cup with the boba/tapioca pearls, and you're set.

If you wanted a smoothie version, you would make it in a blender using ice, milk, water, and powder.

You are also able to add an additional ingredient to act as an sweetener!