Homemade Boba Pearls

These three ingredient homemade boba pearls do not contain any artificial food coloring. The cooked tapioca pearls get their rich color from dark sugar!

Save your money and skip a trip to the bubble tea shop.

With a little time and effort, you can make warm brown sugar boba from scratch!

Use this homemade boba for Boba Milk Tea Cake, Boba Cupcakes, or Taho (Filipino sweet tofu dessert).

And of course, you can use it to make your own boba milk tea aka bubble tea! 

Unlike the packaged dry tapioca pearls typically sold in markets, these homemade tapioca pearls can be cooked and stored in the fridge.

These tapioca pearls can be reheated to its original glory even days after cooking.

Why make Tapioca Pearls from scratch?

• all natural ingredients (just 3 simple ingredients!)
• no artificial food coloring or preservatives
• raw tapioca pearls can be frozen and used for later
• homemade boba cooks quicker than store bought dried boba pearls

There are various types of tapioca pearls.

You may be more familiar with the small white tapioca pearls used for making tapioca pudding. 

These tapioca pearls are better known as boba. This increasingly popular treat originates from Taiwan.

They are traditionally made with either tapioca starch or cassava starch. 

This version uses three simple ingredients: tapioca starch, and dark muscovado sugar, and water. 

What is tapioca starch? 

Tapioca starch is also labeled as finely milled tapioca flour in the United States.

It comes from the cassava root.

Tapioca starch is a popularly used in gluten-free baking because it gives baked goods a chewy texture.

On a broader range, tapioca starch is primarily used as a thickening agent (similar to corn starch).

It is great for thickening soups, sauces, and pie fillings. 

It has a rather neutral flavor. Instead, it absorbs the flavors of the ingredients it is mixed with.

As such, this tapioca pearl recipe combines tapioca starch with well flavored dark muscovado sugar. 

Dark Sugar Used for Boba Making

I recommend using dark muscovado sugar for this homemade boba recipe. 

Muscovado sugar is also known as Barbados sugar.

It is an unrefined brown sugar with more molasses than traditional brown sugar. It comes in dark and light varieties.

The high molasses content makes muscovado sugar moist and a bit sticky. It has a rich, intense flavor that gives desserts extra warmth and decadence. 

As you can see from the photograph above, dark muscovado sugar has a richer brown color compared to the standard light brown and dark brown sugar.

If you cannot find muscovado sugar, either brown sugars would make a fine substitute.

However, it will not have the same rich flavor. And in a pinch, you can use white granulated sugar. 

NOTE: I purchased my muscovado sugar from Whole Foods Market. 

How to make tapioca pearls 

1. You will need water, dark sugar, and tapioca starch.
2. Mix water and sugar in a heavy bottomed sauce pot. Bring mixture to a boil.
3. Add in half the tapioca starch and mix until a smooth paste forms. Add remaining half of tapioca starch and mix by hand until you can no longer stir contents together. 
4. Transfer shaggy dough to clean work surface. Knead together by hand until smooth dough forms. 
5. Divide dough into four equal parts. Working with one piece at a time, roll dough into a log. Cut into small marble sized pieces. Roll into a ball and place on tapioca starch dusted plate.

You will end up with a dry shaggy mess dough like the photograph above.

Use your hands to vigorously knead the dough together.

If the dough does not come together, simply wet your hand with water. Your moistened hands will help to bind the dough together.

Repeat wetting your hands as necessary until a smooth dough forms, like the photograph below. 

It takes a bit of work to knead to the dough, but eventually it WILL come together to form a smooth ball. 

Don’t worry if there are little dry bits in the dough.

As you can see in the photograph above, the smooth ball does have little clumps of tapioca flour.

That’s okay! It will not affect the final product. 

Rolling homemade boba pearls by hand

Yes, it’s a tedious process. You have to roll each little ball of dough by hand. 

However, it’s something you can do while watching tv or streaming your favorite show.

Better yet, get the whole family involved. Sit around the kitchen table rolling out dozens of homemade boba pearls to keep in the freezer for later use! 

The recipe listed here makes about 1 1/2 cups of uncooked boba pearls.

Double or triple the recipe as needed to fit your needs.

Tips and Tricks:

• Work quickly because dough will dry out.
• Do not fuss if dough gets dry or crumbly. Simply moisten the palms of your hands with water to help rehydrate the dough.
• Keep a bowl of water handy for dipping, or use a spray bottle to lightly mist the palms of your hands. 
• Enlist the help of others to make the process faster. (Plus, you’ll be able to make a larger batch!)

Once you’ve rolled all the dough, place tapioca pearls in mesh strainer (sifter) to shake off excess tapioca starch before cooking or freezing. 

Freezing Raw Boba Pearls for Later Use

Stock the freezer with bags of homemade boba tapioca pearls.

Cook whenever a craving for boba milk tea strikes!

Spread raw tapioca balls on a sheet tray or freezer safe plate. Place in the freezer for 2-3 hours until solid. 

Then, transfer frozen tapioca pearls to an airtight container (like a zip-top bag). Keep in the freezer for up to six weeks.

When ready to cook, simply follow the instructions as listed in the recipe. No need to thaw tapioca before cooking. 

Do you need to strain the cooked tapioca before adding sugar?

I don’t. The raw tapioca pearls are cooked in a 4:1 ratio of water to pearls. 

During cooking, the tapioca pearls will absorb a great deal of water.

Some water will also evaporate during the cooking process.

The remaining liquid leftover is the perfect amount to create the soaking sugar syrup. 

The brown sugar syrup may be a little stickier or thicker than the standard soaking/braising liquid of the other boba recipes you’ll find on the internet.

How to serve warm brown sugar boba?

Welcome to the best part! It’s time to eat.

The options are endless:

• enjoy the boba with iced milk tea (recipe follows below)
• use it to top cake or cupcake (see my boba cake recipe!)
• homemade boba is ridiculously delicious in taho (Filipino sweet tofu dessert)
• serve it with your favorite fruit smoothie
• also great spooned over ice cream

From Scratch Boba Milk Tea

1. Spoon warm brown sugar boba into serving glass.
2. Fill glass with ice.
3. Pour in 2/3 cup sweetened iced tea.
4. Top with 1/4 cup creamer or milk of choice. 
5. Stir and enjoy! 

Sweetened Black Tea (makes 4 cups)

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbsp loose leaf black tea (your choice of English Breakfast, Earl Gray, etc)
• 4 cups filtered water brought to a boil
• simple syrup or boba’s brown sugar syrup (adjust amount depending on your sweetness preference)

Directions:

1. Place loose left tea in tea bag or tea strainer.
2. Pour over 4 cups freshly boiled filtered water.
3. Let mixture steep for 8-10 minutes. Strain out tea leaves.
4. Stir in simple syrup. 
5. Let mixture cool. Store in the fridge until cold. 

I steep the tea for much longer than directed on tea packages. Yes, it’s stronger than the average tea recipe.

The tea will be lighted and diluted by the ice, cream/milk, and boba in the drink.