Bubble Trouble

Posted March 19th, 2007 in Milagros News, food

About seven years ago a friend of mine turned me on to “Bubble Tea.” It was love at first sip and Jen soon became a fan as well.

What is bubble tea (or boba tea)? It is a special tea beverage that originated in Asia in the 1980s. It is a mixture of of iced or hot sweetened tea, milk, and a flavoring – often fruits such as mango, traditional flavors like red bean and taro, or others.

The bubbles in the tea are chewy tapioca pearls that sit at the bottom of the cup. You drink the tea through an oversized straw which allows you to suck up the tapioca balls and chew on them as a treat.

It definitely sounds odd but it is very tasty – REALLY! Mila loves it too! I am sure there can be some concern with choking on the pearls for younger kids but I don’t really know what guidelines are – if any. Mila has been drinking it since she was two.

Here is the troubling part of the world of Bubble Tea. It has become an industry so there are “kits” and such that result in cheap, unhealthy options for the tea. For instance, the tea is typically made with non-dairy creamer. Also the nature of the tea base itself can be questionable.

Before moving to Portland, we would frequent Gossip in Seattle for our tea fixes. And I must admit we didn’t really know about “what goes into the bubble tea?” Now that we are in Portland and have more knowledge of possible Bubble Tea contents, we have been getting our Bubble Tea at Tea Chai Te Townsend’s Teahouse on Alberta Street (same owner, new name). They are able to accommodate our requests for making a “healthier” option for Mila and us.

At Tea Chai Te Townsend’s you can request regular milk, soy milk, or rice milk instead of non-dairy creamer. They also provide you the option of black, green, or an herbal tea base. All there teas are first rate and infused at the shop, they are reconstituted. Because Mila is sensitive to soy and dairy, we get rice milk. And since she is never lacking in energy, we opt for the herbal tea base.

So thanks to Tea Chai Te Townsend’s, we are back on the Bubble Tea bandwagon! We will be enjoying this treat during more and more as the days get warmer.