The Next Big Drink.
Looking at the number of bubble tea stalls which have sprung up all over Singapore, this new wave of bubble tea trend shows no signs of abating. All thanks to the king of all bubble tea drinks – Brown Sugar Pearl Milk Tea. But will people eventually get sick of drinking bubble tea? That eventually begs the question, what’s next? Pi Pa Gao Milk tea, I believe, will be the next big DRINK.
What on earth is Pi Pa Gao?
Pi Pa Gao (or Pei Pa Koa in Cantonese) is a Chinese herbal syrup which has its origins since
Nin Jiom Pei Pa Koa
The company behind this herbal syrup is Nin Jiom Medicine Manufactory in Hong Kong. This product is raking in a lot of money for the company as many swear by its efficacy in relieving cough and sore throats. Many companies have even hopped on the bandwagon to produce their own brand of Pi Pa Gao, nut nothing is quite like Nin Jiom’s, as it is already a household name for most of us.
How natural is Nin Jiom Pei Pa Koa?
It is a concoction of natural herbs, loquat and honey extracts. There are a total of 15 herbs blended together to form this thick, dark and dense syrup. Some of these Chinese medical herbs do not have a common name. Hence, you will only see a list of ingredients written in its scientific jargons on the back of the packaging. I have not even seen or heard about many of these herbs before!
What this herbal syrup is actually for?
It relieves cough from cold, reduces phlegms, soothes
For adults, it is recommended that you take 1 tablespoon of the syrup 3 times a day. For children, keep it to 1 teaspoon 3 times a day or as advised by the doctor.
How this herbal syrup is used as an ingredient?
This Chinese herbal cough syrup has been paired with almond cream, dark rum and even ice cream. It has a natural minty and caramel-like taste which complements well with most drinks and desserts.
How did Pi Pa Gao enter in the world of bubble tea?
Based on my research,
Sometime in late 2018, there was news that a Californian bubble tea house called Labobatory had incorporated Pi Pei Gao into their green tea to make Cough Syrup Green Tea.
Earlier this year 2019, Ice Dream Cafe KK in Sabah decided to make Pi Pei Gao ice cream instead. It was a hit among their customers.
Around the same time, Singapore’s all-time favourite ice creamery, Tom’s Palette also featured their Pi Pa Gao ice cream. And they are not the only ones who joined the #PiPaGaoTribe. Are you one of them too?
Will this drink make a bigger comeback in 2019? The force is strong with this one.
I personally love it and I’ve even gone to the extent of making one for myself at home. So here’s the recipe. It’s simple and easy to make it yourself at home. Is that perhaps why people rather drink it at home than to buy it at bubble tea houses? Cooking brown Sugar pearls is a more time-consuming process than making Pi Pa Gao milk tea at home.
Pi Pa Gao Milk Tea Recipe
Ingredients
Nin Jiom Pi Pa Gao ( 1 tablespoon or 15ml)
Milk (Full cream is the best) (100 ml)
Tea (Any black tea) (100ml)
Grass Jelly (unsweetened) (50 to 100ml)
Sugar (Brown, Palm or Red date Sugar works best) (1.5 to 2 tablespoons)
Ice ( 50ml)
Quantity: It makes 1 cup of 500ml-drink.
Steps
1.Slice the grass jelly into long thin slices.
This large packet of grass jelly costs me only 95 cents. I bought it from NTUC.
This brand of grass jelly isn’t that fantastic. If you can find a better brand of grass jelly, do let me know.
You can also replace grass jelly with boba too. I wonder how the drink would taste like if I add brown sugar pearls in it.
2. Scoop everything into a cup or a bottle.
Here, I am reusing Nayuki’s milk tea bottle.
3. Brew the tea for about 5 minutes.
You can use any kind of black tea.
4. Instead of using plain white sugar, I used date slab sugar to enhance the taste of the drink.
5. In comes in long hard slabs, so you have to really chop it finely so that you can stir it into the hot tea.
All you need is about 1.5 to 2 tablespoons of sugar. For me, I added about 1.5 tablespoons of sugar.
6. Mix 1 tablespoon of Pi Pa Gao in 100ml of black tea.
You wouldn’t want to go overboard with the Pi Pa Gao as the minty herbal taste is quite strong.
7. Then pour the tea mixture into the bottle.
8. Add 100ml of full cream milk.
9. Almost there! See the beautiful ombre effect of the drink?
Top it up with some ice cubes ti
10. And that’s it! Enjoy!
I figured this heavenly milk to tea ratio of 1:1 has the right balance of the Pi Pa Gao tea to milk flavour. It’s very smooth and very soothing for the throat.
Who says that medicine always tastes bitter?
Have you tried Pi Pa Gao milk tea or ice cream before? Do you love it or hate it? Let me know in the comment box below!
