How bubble tea, or boba, went global – and who first thought of putting chewy tapioca balls in it?
This highly-addictive drink from Taiwan has spread around the world from Japan and Malaysia to the United States and Australia
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, it’s hard not to notice Taiwan’s long-standing cultural food phenomenon that is bubble tea. Also known as boba, this drink has taken the world by storm, with bubble tea chains springing up like mushrooms around the world from Japan and Malaysia to the United States and Australia.
It’s inspiring to see how this tea preparation has become a full-blown sensation in its land of origin as well as abroad. But who on earth came up with the idea of putting chewy tapioca balls in tea?
The history of bubble tea
As tea drinking is a robust practice in East Asia, milk tea was already a popular drink of choice in Taiwan. Bubble tea is said to have originated in the eighties in the city of Taichung. Several tea companies claim to be the creator, so it’s unclear which is the true founder of the popular drink, but Liu Hanchie of Chun Shui Tang Teahouse in Taichung claims that in the early eighties, he experimented with cold milk tea by adding fruit, syrup, candied yams and tapioca bubbles.
A decade later, the addictively tasty drink reached most parts of East and Southeast Asia with bubble tea shops popping up in every mall and street corner. Since then, it has spread across the globe, including the US, Australia, Europe and South Africa.
What is bubble tea?
A drink of many names, bubble tea is also fondly known as boba tea or black pearl tea. Bubble tea reputedly gained its name as the drink forms bubbles when it is shaken up. Another theory is that the drink was named after the marble-sized tapioca balls resembling bubbles at the bottom of the drink. The tea became known as boba tea because “boba” is slang for “breasts” in Chinese (a reference to the spherical shape of tapioca balls).
Served with an oversized straw, this sweet and refreshing iced drink can be made with any tea. The only prerequisite is that the bottom half of the cup is packed with jellylike pearls, or bubbles. Most shops sell a green or black tea with milk and sweetener added; those who aren’t keen on tea can opt for coffee while the lactose-intolerant can try a milk-free variant.
