Exploring the Delightful World of Boba Ice Cream: A Fusion of Tradition and Innovation
Ten years ago, nothing was more refreshing than a boba tea drink with extra boba. Now that boba ice cream has come into the picture, there's a new top boba choice in town. It's creamy, cold, and refreshing and features the delicious chewy boba tapioca balls we've come to love and appreciate.
This boba treat hit the ground running, with more and more companies creating their versions (and flavors) for the public. Let's explore the delightful world of boba ice cream more!
Introduction to Boba Ice Cream
If you haven't heard of boba ice cream yet, you may be wondering what makes it different from regular ice cream. For one, it's made with unique flavors that you'd see served as milk tea drinks, along with fruity options like strawberry and mango. Additionally, this ice cream has chewy little balls (tapioca pearls) that offer a unique, fun texture to the ice cream.
While boba tea has existed since the 80s, boba ice cream is a relatively new food invention. Supposedly, the first shop offering boba ice cream opened in 2013. It became a success because of its different tea-infused desserts. Boba ice cream grew in popularity, with more options offered in the past few years. Now, even Trader Joe's, the large US grocery store chain, carries its own version of boba tea ice cream.
The Rise of Boba Tea: From Street Snack to Global Phenomenon
Boba tea is a popular drink originally invented in the late 1900s. It originated in Taiwan, though there is debate over which company created the drink: Chun Shui Tang or Han Lin Tea Room. Both companies claim to be the inventors of bubble tea. This tea drink shot up in popularity in Asia in the 1980s. Then, it made its way to America in the 1990s. While this drink has been available in the US since the 90s, it was not popular until around 2012, when social media was on the rise.
In Taiwan, milk tea was already a popular drink. Shaved ice and tapioca pearls were also popular. So, it only made sense to combine the three, turning it into a delicious drink called boba tea. This tea is popular in the night markets in Taiwan, an area packed with food vendor stalls serving various drinks, snacks, and more. Though many food trends have passed through Taiwan's night market over the years, boba tea is one option that has continued to be served to the public.
Little Jasmine Boba Ice Cream: A New Sensation
One of the yummiest boba ice cream options is Little Jasmine Boba Ice Cream. It's made with a yummy brown sugar flavor and Taiwanese tapioca pearls. This delightful ice cream is made in the US with California milk. It's the perfect combo of creamy, sweet ice cream and chewy boba balls.
Maeda-en Boba Ice Cream Mochi Green Tea: A Unique Twist
If you prefer mochi ice cream instead of a pint of boba ice cream, you'll want to try the Maeda-en Boba Ice Cream Mochi Green Tea. This boba ice cream is quite different. It's made by adding a bittersweet green tea ice cream to pillowy, soft mochi dough. You'll find deliciously chewy boba balls in each mochi ball folded into the creamy ice cream.
What Makes Boba Ice Cream a Must-Try?
Boba ice cream's unique texture, ingredients, and flavor options make it a must-try dessert. It's refreshing, creamy, chewy, and delicious, all rolled into one. If you enjoy bubble tea, you'll love it in ice cream form.
The Magic of Tapioca Pearls in Ice Cream
The tapioca pearls offer an unexpected texture you usually don't find in ice cream! Instead of crunchy cookie bits or creamy caramel swirls, they provide a chewy, bouncy consistency to boba ice cream. It helps create a more similar experience to drinking bubble tea. Otherwise, the ice cream would simply taste like boba tea.
Brown Sugar Flavor: A Sweet Revolution
The brown sugar flavor of boba tea is not just a popular option; it's also the original version of bubble tea served in Taiwan. Since then, other flavors have emerged, from cheese tea to frozen strawberry boba tea. Even with these new flavors, brown sugar boba remains one of the most popular choices among boba drinkers.
Whether customers are purchasing brown sugar boba at a local shop or enjoying a canned option, like Evergreen Bubble Milk Tea with Tapioca: Brown Sugar, it doesn't seem like brown sugar bubble tea is going away any time soon!
Crafting the Perfect Boba Ice Cream Bar
If you can't find boba ice cream at your local stores, don't worry! You can easily make boba ice cream bars at home for a tasty, fun treat.
You'll need the following ingredients:
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Brown sugar
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Water
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Cornstarch
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Tapioca starch
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Heavy cream
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Condensed milk
DIRECTIONS:
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Combine brown sugar and water in a pan on the stove over medium heat.
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Once the sugar has dissolved, add a cornstarch slurry.
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Continue cooking until it has thickened. Set the brown sugar syrup to the side.
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Mix brown sugar and tapioca flour in a bowl. Slowly add in boiling water until a dough forms. Knead the dough for a few minutes until it becomes springy.
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Pinch off small pieces of the dough and roll into balls. Place the balls on a flour-dusted baking sheet.
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Once you've rolled the entire dough into balls, boil them in water in batches. They are done when they float to the surface.
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Then, toss the boiled pearls into a pan with more brown sugar. Cook them until the sugar caramelizes.
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Create the cream by beating the heavy cream until it forms soft peaks. Then, add the condensed milk and continue beating until well combined.
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Slowly fold the tapioca pearls into the cream mixture.
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Put a small amount of syrup in the front of the ice cream bar molds. Then, fill the rest of the space with the cream and pearl mixture.
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Put the bars in the freezer and let them solidify for about six hours (or overnight).
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Remove from the mold and enjoy!
Milk Tea Meets Ice Cream: A Creamy Delight
This ice cream is infused with tea, creating the beloved creamy milk tea flavor. This infusion is done by simmering heavy cream with the tea of choice. Then, the tea is strained out, leaving behind a delicious milk tea-flavored ice cream. After the ice cream is chilled, the sweetener (honey, brown sugar syrup, sweetened condensed milk, etc.) and any mix-ins (like the pearls) are added to the ice cream. Then, it's frozen until it's ready to eat.
The Best of Both Worlds: Boba and Ice Cream
The best part about boba ice cream is that it combines traditional Taiwanese flavors with creamy ice cream. This dessert is a fun spin on an authentic Asian drink. With unique flavors and a fun texture, you won't find anything else like boba ice cream in the market.
Instant Boba Tea Kit: Bringing Boba Home
While boba tea is beloved by many (and available throughout the US), some areas may not have easy access to it. Or, perhaps, you don't want to wait in line for your tea. Luckily, there are now boba tea kits, like O's Bubble Tea Kit: Brown Sugar (4 servings), that allow you to make homemade boba tea in a few minutes. This kit comes with boba pearls, a flavor mix, and straws! You simply heat the mixture, then add it to milk or ice cream for a yummy treat.
The Role of Fresh Milk in Boba Ice Cream
Without fresh milk/cream, boba ice cream would not have its delicious creaminess and consistency. It also helps the ice cream taste even more like milk tea. This is one dessert you don't want to make with dried milk powder!
Black Tea Infusion: The Heart of Boba Ice Cream
The traditional flavor for milk tea is black tea - likely because of boba's Taiwanese origins. So, it only makes sense for boba ice cream to have a black tea ice cream base. Many bubble tea ice creams are made with a black tea base; then, other flavors are mixed in, like brown sugar. You can easily recreate this at home with a J-Basket Boba Bubble Tea Kit: Black Tea (3 cups). This instant boba tea kit has everything you need to make homemade bubble tea or ice cream: milk tea powder, boba pearls, and large straws!
Bokksu is not responsible for the accuracy of the products’ nutritional or allergen information. Warning: California’s Proposition 65 may be in effect. For more information,visit www.P65Warnings.ca.gov. Some Bokksu Market products are produced overseas and may have a Production Date printed on the packaging, rather than a Best Buy Date as is standard in North America. If your product appears expired, do not be alarmed! This is most likely the Production Date. All items have been double checked to ensure they are not expired and safe to eat.
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Tapioca Starch: The Unsung Hero
The tapioca pearls are made from tapioca starch in traditional boba tea drinks and boba ice cream. This flour/starch is made from the cassava plant's roots. It's known for its ability to produce chewy, bouncy textures in recipes and for being the primary ingredient in tapioca balls. Without tapioca starch, making boba tea (and boba tea ice cream!) would be tricky.
Brown Sugar Boba Ice Cream: A Trendsetter
Made with a delicious milk tea ice cream and swirls of brown sugar boba pearls, it's easy to say this ice cream flavor was a true trendsetter. Brown sugar boba ice cream was one of the first flavors available, paving the way for other unique bubble tea ice cream. Without the popularity of this flavor, there wouldn't be options like salted ube s'mores and strawberry shortcake.
Pairing Boba Ice Cream with Other Desserts
If you want to ramp up the sweetness of your boba ice cream, there are quite a few tasty desserts you can pair it with. For example, bubble tea ice cream is great with pastries like croissants, donuts, etc. Simply serve the ice cream and chop up the pastry as a topping.
If you prefer boba ice cream as a base for your dessert, you can include fresh fruits or other jellies/tapioca pearls as toppings. Or, you can enjoy boba tea ice cream as a topping for fresh crepes.
Conclusion: The Future of Boba Ice Cream
Who knows what boba ice cream's future holds? It will likely keep expanding into other flavors (like honey and coffee) because of its popularity. It may even appear in other ice cream forms, like rolled ice cream, since it's already made its way into mochi ice cream balls. In other words, the future of boba ice cream is bright, bold, and exciting!
We're looking forward to seeing what the boba ice cream world comes up with next. In the meantime, you can dig into Bokksu Market's boba tea offerings to satisfy your bubble tea cravings!
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