Are you a fan of oolong milk tea and want to learn how to make it at home? Well, you’re in the right place. Keep reading to discover everything you need to know about oolong bubble tea and for our easy three-ingredient oolong milk tea recipe.
What’s oolong milk tea?
Oolong milk tea is another bubble tea drink made with just three ingredients: oolong tea, milk, brown sugar tapioca pearls, or optionally some other sweetener. Oolong tea is a traditional Chinese tea that’s different from both black and green tea in that it’s only partly oxidized. Paired with milk and boba, oolong bubble tea is gaining popularity worldwide for its light and refreshing flavor compared to other milk teas on the market.
What does oolong milk tea taste like?
Flavor-wise, oolong tea is between green and black tea. It’s not as strong as green tea, but instead is known for having a mildly sweet taste with fruit, floral, and roasted undertones. So when combined with brown sugar tapioca pearls and milk, oolong milk tea is lightly sweet, deliciously creamy, and refreshing.
Types of oolong tea
There are two large groups of oolong tea- dark oolong which is more similar to dark tea and the other one is green oolong. Personally, I love green oolong with some extra flavors like peach oolong tea.
How to brew oolong tea
Now, brewing oolong tea depends on the type of tea you’re using.
- Boil the water in an electric kettle or let it heat on the stovetop to 180-200 degrees Fahrenheit.
- For every six ounces of water, you want to use either one teaspoon of rolled-style tea, two tablespoons of loose-leaf tea, or one tea bag. Place this directly into a teapot or into an infuser.
- Steep the tea for one to five minutes, depending on how strong you like your tea. Generally, loose-leaf tea brews quicker than other types of tea. Taste it after one minute and see if it’s to your taste.
- Pour the tea through a strainer or remove the tea bag and then add it to the milk tea as directed.
Oolong milk tea ingredients
You only need three ingredients to make oolong bubble tea:
- Brewed oolong tea-either dark oolong or green oolong.
- Milk of your choice (whole milk is most commonly used, but if you’re vegan, substitute for your preferred dairy-free milk).
- Cooked Tapioca Pearls: I use peach-flavored tapioca pearls for this one to get a lovely cream-white color. Read How to cook tapioca pearls for detailed instructions about how to prepare tapioca pearls for any kind of milk tea.
- Sweetener: syrup, honey, white sugar, or brown sugar syrup can match super well with oolong milk tea.
How to make oolong tea at home
Cook the brown sugar tapioca pearls according to the instructions on the package and then remember to rinse them with cold water. Then soak with syrup. I use peach-flavored tapioca pearls for this oolong milk tea.
Brew the tea as directed above. Place the brown sugar tapioca pearls in the bottom of your glass then add ice cubes (optional), milk, and brewed oolong tea. Stir and enjoy!
Other milk tea recipes to try
Oolong milk tea – Oolong boba
Ingredients
tea base
- 2 oolong tea bags or 2 tsp. oolong tea leaves , I use peach oolong tea this time.
- 300 ml water
Boba pearls
- 1/4 cup uncooked boba pearls
- water for boil the boba pearls
- 1 tbsp. syrup
Assemble
- 1 cup milk
- 2 tbsp. syrup or honey , divided
- ice cubes as needed
Instructions
Brew the tea
- Add 90 degree C hot water to tea leaf and steep for 4 minutes. Remove the tea bag and let the liquid down.
Cook the boba pearls
- Bring 8 times of water to a boiling and then place tapioca pearls. Read the instruction on the package (find the requiring time). It may be 20 minutes or 5 minutes. Cover the lid, turn off the fire and let it rest for another required time.
- Rinse the boba pearls under running water. Then mix the boba pearls with syrup.
Assemble.
- Add around 3 tablespoons of boba pearls. Add ice cubes, then pour in oolong tea base. Then add syrup and milk.
- Stir well before enjoying.
Video
Nutrition
Different types of oolong milk tea
If you want to add a little extra flavor to your oolong bubble tea, here are our top recommendations:
1. Honey oolong milk tea
Now, there are a couple of different ways you can make honey oolong milk tea. For the ultimate honey taste, make your tapioca pearls without the brown sugar syrup, and instead, mix the cooked pearls with a few tablespoons of honey. Then mix another tablespoon of honey with the brewed tea. If you want to keep the brown sugar tapioca pearls, just add the honey to the oolong tea and you will still have honey milk tea.
2. Hokkaido oolong milk tea
Hokkaido oolong milk tea is basically oolong bubble tea with one special supplement. For traditional Hokkaido bubble tea, you must use creamy whole milk from this region in Japan. Then you can either keep the bubble tea as is with brewed oolong tea and brown sugar tapioca pearls. Alternatively, cook the plain boba and mix it with a different sweetener, like caramel or honey.
3. Rose oolong milk tea
Because oolong tea naturally has a floral undertone, rosewater is the perfect accompaniment. However, it can be pretty strong, so start small with 1/8 of a teaspoon and gradually increase the amount until it’s to your desired taste. Just drop it into the milk tea, stir, and you’re good to go.
4. Peach oolong milk tea
Peach oolong bubble tea is if fruit tea and milk tea had a baby. It’s oolong bubble tea but with the addition of homemade peach syrup. Follow this recipe to learn how to make the syrup, but you can either include the sweetener and omit the brown sugar from the tapioca pearls or vice versa. Both types of sweeteners will probably overpower the drink and take away from the refreshing taste.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much caffeine is in oolong milk tea?
The amount of caffeine in oolong tea is more than in green tea but less than in black tea. On average, oolong tea has 50 to 75 mg of caffeine in an 8-ounce serving.
What’s the difference between oolong milk tea and regular milk tea?
The most important difference between oolong milk tea and regular milk tea is the inclusion of oolong. Most other milk teas are made with oolong tea. If they include tea at all, it’s usually green or black tea. Oolong tea is neither of these; instead, it’s in its own tea category.
Is oolong milk tea black milk tea?
No, oolong milk tea and black milk tea are two different drinks. The former is made with oolong tea while the latter is made with black tea. Oolong tea isn’t classified as black tea.
Is oolong bubble tea healthy?
Oolong tea has several health benefits. It may:
- Protect against diabetes.
- Improve heart health.
- Help with weight loss.
- Improve brain function.
- Promote teeth and bone health.
So with its simple ingredients and compared to other bubble teas, oolong milk tea is relatively healthy with roughly 240 calories in every serving. Nonetheless, because of the sugar content in the tapioca pearls’ brown sugar syrup, it should be consumed in moderation.
We hope you’ve enjoyed this guide to oolong milk tea and it’s made you excited to give this homemade oolong bubble tea recipe a go!