Hong Kong Milk Tea: A (Liquid) Slap on the Back

Written by Lucas Ngai

We’ve all had those days – getting unceremoniously awoken by your alarm clock for that 9 am lecture, paralysed by existential dread at what lies in store for the day, debating on whether to spend five more minutes under those sweet, sweet covers. But it’s not like you have a choice. The day isn’t going to wait for you. 

Hong Kong milk tea is like that friend who slaps your back a little too hard. Your breath gets briefly knocked out of your lungs, but you stagger along, just enough to get on with it when you feel like you’re about to pass out. And like hurried, overworked diners in Hong Kong, that’s exactly what you need sometimes.

Trying to recreate the flavours of home has been one of my proudest side projects (and has doubled as a great procrastination activity!). Oh, to seek the perfect level of astringence, the soothing smoothness of evaporated milk, the irreplaceable, full-bodied aftertaste – it just never gets old. I’m still trying to figure it out, but this is what’s worked for me so far. So do try it at home! You’ll need a sieve, saucepan, and another container.

Ingredients (per cup):

~50 mL evaporated milk

4 PG tips teabags (green box) – NOT loose-leaf

Half a teabag of M&S Extra Strong (dark-blue box)

Instructions:

1. Boil ~400 mL of water in a saucepan.
2. When the water is boiling, rip open the teabags and pour their contents into the water (unless you like drinking even more microplastics). Make sure only half of the M&S Extra Strong bag is emptied.
3. Let the tea continue boiling for 6-8 minutes on low heat.
4. While the tea boils, carefully rip open all the empty teabags so each teabag becomes a rectangular sheet. 
5. Place the sheets next to each other in the sieve so they form a single layer of “teabag”, which acts as a makeshift filter for the tea leaves. Water helps to stick the teabags’ edges together.
6. Carefully pour your tea through the makeshift filter into another container (to catch any remaining tea leaves and improve texture). If you’re afraid of spilling, use a ladle instead.
7. Carefully pour the tea back into the saucepan through the sieve.
8. Pour ~50 mL of evaporated milk into your drinking cup. 
9. Pour the filtered tea into your drinking cup (it should be a bright orange). 
10. Add sugar and evaporated milk to taste.
11. Enjoy!