Milk Tea with Grass Jelly

by Cress Sia

I don't know about you, but I'm a victim of the recent milk tea craze. 

I used to get my milk tea at Kopi Roti, before they closed down, and before all these new milk tea houses were established. The milk tea back there was simple and straightforward, exactly how I liked mine - sans flavoring, pearl, tapioca, or what have you. Recently though I've started to have a taste for milk tea with grass jelly, and occasionally, even with taro pudding.  I take grass jelly because it's not too chewy, unlike those black pearls... man, do they make my jaw hurt! 

By the way, did you hear in the news that those little black pearls cause cancer? I wonder who started that study, perhaps that big coffee shop next door?

Here's how I make mine at home, my milk tea with grass jelly. 

I'm making for two, so I grab two packets of earl grey black tea. You can use english breakfast too. The grass jelly I will use is the one sold in cans. I don't know if you can buy it in any other form.

I soak my tea bags in half a cup of very, very hot water.

Then I sit back and wait for all the tea flavors to suffuse my water. This can take around 3-5 minutes. 

While waiting, you can click the video below and dance GANGNAM STYLE!!!!!!! Because it's cool and everybody's dancing it too!

So you're done dancing and all your helpers think you've got a loose screw in your head but who cares???

Because tomorrow's a FRIDAY!!!

And it's PAYDAY weekend!!!

Don't forget your tea bags now. 

Throw away your soulless tea bags. 

Look at all that good good tea!

Transfer the liquid into a shaker. 

I couldn't find mine. Sad face. HUHU! 

I searched all over the place. My good friend S says losing things happen when one moves from one house to another, and then another. I guess she's right. 

Instead I find my lock and lock airtight container. And this will work fine, I believe.

I dump in 1/4 cup of tea inside my improvised shaker, and add in a tablespoon of sweetened condensed milk.

And 1/4 cup of very cold milk and 1/2 cup of ice cold water. If you want your tea to be more creamy use only half as much water.

Cover, lock, then shake. 

If the Gangnam song is still stuck in your head, you may dance to the tune of that. Volume to the fullest and shaker in hand.

Okay enough. 

By the way if you have one of those blenders with ice crushing super power, you could use 1/2 cup of ice cubes instead of ice cold water. Then throw everything in your power blender and power blend. 

But I don't have that.

Spoon grass jelly as thinly as you can and as much as you want to the bottom of your glass. You can also cut the grass jelly into pretty little cubes. But I like my life to be a little less hard if I can help it. 

I am also a germ freak so I previously put my grass jelly on a bowl and stuck it inside the microwave for a minute on highest power because I want to be extra sure I do not get no botulinum toxin disease. 

But if you're fine eating food straight out of a can then by all means do so.

Finally pour your milk tea inside your glass and enjoy! If you have a fat straw that would be useful! I don't, so I used my good ol' spoon. 

Remember I told you to use your super power blender if you have one? The dense ice in your drink would push the jelly down and make your drink look much like the ones they serve in the store. 

But hey, there's nothing wrong with having your grass jelly float up!

Drink and be merry!

Summary of ingredients:

Servings: 2

1/4 cup thinly sliced grass jelly

2 tea bags of black tea (Earl Grey or English Breakfast)

1 tbsp condensed milk

1/4 cup milk

1/4 cup ice cold water