Tapioca Tea: The Newest Big Buzz in Japan

Bubble tea, the dessert drink that originated in Taiwan, has already gained popularity in Japan years ago. However just as the fame started dying down, it once again has become a huge hit, with more bubble tea shops opening up than ever it seems. In Japan, they call it Tapioca Tea. In Nagoya alone, there are at least 13 tapioca tea shops and 5 or 6 of those opened just this year.

So what's so different about the new bubble tea?
When I first tried tapioca tea in Yokohoma several years ago, I didn't think much of it. I had been a big fan of bubble tea while growing up in Toronto, often the Chinese bubble tea cafes were the place to go with friends because not only were they delicious, you could sit and chat, and pass the time while not spending very much money. So when I tried my first tapioca tea in Japan, I was a bit disappointed because the 'pearls' (tapioca) had no flavour and they had the texture of a firm jelly with no bite. I suspect they were made with kanten which is a type of agar used in dishes to make them gelatinous, similar to gelatin.

The new craze with tapioca tea seems to be chewy and sweet pearls. These new stores are using dried tapioca balls straight from Taiwan. Although they already have a slight sweetness to it, some stores are letting them soak in kuromitsu (a syrup similar to molasses but milder) before adding the tea to it. I have a hunch that it is the bubble tea I know and like from the stores in Toronto. To be honest I have yet to try this new style tea in Japan since lineups are crazy and they are a bit pricey.

With all the talk of tapioca tea here, I began to crave some bubble tea. I found a tapioca tea frappe in the freezer section of a Family Mart convenience store, and it was only 330 yen. When you purchase it, the store employee will take off the lid and squeeze the cup a bit to break up the frozen drink. Then you take the cup to the drink machine where you press the button for hot milk, melting and mixing the drink even more. You'd think that it wouldn't really be a frappe anymore, but it stays cold and icy for quite some time. The milk tea was delicious, not too sweet, a bit creamy with a flavour that reminded me of the bubble tea back home. The tapioca however was not the same, it didn't have the chewiness of Taiwanese pearls. Glancing at the ingredient list I saw that these tapioca were made with konnyaku, a soft jelly-like product made from a konjac potato (if you have heard of shirataki noodles, these are also konnyaku). While konnyaku is a bit bouncy when bitten into, it doesn't have the chewiness of something made from tapioca flour. 

Family Mart convenience store's version of bubble tea

Machine adding steamed milk

While it wasn't exactly the bubble tea I am used to, it still satisfied my craving!