This is the classic, basic recipe for tapioca balls. You can use this as a topping in any bubble tea drink. Without tapioca, there would be no bubble tea.
The chewy bubbles are what transform these Taiwanese drinks into desserts and vice versa. Bubble tea is a fusion of dessert and beverage. Great tapioca is soft but not mushy, firm but not hard, and chewy but not rubbery. The bounciness in this lightly sweetened topping is what represents the iconic term ‘QQ’. In Taiwan, Q translates to soft and chewy, and double Q means really chewy. It’s an experience that first-timers need to get used to, but you’ll soon become an expert in eating and drinking at the same time.
Ingredients
FOR THE SYRUP
Method
- In a mixing bowl, stir together the tapioca powder and boiling water. Tip: Make sure you use the boiling water right away – if the water is not hot enough, the tapioca powder will turn into a weird texture known as ‘oobleck’ – a term for a substance that has properties of both a solid and a liquid (kind of like quicksand or slime) that comes from a Dr Seuss children’s story.
- Once the mixture is cool enough to handle, knead it to a dough-like texture.
- Flatten the dough and spread out into a square measuring 10 cm (sprinkle tapioca powder on the bottom and top to prevent sticking, as with flour when baking). You can use your hands or a rolling pin.
- Using a knife, carefully cut the dough into long strips.
- Cut each strip of dough into smaller pieces and then roll each of those pieces into a ball of about 1 cm in diameter.
- Continue cutting strips and rolling pieces until you have a bowl of tapioca balls. This mixture should make about 100 balls.
- Cook immediately (see instructions that follow), or place in an airtight bag and store for up to six months in the freezer.
- Fill a saucepan with 700 ml water and bring to the boil, then add the tapioca balls.
- Stir continuously until all of the tapioca balls fl oat to the top (about 1–2 minutes.
- Cover with the lid and reduce the heat to medium-low. Cook for 8 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Turn off the heat. Keeping the pot covered, wait another 8 minutes.
- While waiting, make the syrup by mixing the brown sugar and hot water in a bowl. Set it aside.
- After 8 minutes, rinse the cooked tapioca balls under cold, running water. Then pour them into the brown sugar syrup and stir to avoid clumping .
- Let them soak for 10–15 minutes.
- Add to your milk tea and enjoy.
- Tapioca tastes best when consumed within 2 hours. As tapioca balls can be difficult to digest in large quantities, remember to enjoy your bubble tea in moderation.
