HK Style Milk Tea

Fully oxidized tea leaves for a robust cup.


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Jun 7th, '10, 00:27
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HK Style Milk Tea

by karmaplace » Jun 7th, '10, 00:27

Does anyone know the best black tea to use for Hong Kong style milk tea? (It's also the standard flavor for boba/bubble tea). I've tried several different black teas I've found in Asian markets hoping to find a match, but to no avail.

Plus, does anyone know the best way of making it? I tried with sweetened condensed milk and using different kinds of milk with sweeteners, but, like I said, I haven't quite figured it out. Any suggestions or ideas? At one of the Asian markets I watched them pour half and half into an iced tea they had already brewed, and that was pretty good, but, without the right tea, it hasn't worked for me.

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Jun 7th, '10, 16:04
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Re: HK Style Milk Tea

by teaisme » Jun 7th, '10, 16:04

ahhh brings back memories

https://www.teas.com.au/TeaCategoriesDe ... 2&CatID=12

This is a good place to start on a good recipe. I don't know whether it's the best place to buy tea though.

1/3 evaporated milk 2/3 tea (a blend seems best, ceylon, english breakfast, keemun, and assam would be a good teas to mix , maybe throw in a pinch or so also of a fruity flavoured tea such as lychee)

sugar/honey/sweetened condensed milk added after all done, according to your own taste

According to http://cd1.edb.hkedcity.net/cd/itil/lxp ... urant.html the leaves are fried before brewing, and then the tea is baked slightly after brewing, then milk is added

I think aerating is a crucial step too, both sites mention this, and I would believe what that hong kong site says because its a real deal dai pai dong owner in the interview.

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Jun 8th, '10, 10:52
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Re: HK Style Milk Tea

by karmaplace » Jun 8th, '10, 10:52

Oh, thank you! I had never heard of using evaporated milk, but considering when I used only sweetened condensed milk it was obnoxiously over-sweet, I'm guessing it's a much better way to go. Both places where I got milk tea had already pre-brewed the black tea, so I never saw them aerate the tea, but I'll be sure to try on my next attempt.

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Jun 8th, '10, 15:04
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Re: HK Style Milk Tea

by teaisme » Jun 8th, '10, 15:04

yeah let me know how it goes when you do. If it turns out pretty good I might go make me some too and reminisce those old hong kong days.

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Jun 8th, '10, 15:50
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Re: HK Style Milk Tea

by rabbit » Jun 8th, '10, 15:50

This looks interesting ... It sounds good in place of hot coco on a cold day.

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Jun 13th, '10, 00:01
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Re: HK Style Milk Tea

by sneakers » Jun 13th, '10, 00:01

Sounds like Indian chai.

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Jul 30th, '10, 01:17
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Re: HK Style Milk Tea

by karmaplace » Jul 30th, '10, 01:17

I'm following up on this to let everyone know how experimentation turned out! I stopped by a teahouse and the staff mixed up a custom blend of equal parts Assam, Earl Grey, and Banna (Yunnan) for me which I brewed and tried mixing with both whole milk and plain soy milk. Both turned out great! Just the flavor I was looking for, super easy to make, and I didn't even need to add any sweeteners. Thanks for all the advice! :D

EDIT: BTW, this was at a 212 degree brewing temperature for 3 minutes, and I filled my cups with 1/3 milk, 2/3 brew. I also completely forgot to aerate the tea, but I'll give it a try next time and let you all know if it's better or not worth the trouble.

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Jul 30th, '10, 07:45
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Re: HK Style Milk Tea

by Katy1977 » Jul 30th, '10, 07:45

This tea sounds sooo good! I'm wondering if this recipe would work with any black teas for people like myself who have never tried the real thing. This sounds like something you could buy at Starbucks, a real comfort drink. :)

Katy1977

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Jul 30th, '10, 11:06
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Re: HK Style Milk Tea

by TwoPynts » Jul 30th, '10, 11:06

Thanks for sharing the results, sounds good!

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Jul 30th, '10, 11:09
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Re: HK Style Milk Tea

by karmaplace » Jul 30th, '10, 11:09

Katy1977 wrote:This tea sounds sooo good! I'm wondering if this recipe would work with any black teas for people like myself who have never tried the real thing. This sounds like something you could buy at Starbucks, a real comfort drink. :)

Katy1977
You can buy it bottled or canned if you want a taste. Most Asian markets have Royal Milk Tea imported from Japan (it has a very similar flavor). Or if you find a place that makes bubble tea, the original flavor is usually this kind of milk tea. In any case, I think most black teas taste good with milk, so, I'm sure different blends would also be tasty.

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Aug 13th, '10, 04:49
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Re: HK Style Milk Tea

by aya_s » Aug 13th, '10, 04:49

Omg this is a recipe for royal milk tea? I'm blending this first thing tomorrow and trying it out. Thank you so much for posting!

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Aug 13th, '10, 13:31
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Re: HK Style Milk Tea

by TwoPynts » Aug 13th, '10, 13:31

Was is worth the trouble to aerate the milk?

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Aug 18th, '10, 03:19
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Re: HK Style Milk Tea

by karmaplace » Aug 18th, '10, 03:19

I didn't notice any substantial difference in the taste between normal brewed and aerated, but that may just be me. Try it both ways and see if you prefer one over the other.

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Aug 20th, '10, 00:34
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Re: HK Style Milk Tea

by bagua7 » Aug 20th, '10, 00:34

churng wrote:ahhh brings back memories...
:( I feel the same. I miss all those drinking sessions at Taipei's night markets. Good ol' times!

I have them sometimes here in Oz in Brisbane's Chinatown but the experience is not the same.

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