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    Home » Recipes » Asian

    Butterfly Pea Milk Tea

    Published: May 4, 2021 · Modified: Mar 6, 2024 by Floured Frame · This post may contain affiliate links · 2 Comments

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    So, you need a unique milk tea drink to show off to your friends? Without a doubt, this butterfly pea milk tea is the perfect recipe for that! This easy-to-make milk tea tastes delicious, and its lovely blue hue comes from butterfly pea flowers - that's right, no artificial coloring here!

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe
    Front view of a glass of milk and tapioca pearls. Butterfly pea tea poured into the cup and changing the color of the milk blue.

    So why did I randomly create this recipe? Honestly, I created the recipe solely to celebrate Star Wars day. If you've watched Star Wars, you know about the famous blue milk, aka Bantha milk. And I had this idea to create a boba milk tea version of that recipe, without using any sort of artificial coloring. Butterfly pea flower was the perfect ingredient for this themed recipe. But even if you're not planning to celebrate Star Wars day, it's still a beautiful and delicious drink to make whenever you want!

    A glass of butterfly pea milk tea and a  wookie cookie standing next to the cup.

    What is butterfly pea flower?

    Butterfly pea flower tea is a herbal infusion that comes from butterfly pea flowers. Its flowers are a beautiful blue color, and the petals have flecks of white and yellow. You can find this plant commonly cultivated throughout Southeast Asia. The flavor is a bit earthy and woody flavor, but in my opinion, butterfly pea flower tea doesn’t have much of a taste. I would compare it to a light green tea taste but a bit more vegetal.

    However, butterfly pea flowers are usually added to different tea blends and citrus drinks. Typically, they’re not brewed on their own, and they’re almost unnoticeable. Even the most delicate flavored teas can overpower that flavor. But if you’re worried about that taste, in this recipe, trust me you won’t even notice.

    45 degree angle of the butterfly pea milk tea with boba.

    Benefits of butterfly pea flower tea:

    Not only is this tea beautiful to look at, but did you know it also contains some health benefits? Butterfly pea flowers contain antioxidants, which protect against free radicals, help with insomnia, and even anti-aging!

    Another fun fact about this tea is that it also can change colors! I'm sure you've seen it all over social media, where they add a squeeze of lemon and the colors change from blue to a beautiful magenta or purple. But why does this happen? The flowers are a natural deep blue but can change to a magenta or even purple color, by simply adjust the pH level by adding something acidic, like lemon juice. So, if you want to have some fun, add a squeeze of lemon and you'll instantly have a cool new drink!

    Two glasses of the blue milk tea with tapioca pearls.

    If you enjoyed this recipe, you might want to check these out:

    • Chewbacca Cookies
    • Rose Cardamom Latte
    • Matcha Scones
    • Ube Cheese Pandesal

    If you’d tried this recipe out let me know in the comments! Don’t forget to follow me on Instagram @flouredframe and don’t forget to tag me when you create my recipes! Happy cooking!

    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    📖 Recipe

    Butterfly Pea Milk Tea

    Keisha
    Need a unique milk tea drink to show off to your friends? Well, this butterfly pea milk tea is the perfect recipe for that! This easy-to-make milk tea tastes delicious, and its lovely blue hue comes from butterfly pea flowers - that's right, no artificial coloring here! If you’re a Star Wars fan, you can pair this milk tea with my Wookie Cookies recipe for a fun little Star Wars treat! 
    No ratings yet
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 10 minutes mins
    Cook Time 15 minutes mins
    Course Drink
    Cuisine Asian
    Servings 2 servings

    Equipment

    • Small saucepan
    • Large saucepan
    • Medium-sized mixing bowl
    • Measuring cups
    • 2 Drinking glasses
    • Boba straws
    Pro TipIf a recipe calls for it, use a food scale to weigh ingredients in grams for the best results! Use the options below to toggle between cups or grams.

    Ingredients
      

    Butterfly Pea Milk Tea 
    • ½ cup brown sugar
    • ¼ cup hot water
    • ½ cup tapioca pearls
    • 1 teaspoon butterfly pea powder (or 1 tablespoon - loose butterfly pea flower)
    • 1 cup cold water (use hot water if using loose butterfly pea flower)
    • 1 cup non-dairy milk
    • Ice
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    Instructions
     

    • In a small saucepan, combine the brown sugar and hot water, and bring to a simmer. Stir to make sure sugar dissolves completely. Take off heat, pour into a medium-sized bowl, and allow to cool.
    • While you wait for the sugar syrup to cool, cook the boba as the package instructs.  Drain the cooked boba and soak them in the brown sugar syrup for 30 minutes.
    • In a measuring cup, combine the and butterfly pea powder.
    • Whisk to dissolve. Evenly distribute the boba along with the syrup into two glass cups. Add more syrup if you want it to be a little sweeter.
    • Add some ice, and fill the glasses with ½ cup of non-dairy milk. Add a half cup of butterfly pea tea to each glass. Stir with your favorite boba straw, and enjoy!

    Notes

    • You can easily buy tapioca pearls at your local Asian supermarket!
    • If you’re worried about the taste of the tea, it’s actually very light. The flavor from the brown sugar syrup and the tapioca pearls will overpower that tea flavor. Trust me, you won’t even notice!

    The provided nutritional information is an estimate per serving. Accuracy is not guaranteed.

    Tried this recipe?Leave a comment below & tag @flouredframe on social!

    More Asian

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Jas says

      August 13, 2021 at 11:45 am

      can i use dairy milk or does it have to be non dairy

      Reply
      • Floured Frame says

        August 14, 2021 at 1:45 am

        This is a vegan blog, so I am using non-dairy milk. But you most certainly use any milk you want!

        Reply

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