Easy brown sugar syrup for milk tea recipe

Scooping thick brown sugar syrup out of a glass jar,

5 from 42 votes

Easy brown sugar syrup for milk tea recipe

An easy 2-3 ingredients brown sugar syrup recipe for milk tea and Starbucks drinks that can be made with light brown, dark brown and even WHITE sugar! This recipe helps you save money and is naturally vegan and Gluten-Free. I'll be showing you how to make a flavoured, thinner version for Starbucks drinks and the thicker, caramel-like one to create "tiger stripes"for Taiwanese milk tea!

Prep Time5

Cook Time10

Course: Dessert, Drinks

Cuisine: American, Fusion, Taiwanese

Servings: bottle

Calories: 2262kcal

Author: Zen

Equipment

Small saucepan
Heat-proof food brush the type you use to glaze foods
Sterilised glass container To store the extra syrup

Ingredients

Brown sugar rich syrup (for bubble tea)

1 Cup brown sugar You can use light brown, dark brown, gula Melaka, jaggery or even mix the types of sugars for a more complex flavor. Substitute: 1 Cup white sugar + 1 Tablespoon of molasses.
½ Cup water
½ tablespoons lime juice optional: to prevent crystallisation. Substitute: lemon juice or 1 teaspoon of corn syrup or honey

Starbucks brown sugar syrup

1 Cup light brown sugar Substitute: 1 Cup white sugar + 1 Tablespoon of molasses.
⅔ Cup maple syrup
10 Tablespoons water This is equal to ½ Cup of water + 2 Tablespoons
1 Cinnamon stick Make sure it's true Ceylon cinnamon and not Cassia- Ceylon has thinner "quills"
Salt, pinch

Instructions

For thick brown sugar for milk tea.

Add the sugar to the pan and spread it out. Pour the water and lime juice onto the sugar- keep the rest by the side of the pot. Sugar can get very hot so be careful! (Note: DO NOT STIR if you don't want the syrup to crystallise.)
Carefully heat over medium fire- you want to see the sugar melting at this stage and it will be bubbling. Once bubbling, you can reduce the fire to low.
As we are not stirring, we need to pay attention and ensure the sugar doesn't burn- observe the sides of the sugar on the pot. if you see burning, use a damp heat-proof baking brush to brush off the burnt sugar.
Simmer for up to 5 minutes- if not, your sauce will be too thin for the "tiger stripes". (You can simmer for a shorter period of time if you are happy with the sauce's consistency. Don't simmer for any longer than 5 minutes or your sauce will be too thick to use- don't forget, it will continue thickening as it cools.)
Switch off the fire, allow to cool, then store in an airtight container. The syrup should be as thick as molasses now. (Sterilise the jar if you want to extend the shelf life of the syrup.)
The syrup should last 2-3 weeks in the fridge but make sure there's no mold/ weird smells before using.

Starbucks brown sugar syrup

Add all the ingredients to a small pot and cook over medium heat for 2-3 minutes, till the sugar dissolves.
Allow the syrup to cool then transfer everything (including the cinnamon stick) to an airtight glass bottle. (Sterilise if you want the syrup to last for longer.)
Refrigerate- remove the cinnamon stick after 24hours. The syrup should last 1-2 weeks in the fridge but make sure there's no mold/ weird smells before using.

Notes

Always handle the sugar syrup very carefully as sugar gets VERY hot and can cause an awful burn.

For brown sugar simple syrup: reduce the sugar: water ratio to 1:1.

How to thicken the syrup: Either add more sugar or increase the cooking time. You can also try refrigerating it.

Nutritional info: note this is an estimate only and it is for BOTH the Starbucks brown syrup and the milk tea brown sugar syrup.

Nutrition