Honeydew Milk Tea: A Mouthwatering Guide

Just when you think you heard the last of bubble tea creations, along comes something else that piques your curiosity. There’s a whole new twist in taking a summertime favorite and making a sweet drinkable dessert in a cup.

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What Is Honeydew Milk Tea?

There are numerous products marketed as “honeydew creme,” “honeydew tea powder,” “honeydew tea,” and more. It can be confusing trying to figure out what these drinks are. Perhaps you have heard of honeydew milk tea; if not, you are about to learn something new!

What Is Milk Tea?

Milk (bubble/boba) tea got its start in Taiwan in the 1980s. It has spread like wildfire across the world since then and is still just as trendy.

To understand where milk tea fits into the tea scene, it helps to know what true teas and tisanes are. The tea industry classifies tea as either a true tea or tisane (herbal tea.) True teas consist of black, green, yellow, oolong, and white tea. Tisanes are teas made from parts of herbaceous plants, flowers, or fruit.

Milk (bubble/boba) teas typically have herbs or fruit blended in. Sometimes, a true tea (black, green, yellow, oolong, white) may be added to enhance the taste, provide color, or incorporate a beneficial element to the milk tea. So, is milk tea a tisane or true tea? It’s considered a tisane.

Now hang on because there are a few more relative terms regarding milk tea. In Asian cultures, milk tea is known as “boba.” Westerners know it as “bubble tea.” Bubble tea is prevalent among the younger crowd because of its novel ingredients. It’s not your usual cup of hot tea.

What Is Honeydew Boba Tea Made Of?

Honeydew is a melon with a Middle Eastern origin back in ancient times. Today you’ll find this fruit being grown all over the world. It is considered the sweetest of all melons (which includes cantaloupe and watermelon.) There are two types of honeydew. One is green, and the other is yellow.

Honeydew Milk Tea Ingredients

Honeydew milk (boba) tea has some very interesting ingredients! There are two ingredient versions when it comes to this drink. One is with fresh ingredients (honeydew melon, milk,and tapioca pearls.) The other is made with a powder mix for the base, artificially flavored honeydew syrup, and ready-to-use tapioca pearls.

Fresh Ingredients

A genuine, high-quality honeydew bubble (milk) tea has a fresh milk base, fresh/real honeydew melon puree/juice, perhaps a green tea to add color and freshly prepared black tapioca pearls.

Packaged Ingredients

When it comes to universal ingredient conformity, you won’t find it in milk teas. Most bubble tea shops use powder mixes, sugary flavored syrups, ready-to-eat tapioca pearls, and a concoction of other ingredients. They do so for the sake of convenience. It takes less time to make a milk tea from these ingredients compared to a fresh ingredient one.

How Tea Shops Prepare Honeydew Milk Tea

Milk teas are prepared by adding tapioca pearls, ice, milk, and other additives (such as true tea, herbal tea, herbs, fruit, other layers of milk tea, and so on) to a tall clear cup. A lid is placed on the top of the cup, and a wide straw is inserted. If you buy your milk tea at a bubble tea shop, they will instruct you to avoid using your straw to mix it.

Instead, you should tip the cup sideways to cause the ingredients to intermingle rather than completely mix together. This does nothing more than add a layered, textural, colorful effect to your drink. By using a wide straw, drinkers can enjoy the milky tea with bits of tapioca pearls to chew on.

What Does Honeydew Boba Tea Taste Like?

Honeydew milk tea taste is extraordinary if you happen to get one made from fresh ingredients. With the first sip of this drink, you’ll notice the sweet and creamy base of milk that coats the palate. Melon quietly breaks through the creamy milk with a summer-like fresh sweetness that only melons deliver. Subtle traces of honeydew melon linger.

Pairing green tea with such a unique milk tea must be done carefully to enhance the melon rather than clash with it. Bubble tea baristas may add Matcha green tea to add a vibrant green color and an earthy element to the taste. Others may add Japanese green tea for color and incorporate floral or fruity layers of flavor.

Now that we know what a good-quality honeydew boba (milk tea) tastes like, let’s see what one made from a powder mix, etc., has to offer the palate.

The sweet creaminess of the milk is replaced by non-dairy cream in a mix. There’s a noticeable difference in texture and taste. Artificial flavorings, preservatives, and plenty of sugar hit the palate as overly sweet, while hints of tangy chemicals punch through. The finish is extra sweet and has a lingering aftertaste.

Does Honeydew Milk Tea Have Caffeine?

Milk (bubble) teas generally do not contain caffeine. The only time any caffeine is present in this drink is if a true tea (black, green, yellow, oolong, white) is added. Caffeine amounts will be low since there’s very little true tea added.

Can I Drink Honeydew Milk Tea Every Day?

This drink is not considered healthy, and if enjoyed daily, you can be assured that extra pounds will show up the next time you weigh in. This drink isn’t ideal for those of us with diabetes or are weight conscious because of the high calories and sugar. The Food Science and Nutrition Journal published a study on just how unhealthy milk teas are.

Honeydew Milk Tea Benefits

The main benefit this milk tea provides drinkers is the momentary bliss that bubble teas are known for. The chewy popping of the tapioca pearls and sugary milky liquid tastes good and coats the mouth with creaminess. If the drink contains a true tea (such as green), the health benefits are very minimal because of the insignificant amount added.

Is Honeydew Milk Tea Good For You?

To offset mix-based milk (bubble) teas, tea shops load more ingredients such as flavored, bursting tapioca pearls filled with artificial flavored sugary liquid, toppings, and other sugary additives to make it taste good. This is why these drinks are such a hit among young people. It’s all of the sugar that gets them hooked.

A freshly prepared honeydew milk tea may not contain as much sugar as a mix-based one. Regardless of the option you choose, the tapioca pearls add a hefty amount of carbs. Either way, milk (bubble) tea is something that should be enjoyed as an occasional treat.

There is a much healthier option that you can enjoy daily, and that’s green tea infused with honeydew.

How To Make Honeydew Milk Tea

Honeydew is synonymous with summer. People enjoy the simplicity of sitting on the back porch eating a cold slice of this amazing melon. Melons are very refreshing. We have a real treat for you with a healthy version of honeydew milk tea.

Honeydew Milk Tea Recipe

Ingredients

1 ½ cups of fresh almond milk
1 slice of fresh honeydew melon (deseeded and rhine removed)
2 teaspoons of oolong loose-leaf tea
¾ cup of water
¼ cup of freshly prepared black tapioca pearls
Ice

Things You’ll Need

Tall clear cup
Wide straw
Blender
Teapot
Tea kettle
Tea Infuser
Strainer

Directions

Brew the oolong tea and set it aside to cool down to room temperature.
1. Heat the water to 185 degrees (F) (85 degrees C)
2. Remove from the heat.
3. Place the loose-leaf oolong tea into a tea infuser.
4. Pour the hot water into a teapot.
5. Drop the tea infuser into the teapot.
6. Cover and allow the tea to steep for 5 minutes.
7. Remove the cover and the tea infuser.
8. Allow the tea to cool down to room temperature.
Prepare the tapioca pearls as instructed on the packaging. Once cooked, give the tapioca pearls a cold-water bath to cool down and remove any remaining starch.
Puree a slice of honeydew melon.
1. Cut one slice of honeydew melon.
2. Remove the seeds and rhine.
3. Place the slice of honeydew in a blender or food processor.
4. Blend until it turns into juice.
5. Pour the melon juice through a strainer to remove any pulp.
6. Set aside.
Add the tapioca pearls to the cup/glass.
Add enough ice to fill the cup within 2 inches of the rim.
Pour the cold almond milk over the ice.
Slowly pour the cooled brewed tea into the almond milk.
Slowly pour the strained honeydew melon juice into the milk/tea mixture.
Insert a wide straw, kick back, and enjoy!

Note: If you want to save 27 grams of carbs and opt for a “skinnier” version of this drink, skip adding the tapioca pearls.

Fresh Is Better

This is one of those drinks to enjoy (within moderation) on a summer’s day by the pool or in the hammock. Milk (bubble) tea with fresh ingredients is much more healthy and so worth the effort.