Tasty tea recipes from food blogger Judith

IkPas tea sommelier Barbara Veldhuizen van Tea Street taught us that tea has endless variations. And that tea is more versatile than you initially think. Food blogger Judith also knows how to value tea. Below you will find a few alternative tea recipes, which are slightly different than usual.

Chai bubble tea

Bubble tea, also known as boba, has been popular in Southeast Asia for decades. It has now also been a trend in the US and parts of Europe for years. Bubble tea is also starting to gain a foothold in the Netherlands.

Bubbles in bubble tea

The name says it all, there are 'bubbles' in the tea. Usually these are tapioca pearls, but they can also be made of, for example, taro. It could be chunks of aloe or custard or popping pearls. It's a bit of 'hate it or love it', because not everyone can appreciate the texture of the tapioca. I do :-)!

How long do you cook tapioca balls?

It is important to look carefully at which tapioca pearls you buy. They all have their own cooking time. I have bought the standard white tapioca pearls a few times. These don't last very long. So you have to cook it for a long time and then soak it in hot water. This time I used black pre-cooked pearls (from Xenos, but you can often find them in Asian supermarkets) and they worked considerably easier. Just cook for a few minutes and let stand for a few minutes and they have the perfect texture!

Cooking tapioca pearls

If you are going to cook tapioca balls, do not add the balls to the water until the water is boiling. If you add them from the start, the balls will dissolve and you just have a kind of slippery mass.

Read the recipe here

Making iced green tea

Tea is one of the most popular drinks in the world. Well-known teas are black tea, white tea and green tea. In addition, there are also teas such as Pu-erh tea, oolong tea and yellow tea. The flavors of all these varieties are of course very different. Green tea is generally a bit fresher in taste, sometimes even a bit grassy.

How do you make the best green tea?

Make sure you don't boil water. The ideal temperature is between 70 and 80 C. Hang the bag or strainer in the teapot or cup and let it steep for a few minutes. Leave the tea alone for a while. 

Green iced tea

You can also make a tasty iced tea with green tea. For example, choose a tea with a fruity taste, cool with ice cubes and add honey to taste. You can do that with black tea, but with green tea it is also super tasty. It gives a very fresh taste. In the shops you see more and more green iced tea from a pack, but making your own is much more fun, tastier and healthier. I show you how to easily make delicious green iced tea yourself with a touch of strawberry and lime. The tea is naturally sweet because of the strawberry pieces, so I don't think it's necessary to add extra sweetener to the drink. But of course you can add honey to taste, for example.

Read the recipe here

Rooibos latte with turmeric and ginger

I drank a rooibos latte for the first time in South Africa. That was quite hip at the time. Rooibos comes from South Africa, so it's no surprise that all kinds of variations are being invented. This red latte or rooibos latte is a rooibos tea with milk foam on top. So without coffee, but with tea.

Turmeric and ginger

Tasty and surprising. To give it extra flavor, I used Curcum syrup. This 'superfood syrup' contains agave, turmeric and ginger and gives your drinks just a little extra taste. It contains no refined sugars, but does contain flavor and vitamin bombs such as turmeric and ginger. And let those two flavors go together perfectly with rooibos tea! And did you know that agave is completely vegan?

extra flavor

By adding the syrup, you get extra flavor and it becomes just that little bit sweeter. With the syrup you can also make tasty mocktails or dilute with some water for an adult lemonade. Besides, with the beautiful packaging, it is also a wonderful gift. May also be a present for yourself ;-).

I used a vegetable milk based on peas for the milk foam, but you can of course use any milk or vegetable variation you want.

Read the recipe here