What is Taro Milk Tea?
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If you’re looking for a delicious and unique tea to add to your rotation, taro milk tea is the perfect choice. Taro milk tea is a Taiwanese bubble milk tea (made with or without real tea) that includes taro root as an ingredient.
Taro root is a purple tuber somewhat like a potato that may be used in either powder or paste form. It’s delicious, light, and delicately scented, with a lovely purple hue.
While you can find taro milk tea at many boba (bubble tea) shops, it’s also easy to make at home. Here’s everything you need to know about taro milk tea including the easiest way to make this tea at home.
What is Taro Milk Tea? Where Does it Come From?
Milk tea is a delicious and refreshing way to enjoy tea. This Taiwanese bubble tea is made with or without tea and includes taro root as an ingredient.
Taro root is a purple tuber that resembles a potato and can be used in powder or paste form. It has a light, delicate flavor with hints of vanilla and nuttiness. This tea is also often made with tapioca pearls, also known as boba.
Taro milk tea originated in Taiwan but has since become popular around the world. This tea is often enjoyed as a refreshing beverage or a dessert. It can be found at many bubble tea shops but is also easy to make at home.
What is Taro Bubble Tea Made of?
Taro tea is made with a few simple ingredients including taro powder or taro paste, milk (can be regular, condensed milk or even cream), sugar, and tapioca pearls.
Some versions of taro milk tea include actual tea, such as jasmine tea or sometimes green tea or black tea. This is added to the milk (or steeped in milk) for the “tea” part of the drink.
Does Taro Have Caffeine?
If you make taro without tea, then there is no caffeine in taro milk tea. If you add tea, then there will be caffeine present in the tea leaves used. There are differing amounts of caffeine in green tea vs black tea vs other types of tea.
For a caffeine-free version of taro milk tea that includes a type of tea instead of just milk and taro root, try using herbal tea or tisanes such as chamomile, rooibos, or lavender tea. These teas will still have flavor but won’t have the same stimulating effect as caffeinated teas.
What Does Taro Milk Tea Taste Like?
Taro milk tea has a light, delicate flavor with hints of vanilla and nuttiness. Some people claim it has a slight sweet potato flavor and the color resembles a purple sweet potato.
This tea is often made with tapioca pearls, which are small, chewy balls made from tapioca starch (and they give bubble tea its name). The tapioca pearls add a fun texture to the drink and can be customized with different syrups or toppings. We love adding tapioca pearls to our milk teas – they are so much fun!
Related: What is Tiger Milk Tea?
Benefits of Taro Milk Tea
Taro milk tea is a healthy and delicious way to enjoy tea. This tea is rich in antioxidants and has many health benefits due to the taro root.
Taro milk tea is rich in antioxidants and can help improve your overall health. Any time you see a bright color in nature you know you’re going to find plenty of plant phytochemicals that are great for you.
In addition, taro milk tea can be a good way to wean yourself off of sugary sodas and other drinks with way too much added sugar. While this tea does contain sweetener, you can gradually work your way down or slowly replace the sweetener with a similar natural alternative, such as monk fruit.
Read more about the health benefits of taro root here
Is Taro Tea Good for Weight Loss?
Taro milk tea can be part of a healthy diet and may help with weight loss. This tea is lower in calories than most sugary drinks and can help you reach your daily calorie goals.
If you drink taro tea instead of water and drink it often, it will not help you in your weight loss efforts as it doesn’t contain the fiber and other nutrients found in smoothies.
However, if you choose it over a sugar-laden coffee beverage or other drink that is high in sugar, it will have fewer overall calories and could help you reach your weight loss goals, but smoothies are still a better choice.
See how smoothies can help with weight loss here.
Tips for Customizing Taro Boba Tea
Make it nondairy: Use almond milk, coconut milk, cashew milk, soy milk, or any other type of nondairy milk for a vegan version of this tea. We have a dairy free kiddo at home due to allergies, and we love to use extra creamy oat milk instead of dairy milk. Coconut cream from a can is also great if you aren’t worried about added calories.
Make it gluten-free: Use a certified gluten-free taro powder or paste and tapioca pearls to make this tea safe for those with celiac disease or gluten sensitivities.
Make it sugar-free: You can make this tea without any added sweetener by using unsweetened nondairy milk and avoiding the tapioca balls or other toppings that are typically coated in sugar. Alternatively, use a sweetener such as monk fruit (they even have a brown sugar version) to drastically cut down on the amount of sugar in your tea without sacrificing taste.
Make it keto: Skip the tapioca pearls and use a sugar-free sweetener, such as stevia, monk fruit, or erythritol. Be sure to use a keto approved milk, too.
Make it Bulletproof: Use grass-fed butter and/or MCT Oil instead of nondairy milk for a high-fat, low-carbohydrate version of this tea.
Add real tea: Want more of a tea flavor in your taro? Try jasmine green tea, black tea or any other variety of iced tea you like since taro milk tea is cold. I’s up to you to choose the flavor variety you enjoy most.
Common Questions about Taro Boba Tea
It depends. If the recipe calls for tea, then it will contain caffeine. If you make taro milk tea with herbal tea or tisanes, it will be caffeine-free. It is also very common not to add any tea at all, in which case taro milk tea has zero mg of caffeine.
Yes, you can make this tea without boba pearls, but it will not have the same bubbles and texture. If you want to make a similar drink, try a recipe for taro smoothies.
No, most people do not take the time to make this tea with fresh taro root. In fact, the easiest way to make this tea is to buy a mix of taro root powder that is made for bubble tea. All you have to do is add water or milk, and make the tapioca pearls if you want them included in your tea. Can it get any easier than that?
Here are some easy taro tea mixes:
Final Thoughts
Next time you are in your local bubble tea shop, try ordering taro boba tea and try it out. You might love it!
Then, you can easily make this taro tea with a mix and a boba pearl variety that is quick cooking (like these here), making it super easy to create the tea shop beverage in the comfort of your home.
