Tiger Milk Tea Boba, also known as Brown Sugar Bubble Tea, is a super popular beverage in many Asian countries thanks to its creamy, deep toffee-like flavor. Like most bubble tea recipes, it's not difficult to recreate at home- cheaper too! Plus, it's done in under 20 minutes and requires only 3 ingredients!
Jump to:
Note: this post contains affiliate links. I earn a small commission, at no cost to you, if you purchase something through the links! 🙂
Why Make This
- Taiwanese Tiger Milk Tea Boba, also known as Brown Sugar Boba Tea, is delicious!
- It's easy to make: 3 simple ingredients + easy steps + under 20 minutes
- And much cheaper to DIY at home- all those trips to boba shops add up in cost! (For more ideas on how to save money cooking Asian food, click here.)
Ingredients
- Whole Milk: The creamy texture of the milk goes so well with the butterscotch notes of the brown sugar syrup that you really don't even need the tapioca pearls. I highly recommend using full-fat milk and none of that watery, tasteless skimmed stuff! (The original version, by Tiger Sugar, is made with organic milk FYI.) If you can't get fresh milk, don't fret- I sometimes use UHT milk (which is why I categorized it as a "pantry recipe!")
- Brown sugar: you need to melt this into a thick syrup that will slowly coat the glass (and not slide down like water off a duck's back!) Substitutes: I sometimes use Gula Melaka, jaggery or a DIY dark brown sugar (from white sugar and molasses.)
- Brown sugar tapioca pearls: Black tapioca pearls are a staple of Taiwanese Milk Tea/ Bubble Tea (also known as Taiwanese Zhen Zhu Gai Cai.) The ones for tiger milk tea are slightly special as the tapioca balls are soaked in brown sugar syrup. They taste like butterscotch! (For a South East Asian twist, substitute with Gula Melaka Syrup.) It's really easy to make homemade tapioca pearls, like the ones in my photo. However, if you're in a hurry, buy pre-made tapioca pearls from the Asian grocery store. (I recommend quick cool pearls.)
For a full-list of ingredients, scroll down to the recipe card.
Variations & Substitutes
- Dairy-free Brown Sugar Boba drink: if vegan, substitute regular milk with a vegan milk. The beauty of this Taiwanese drink is in how well the richness of whole milk goes with the caramel syrup, so you want the creamiest plant-based milk you can find. Good options would be cashew milk, oat milk or coconut milk. Preferably, don't use almond milk which is quite sweet- the brown sugar syrup is more than sweet enough!
- Iced Milk Tea: To get a cold brown sugar pearl milk tea, you simply use cold milk straight out of the fridge. Alternatively, you can add cubes of ice. Use bigger cubes to slow down melting and prevent your tea from becoming too diluted.
- Caffeinated Black Tiger Tea recipe: Even though this is called "tiger milk tea", the original (by the boba shop Tiger Sugar) doesn't have any actual tea inside! As this popular drink became more common, variations which used black tea bags started popping up. Alternatively, try this Jasmine Milk Tea Boba.
- Green Tiger Milk Tea: use green tea instead of black.
- Healthier version: use maple syrup that has been thickened by boiling or mixing with a cornstarch slurry (then heated). The name of this drink comes from the "tiger stripes" that the brown sugar syrup makes on the sides of the glass, so you need your syrup thick. If not, they'll run down and disappear before you even add the milk! (That's why you can't substitute the brown sugar syrup with Manuka Honey- honey loses its goodness when boiled!)
Step-by-Step Instructions
Cooking the pearls
- Bring a pot of water to a rolling boil then add your pearls to the pot.
Note: if you prefer to make your own boba, as I did, I'll be sharing a post on that soon. (The beauty of DIY boba is that you can make whatever size pearls you want!)
2. Boil the pearls till cooked i.e. once they start floating. My homemade ones started floating within 3 minutes but I continued boiling them for another 7 minutes to get them a bit softer and chewier.
Note: Different brands take different amounts of time to cook- I recommend going for a quick-cook version! (Note: affiliate link)
Cooking the syrup
3. Whilst the pearls are boiling, you can start making the brown sugar syrup. Add brown sugar and water to a pot over medium heat and allow the brown sugar to melt. (It may bubble a bit.)
Alternatively: if you're using pre-made brown sugar syrup, you can just heat it in the pot whilst you wait for the pearls to finish cooking.
Tip: be careful as melted sugar is VERY hot. Be careful not to let it burn but try not to stir for now, as that can promote crystallisation (forming a grainy syrup.) You can add a bit of lime juice or lemon juice if you're concerned about crystallisation.
4. Once the pearls are cooked, add them to the syrup. Stir the pearls in the syrup, over medium heat, till it's super thick. You will probably need to stir it a bit here to prevent it from burning.
It took me about 5-10 minutes to get the brown sugar syrup the right consistency (thick enough to coat the walls.)
You know it's viscous enough when you stir the pot, and it takes a while for the syrup to fill the empty space you created (see photo above).
Note: Do not be tempted to save time here- a runny syrup won't have the same effect!
Assembling the drink
- Hold a tall glass horizontally and place the syrup coated boba near the rim/ top of the glass. Slowly straighten the glass to allow the pearls to slide down, and create "tiger stripes."
- Allow the syrup to rest for 2 minutes before adding the milk- this helps the stripes to harden a little so they don't just disappear into the milk!
- After the 2 minutes are up, pour the cold milk into the glass.
- For iced tea (optional): you can add ice cubes but it may dilute the Tiger Milk Tea.
IMPORTANT: if using freshly made syrup, your glass needs to be heat-proof! If not, wait till the caramel is cool before applying it to the cup.
Note: Make sure all the walls of the glass are covered with streaks of syrup to get a pretty effect.
Where to Buy
Milk and brown sugar are obviously available almost everywhere but you will usually need to go to the Asian supermarket (or online) for the tapioca starch pearls.
Fun fact: This drink is so popular you can even buy a bubble tea kit with all the brown sugar tea ingredients! (Note: affiliate link)
How to Store
Although this drink can be kept in the refrigerator overnight, it won't taste good. The streaks will dissolve into the milk after about 10 minutes and your boba will get hard.
I recommend making it right before you want to drink it!
Expert Tips
Tip #1: If you don't have brown sugar, you can DIY your own brown sugar using white sugar and molasses.
Tip #2: Cook the pearls right before making the drink- they taste best freshly cooked. Don't be tempted to prepare the drinks in advance as they'll harden and become starchy.
Tip #3: Use a tall glass so you can get the full effect of the beautiful brown stripes! Alternatively, for "Mud Flip Tea," use an air-tight container (such as a Mason Jar) so that you can flip the tea to create the caramel streaks.
Tip #4: You'll need a special thick straw for all those boba pearls! (Note: affiliate link)
Recipes FAQs
Strong black teas like Ceylon are a good choice. In Taiwan, China and Hong Kong, the tea used for bubble tea is actually called "red tea"- its strong astringent flavor makes it perfect for all that milk and sugar!
The original Brown Sugar Boba Milk Tea only contains milk and no tea, so zero caffeine. However, some versions add tea leaves- the amount of caffeine would depend on the type and amount of tea leaves used. Generally, black tea has more caffeine than green tea.
Sadly, the answer is no (for regular milk tea.) This tiger milk tea recipe, for example, is all about the brown sugar syrup which diabetics should consume in moderation. You can, however, make other types of milk tea without sugar but it won't quite taste the same! (Many milk tea bars allow you to choose the sugar level for your drink these days, ranging from 0-100%.)
I love Taiwanese milk tea but I wouldn't call it a healthy drink! In tiger boba tea, for example, a lot of sugar is used to create the thick brown sugar syrup!
Recipes That Go Well With Milk Tea
Enjoyed this Taiwanese Tiger Milk Tea recipe? Please leave a 5-star 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟rating in the recipe card below & if you REALLY liked this delicious drink, a comment would make my week! Thank you and have a great day!
Tiger Milk Tea
Equipment
- Pot
- heat proof spatula
- Tall glass ideally heat proof- if not, wait till the syrup is cool before adding it to the cup.
Ingredients
Cooking the pearls
- ½ Cup tapioca pearls I recommend quick-cook pearls to save time. (Different brands will take different amounts of time to cook.) Or making your own, as it's really easy!
- Water Enough to fill half your pot, to boil the pearls in.
Making the brown sugar syrup
- ½ Cup brown sugar
- 2-3 Tablespoons water Don't add anymore than this or it will take longer to cook the syrup down.
Assembling the Tiger Milk Tea
- 3 Cups milk give or take, based on the size of your glasses!
- ice cubes optional, if you want an iced tea
Instructions
Cooking the pearls
- Bring a pot of water to a rolling boil then add your pearls to the pot.
- Boil the pearls till cooked i.e. till they start floating. My homemade ones started floating within 3 minutes but I continued boiling them for another 7 minutes to get them a bit softer and chewier.
- For shop bought pearls: Different brands take different amounts of time to cook- I recommend going for a quick-cook version! (Note: affiliate link)
Cooking the syrup
- Whilst the pearls are boiling, you can start making the brown sugar syrup. Add brown sugar and water to a pot over medium heat and allow the brown sugar to melt. (It may bubble a bit.)
- Alternatively: if you're using pre-made brown sugar syrup, you can just heat it in the pot whilst you wait for the pearls to finish cooking.Either way, be careful as melted sugar is VERY hot. Be careful not to let the sugar burn but try not to stir for now, as that can promote crystallisation (forming a grainy syrup.) You can add a bit of lime juice or lemon juice if you're concerned about crystallisation.
- Once the pearls are cooked, add them to the syrup. Stir the pearls in the syrup, over medium heat, till the syrup is super thick. You will probably need to stir here to prevent it from burning.It took me about 5-10 minutes to get the brown sugar syrup the right consistency (thick enough to coat the walls of the glass.) You know it's thick enough when you stir the pot, and it takes a while for the syrup to fill the empty space you created (see photo above).Note: Do not be tempted to save time here- a runny syrup won't have the same effect!
Assembling the Tiger Milk Tea
- Hold a tall glass horizontally and place the syrup coated boba near the rim/ top of the glass. Slowly straighten the glass to allow the pearls to slide down, and create "tiger stripes." Use half the pearls & syrup (about 5 tablespoons) per cup and make sure you coat a good portion of the walls.
- Allow the syrup to rest for 2 minutes before adding the milk- this helps the stripes to harden a little so they don't just disappear into the milk! After the 2 minutes are up, pour the cold milk into the glass.
- For iced tea (optional): you can add ice cubes but it may dilute the Tiger Milk Tea.
Notes
- Use a tall glass so you can get the full effect of the beautiful brown stripes! Alternatively, for "Mud Flip Tea," use an air-tight container so that you can flip the tea to create the caramel streaks.
- You'll need a special thick straw for all those boba pearls! (Note: affiliate link)
Nutrition
Hope you like this Brown Sugar Milk Tea recipe as much as I do! If you have, a comment or share on social media would make my day! 🙂
Nancy says
Love boba and to be able to make it at home is wonderful. Thanks
Zen says
Thanks Nancy! I know I was blown away the 1st time I made my own pearls!
Keri says
Loved this bubble tea recipe. I've spent a small fortune at our local Bob's tea place. Now I can make my own...
Zen says
Thanks Keri! Yes boba and lattes are my biggest spends 🙁 Which is why you see so many such recipes on my blog now! So much more cost-effective to DIY!
Audrey says
Yum, this looks delicious! I can't wait to make this for me and my husband. He loves boba.
Zen says
Thanks Audrey let me know how your husband likes it!
Jerry says
Loved this! Can’t wait for the homemade pearls recipe! I want to make my own boba!!
Zen says
Thanks Jerry, I'll post the boba recipe ASAP! 🙂