Extra creamy and rich Earl Grey Milk Tea with tapioca pearls and brown sugar. This bubble tea is the perfect balance of creamy and roasted, with hints of citrus.Super easy to make at home using simple ingredients!
Table of contents
As a Brit, I love a good cup of tea and I also love making my own bubble tea. Trust me when I say, boba lovers, the combination of Earl Grey tea and tapioca balls is as absolute winner!
This Earl Grey Milk Tea recipe is a twist on the classic Taiwanese bubble teas, made with Earl Grey tea. Adding boba pearls to citrusy and roasted milk tea makes for a delicious and fragrant drink!
Looking for more Milk Tea recipes? Check out reader-favourite Okinawa Milk Tea, Thai Milk Tea or Jasmine Milk Tea.
What is Earl Grey Milk Tea?
Earl Grey Boba Tea is a type of bubble tea made with Earl Grey tea, milk, brown sugar syrup and chewy tapioca pearls. It’s a fragrant, sweet drink with floral hints of citrus.
Earl Grey Bubble Tea is a very popular Milk Tea due to its deep, rich flavour and citrus taste. This drink is usually served hot, but it can also be enjoyed cold with ice cubes.
What does it taste like?
It tastes like black tea, with tangy notes of bergamot orange. This milk tea has the perfect balance between deep, malty flavours and subtle, floral notes. The flavour profile of Earl Grey Boba is full-bodied, rich, malty, with light floral notes of citrus fruit.
A splash of milk is added to give it a silky-smooth texture and make the flavours more subtle. Combined with brown sugar syrup, this is a winning combination!
Ingredient round-up
- Earl Grey tea: you can use teabags or loose leaf tea. See the section below on choosing the best Earl Grey tea.
- Milk: whole milk is recommended for this recipe. You can also use plant-based milk like oat milk, almond milk, cashew milk or coconut milk.
- Boba pearls: brown sugar boba pearls work best. I like using 5-minute Wu Fu Yuan tapioca pearls because they are very easy and quick to cook.
- Brown sugar: used for making the sugar syrup. Regular light brown sugar works best for this recipe. You can replace brown sugar syrup with runny honey.
- Cream: optional, as a topping. Add a little cream for extra creaminess.
Types of Earl Grey Tea
Earl Grey is an aromatic type of tea infused with bergamot oil or peels. The base is black tea, usually Ceylon. It's typically served with a splash of milk to add creaminess.
There are many different types of Earl Grey Teas, and here are some of my favourites:
- Traditional Earl Grey: the most authentic type, made from Ceylon black tea and infused with bergamot oil. You can use Earl Grey teabags or loose leaf Earl Grey.
- Lady Grey: contains less bergamot and more lemon and orange peel. Go for Lady Grey Tea if you like lighter, more fruity tasting teas.
- Smoky Earl Grey: a much stronger flavour, with deeper and more bitter smoky notes. Smoky Earl Grey is made from a blend of lapsang souchong tea, which is much more intense.
- Lavender Earl Grey: made with lavender, it has a more floral and aromatic flavor, with gentle, calming notes. Choose Lavender Earl Grey for a more floral and sophisticated flavour.
- Green Earl Grey or Earl Green: made with green tea instead of black tea as a base. This blend tastes much fresher and lighter than traditional Earl Grey. Choose Earl Green Tea for a more subtle and summery flavour.
How to make from scratch
Cooking the tapioca pearls
Making this boba tea from scratch only takes a few minutes. Start by preparing all the components of the recipe: the sugar syrup, black tapioca pearls and Earl Grey tea.
- Prepare the brown sugar syrup. You can also use simple syrup, honey or maple syrup.
- Cook the tapioca pearls, drain, and add them into the sugar syrup.
- Add the boba pearls into the sugar syrup.
- Separately, prepare the Earl Grey tea.
Brewing Earl Grey tea
- Boil 2 cups of water.
- If using loose leaf Earl Grey, place them into an infuser. If using teabags, place them directly into the teapot.
- Pour boiling water over the Earl Grey tea bags, then let the tea steep for 5 minutes.
- Use immediately for a hot drink or let cool down for cold milk tea.
Pro tip: never steep Earl Grey tea for longer than 5 minutes, as it can give it a bitter taste. For a stronger taste, just 1 extra teabag (or 1 teaspoon loose leaf).
Assembling the Bubble Tea
- Into a large serving glass place the cooked boba pearls and sugar syrup.
- Pour hot Earl Grey tea over the boba.
- Add warm milk on top, then mix to combine. Serve hot and enjoy immediately for the best taste.
- Optional: top with a little cream for extra creaminess.
Pro tip: always warm up the milk before adding it into Earl Grey tea to prevent it from curdling.
Success Tips & Tricks
- Good quality tea: Earl Grey is the most important ingredient in this recipe, so using high quality tea is essential. See the section on Types of Earl Grey tea for more details on how to choose the perfect tea.
- Don't over-steep: Do not steep the tea for more than 5 minutes, as this can give it a bitter and unpleasant taste. For a stronger tea, just add 1 extra teabag or ½ teaspoon of loose-leaf tea.
- Warm up the milk: Always heat up the milk until warm before adding it into the hot tea to prevent curdling.
- Serve hot: Earl Grey Boba Tea tastes best hot, so I recommend letting the tea cool down for about 10 minutes before serving.
- Bubble tea straws: Boba pearls are too large to go through a regular straw, so I recommend using reusable boba straws.
Frequently asked questions
No, Earl Grey Bubble Tea is best served freshly made, whilst still hot for the best flavour.
Boba pearls need to be consumed within a maximum of 2 hours, so cook them right before assembling the milk tea.
Yes, this drink contains caffeine because it’s made with a black tea base, which contains coffee. However, black tea has much less caffeine than coffee.
Earl Grey bubble tea with pearls is typically between 240-400 Kcal. The exact number can vary greatly on how much sugar syrup is used in the recipe. This recipe contains approximately 240 Kcal.
Yes, simply leave out the brown sugar syrup or use sugar-free syrup.
You can also use less sugar if you still want a little sweetness (recommended).
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Recipe
Earl Grey Milk Tea Bubble Tea
Ingredients
Sugar Syrup
- ½ cup brown sugar (100 grams)
- 3 ½ tablespoons water (50 grams)
Boba pearls
- ¾ cup tapioca pearls (100 grams)
- 3 cups water (700 grams)
Earl Grey Tea Base
- 4 teaspoons Earl Grey Tea, loose leaf (or 4 teabags)
- 2 cups water, filtered (450 grams)
- ½ cup whole milk, warm (120 grams)
Instructions
Sugar Syrup
- Check out the full Brown Sugar Syrup recipe.
- Place the brown sugar and water into a saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat until the mixture starts bubbling.
- Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the syrup becomes thicker, about 4-5 minutes.
Tapioca Pearls
- In a small saucepan, cook the boba pearls as instructed on the package.
- Add the cooked boba pearls into the hot sugar syrup and cook over low heat for 2-3 minutes.
Brew the Earl Grey Tea
- Boil 2 cups of water to 208°F (98°C), until just about boiling. Use a kitchen thermometer if needed.
- Place the Earl Grey teabags or loose leaf tea into a teapot, then pour the hot water on top.
- Cover and steep for 5 minutes maximum. Remove the tea, then let the brewed Earl grey cool down for 10 minutes.
Assembling the Earl Grey Milk Tea
- Place 1-2 tablespoons of tapioca pearls into each glass. Add sugar syrup as desired to adjust the level of sweetness.
- Pour the hot tea on top.
- Warm the milk, then pour it on top of the tea, then mix to combine.
- Optional: top with cream for extra creaminess. Serve immediately whilst still hot.
Notes
- Sugar syrup can be replaced with runny honey, maple syrup or simple syrup.
- Sweetness can be adjusted according to personal preference.
- Nutritional value is estimative and is calculated per serving (this recipe makes 2 large servings) with tapioca pearls and 1 tablespoon of sugar syrup.
- Use boba pearls immediately after cooking them.
Nutrition
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Mary says
Ok can I just say that this is seriously good? I made it with twinings teabags and it was so good !
Hanelore Dumitrache says
Hi Mary, I've been drinking Twinings every day for the past decade, it's my favourite!
Malene says
I'm lactose intolerant so I tried to replace normal milk with the barista oat milk of Minor Figures and it tasted amazing! Never knew that you can use Earl Grey this way.
Lærke says
I had some leftover boba from trying out your 5 minutes boba recipe so I figured I could give this a try and it came out so tasty and not overly sweet.
Shams says
If there's one this this post has taught me is that I've been making tea wrong all this time! I always found Earl Grey a tiny bit bitter, but now that I made it with your instructions it was perfect! And the extra cream on top made it so much better too.
Hanelore Dumitrache says
Leaving tea to steep for even 2-3 minutes extra will always give it a bitter flavour. It takes a little care when preparing it, but it's so worth it for the best flavour!