The Best Recipe for the Famous Tiger Milk Tea

Tiger milk tea is one of the most popular boba drinks at the moment, and it's easy to make at home with just a few simple ingredients and equipment.

If you like boba tea, then you have definitely heard of this drink and might have also tried it at bubble tea shops. However, boba shops can be expensive, and purchasing a drink can cost a lot.

That’s why you are here; you want to make this drink at home, because why not?

It is a simple recipe for a delicious brown sugar milk tea that you can make at home. It is easy to make and can be prepared without any specialized equipment or ingredients.

What Is Tiger Milk Tea?

No, it is not literally made of tiger’s milk. Although anything is possible and would actually cost a fortune to buy, only millionaires and billionaires would have access to it.

Tiger milk tea is a sweet boba drink with a creamy texture that combines black tea, milk, sugar, and tapioca pearls.

But the name comes from the color of the brown sugar dripping down the sides of your cup, which is of similar pattern and color as the stripes on a tiger.

It originated in Taiwan and has become quite popular in recent days. This drink has a velvety texture and sweet flavor, making it so appealing.

With people coming up with so many boba tea recipes such as:

• Jasmine milk tea
• Popping boba tea
• Honeydew milk tea
• Dalgona Boba Coffee
• Boba latte

And whatnot, we are not surprised that something called tiger milk tea exists!

How to Make Tiger Milk Tea at Home - Step by Step

You will need the following equipment and ingredients for this milk tea recipe. After you have gathered everything, follow these easy steps we have curated for you below.

Keep in mind that this is enough for one serving.

• Step 1 – Prepare the Brown Sugar Syrup
• Step 2 – Add the Tea
• Step 3 – Shake Shake Shake!
• Final Step- Add the Tapioca Pearls

Equipment

You should already have the equipment needed to make this tea, but if not, it can be purchased online for a reasonable price. Also, Tiger milk tea can be prepared with any tea of your preference, and this is why it is such a versatile drink.

You can blend the flavors in this drink into any of your favorite black tea varieties. It is simply a matter of adding the ingredients to your prepared tea and then serving it to your family and friends.

Or just keeping it ALL to yourself, we won’t judge…

You are going to need to following equipment for this brown sugar milk tea:

• Saucepan
• Spatula
• Spoons
• Stove
• Shaker
• One tall glass (for serving)

 Ingredient List

Here are the ingredients you'll need:

• 1 and 1/2 cup of fresh milk
• 1 cup of brown sugar
• 2 black tea bags or 4 tsp of loose leaf black tea
• 1 cup of water
• 1/2 cup of tapioca pearls
• Ice

Preparation Method

You should make your favorite brown sugar milk tea by following these steps.

Step 1 – Prepare the Brown Sugar Syrup

The very first step is to make brown sugar syrup. Now, the purpose of this is to make the milk tea sweeter and provide stripes for the inner side of the cup. This is what gives it a tiger stripe appearance, and it's also where it gets its name from.

To make the brown sugar syrup:

• Add 1 cup of brown sugar and a cup of water into your saucepan.
• Heat it to boil the syrup and then reduce the heat to simmer, stirring constantly.
• Please keep it on low heat and remember to continue stirring.
• Once you reach a thick consistency similar to caramel, remove it from the heat and put aside to cool down.

TIP
You don’t want it to be too thick to prevent the mixture from hardening like candy.

Step 2 – Add the Tea

• Next, take ½ a cup of the type of milk that you prefer and then bring it to a boil over medium heat while constantly stirring to prevent the milk from curdling.
  
  Many people prefer dairy, but you can go with oat milk or almond milk if you like.
  
  
• When the milk begins to boil, remove off the heat and add 2 black tea bags (or preferably 4 tsp of loose black tea leaves). Some people prefer using direct tea leaves to bring out a fragrant aroma and hidden flavors.
  
  Feel free to choose whichever black tea leaves you like, but we recommend strong black teas such as Ceylon or Assam teas. More subtle teas such as Darjeelings or Keemuns work well if you want to keep the tea flavor a bit undercover.
  
  
• Steep the black tea leaves and leave them for about 3 to 5 minutes. By then, you will get all the flavor you need from the tea leaves. Afterwards, get rid of the steeped tea bags or strain those loose leaf tea.
  
  
• Then let your tea cool down to room temperature.

Step 3 – Shake Shake Shake!

• Grab your shaker and pour the tea inside it; throw in a few ice cubes as well.
  
  
• Shake it up for a couple of minutes until it feels cold enough to be delicious. Don’t over do it, though, to avoid over aerating your milk tea.
  
  You can use the same ice cubes from the shaker when assembling your drink. I prefer not to use ice at all!

Final Step- Add the Tapioca Pearls

• Now it is time to combine everything! Bring out a tall glass and throw in all the tapioca pearls you like.
  
  
• Fetch your syrup mixture and line up that brown sugar syrup along the inner edges of your cup to make those tiger stripes.
  
  
• Finally, pour the delicious pearl bubble tea into your cup and enjoy your delicious drink.

Before you start preparing your tiger brown sugar boba tea, we suggest that you prepare your boba pearls for the task. In case you don't know exactly how to prepare tapioca pearls, click here to learn more about it.

Frequently Asked Questions

The Bottom Line

We hope you liked our black sugar milk tea recipe! Tiger milk tea is something you can't miss out on.

Make sure to let us know your thoughts and recommendations in the comments below.

Now go wild like a Fierce Tiger!