Jasmine Milk Tea

Enjoy jasmine milk tea with boba in the comfort of your own home! This creamy drink features floral, sweet, and delicate flavors. Serve it hot or cold and with or without chewy tapioca pearls. With my detailed instructions, you’ll be surprised at how easy it is to prepare.

Why you’ll love it

• Simple ingredients: You only need four ingredients to make this drink. Each one is available at most grocery stores so you don’t need to worry about searching for them!
• Customizable: Use different milk, more or less boba, and adjust the sweetness level to suit your preferences. There are so many unique ways to customize this drink.
• No fancy equipment: You don’t need any special barista equipment to make jasmine milk tea. Just simple, everyday items you already have at home are necessary.

What is jasmine milk tea?

Jasmine milk tea is a popular beverage made up of jasmine tea, milk, and sweetener. Oftentimes, tapioca pearls (also known as boba) are added, but you can enjoy it both ways.

Bubble tea was invented in the 1980s in Tawain, and it has since become a worldwide phenomenon. Nowadays, there are bubble tea shops everywhere serving a wide variety of milk and bubble teas.

Even though it’s delicious, store-bought milk tea can cost a small fortune! That’s why I made this recipe for a homemade version. It’s just as rich, sweet, and creamy.

Is it vegan?

Jasmine milk tea is popularly made with cow’s milk. But with the changing times, you’ll almost always find options for plant-based milk.

The most popular choice at tea houses is oat milk since it has a silky mouthfeel and subtle sweetness. However, you can use any milk you prefer to make this recipe just right.

Ingredients & Substitutions

• Jasmine green tea: Both jasmine pearls and jasmine green tea bags will work.
• Tapioca pearls (boba): You can use uncooked tapioca pearls to prepare yourself, or you can also opt for quick-cooking boba to save time. You should be able to find both kinds at Asian food markets.
• Water: Make sure you use filtered water for the best flavor! The temperature shouldn’t exceed 180 degrees F.
• Sugar: I prefer organic granulated sugar or cane sugar to sweeten the tapioca pearls. You can also try organic brown sugar or coconut sugar.
• Sweetener: I love the flavor combination of jasmine green milk tea and cardamom syrup, but maple syrup, brown sugar syrup, agave, coconut nectar, or plain simple syrup all work well too.
• Oat milk: The creamy consistency of oat milk accentuates the sweet, floral notes of jasmine tea incredibly well. Other great options include coconut milk, soy milk, or cashew milk.

Instructions

• Step 1: Boil the water to 180°F, then steep the jasmine green tea pearls (or tea bag) for 5 minutes. Once steeped, strain the tea and let it cool completely.

• Step 2: Bring a pot of water to a boil, then add the tapioca pearls. Lower the heat and let them simmer on low-medium heat for 5 minutes. Make sure to stir them constantly since tapioca pearls clump together if left unstirred.

• Step 3: Drain the water from the tapioca pearls, then place them in a bowl with sugar, a quarter cup of water, and mix until combined.
• Note: You can use a quarter cup of brown sugar syrup instead of sugar and water. It helps to keep the boba from sticking together.

• Step 4: Add the sweetened boba to the bottom of a tall glass. Layer with ice, then pour the jasmine green tea over. Add cardamom syrup and oat milk, and stir until combined.

How to serve bubble tea

If you are serving your jasmine milk tea with boba, it’s best to use a wide-mouth straw. You can purchase reusable straws made from bamboo, glass, metal, etc. If you don’t have any straws on hand, just use a spoon to scoop up some pearls with each sip.

Bubble tea can be served hot or cold. To make a hot recipe, omit the ice and don’t let the tea cool to room temperature.

Storage

Jasmine milk tea is best enjoyed immediately for the best flavor. If you end up with leftovers, follow these storage instructions:

• Fridge: Keep it in an airtight glass jar or container for up to 2 days in the refrigerator. For the best storage, separate the boba from the milk tea.
• Freezer: You can also freeze leftover jasmine green milk tea in ice cube trays to chill your next batch. The boba should not be frozen.
• Prep in advance: To save time on the day of, steep the jasmine tea ahead of time. It can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container until you are ready to serve.

Variations

• Decaf: If you are sensitive to caffeine, use decaf jasmine green tea instead.
• Boba: Experiment with different boba like coconut jellies, clear boba, or popping boba. 
• Sugar-free: To make a healthier jasmine green milk tea, replace the sweetener with stevia or monk fruit, or omit it altogether.
• Flavors: Instead of oat milk, add fruit juice to your tea like mango, pineapple, peach, or strawberry.

Top tips

• Serve immediately: Although you can save jasmine milk tea for later, it’s best served immediately for optimal flavor and texture of the tapioca pearls.
• Use a boba straw: In order to properly suck up the boba, I recommend using a wide-mouth bubble tea straw!
• Quality tea: For the best possible flavor, it’s important to use high-quality jasmine tea.

FAQ

Similar Recipes

If you enjoyed this jasmine green milk tea, be sure to check out some more of my favorite drinks like these:

• Iced Lavender Latte: A simple dairy-free latte with coffee and floral notes.
• Pumpkin Spice Latte: A perfectly spiced Starbucks copycat recipe. 
• Chai Hot Chocolate: Rich cocoa infused with warming chai flavors.
• Vietnamese Plum Soda: A sweet, salty, and sour drink popular in Vietnam.