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Modern
Asian cities, like Hong Kong, Taipei, and Singapore, are fusions of
the East and the West. A dynamic place with an incredibly innovative
and competitive market culture, fads and trends are created with wide
success and impact. And food of course holds an almost hallowed place
in mind and on the street. Just as Starbucks and the coffee house is a
sub-culture here, other drinks dominate overseas—such as bubble tea
(aka- boba tea or pearl ice tea).
Bubble Tea: Comes in a
variety of flavors- tea, coffee, or fruit
- Asian
tea, such as oolong or black, or Coffee (one might try the Asian
grocery for bottled teas for more variety)
- Tapioca
pearls (largest size- like peas, darker-colored, made of sweet
potato flour)
- 3
teaspoons of sugar
- Condensed
milk (such as Eagle Brand)
For Tapioca
pearls:
Different flavor teas, courtesy of Pearl Tea
Add tapioca to a boiling pot of water.
Then add the sugar—this makes the pearls softer, but chewy.
Boil the pearls until translucent but still with definite form, around
5 minutes.
Strain and wash in cool water to prevent sticking. Set aside.
Mix tea or coffee with
condensed milk to taste. Add tapioca and then ice if desired.
Normally, the tapioca is handled with a big wide straw; they fit
perfectly. A mouthful.
(Variation: use sweet red bean paste, found in Asian market, mix with
condensed milk to a milky red color; add tapioca and crushed ice)
Yi-Er Cha
Another tea, yi-er cha is
unique to Asia alone—it hasn’t made it here yet. Yi-er cha—literally
half and half tea, really half coffee and half tea—like Hong Kong,
is an interesting best of both worlds.
- Less
than half coffee grinds
- More
than half tea (preferably red or black, such as Lipton Yellow
Label or Orange Pekoe)
Brew as one regularly would
coffee in a filter, adjusting ratio to which flavor one wants to taste
more.
Add cream and sugar. Alternatively, (and a personal favorite) use
evaporated milk (Carnation Milk) and sugar; or condensed milk.
Very Asian, very sui (cool)…
Image
courtesy of Pearl Tea World
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