What is Bubble Tea?

Bubble tea is the popular Americanized name for Pearl Milk Tea and other similar tea and juice beverages that originated in tea shops in Taichung, Taiwan in the 1980s. Drink recipes may vary, but most bubble teas contain a tea base mixed with fruit (or fruit syrup) and/or milk. Ice-blended versions of the drinks, similar to slushies, are also available, usually in fruit flavors.

One of famous categories of bubble teas is "pearl milk tea" (also known as "boba milk tea"), which contains small chewy balls made of tapioca starch, called "Pearls" in Chinese (also known as "Fenyuan" or "Boba (Poba)"). Pearls made of jelly are also available in many places.

Bubble tea originated in Taiwan in the 1980s, first spread to nearby East Asian countries, migrated to Canada before spreading to Chinatowns throughout the United States, and then to various college towns along the West Coast. There are also bubble tea cafes in the Philippines.

There are many variants of the drink, depending on the types of tea used and ingredients added. The most popular kinds are "green tea with pearls" (泡沫綠茶), "pearl milk tea" (珍珠奶茶), "pearl green milk tea" (珍珠奶綠), "pearl black tea" (珍珠紅茶) and "pearl green tea" (珍珠綠茶), etc.