If you love bubble tea, but hate all the sugar and carbs found in traditional tapioca pearls, then make these low-carb friendly bubble tea pearls made with protein-rich Great Lakes Wellness grass-fed gelatin instead. You won’t believe how fun and easy they are to make! Just be sure to use these pearls for cold boba/bubble tea drinks as the gelatin will melt in hot liquids.
1cupprepared strong tea or coffee sweetened to taste* see notes
2TBSGreat Lakes Wellness Grass-fed Beef Gelatin
2-4cupsof neutral oilavocado, grapeseed, etc., chilled in the freezer for 2 hours
DIRECTIONS
Add gelatin to cooled tea or coffee. Stir and allow to sit for 5 minutes.
Add gelatin-tea mixture to a small saucepan. Bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for 1 minute. Whisk to make sure the gelatin is completely dissolved.
Remove from heat and pour into a heat-safe bowl. Allow to cool to room temperature.
Remove jar from the freezer. The oil is ready when it is slightly cloudy and thick. Give it a stir before starting to make sure the oil texture is smooth and even.
Draw the gelatin mixture into a syringe and even squirts drop into the cold oil. Be sure to space out the drops so the gelatin pearls don’t stick or clump. Do a few test drops to get a feeling for size. ⅛ - ¼ tsp per drop is perfect. If the gelatin drop looks like it is just sitting on top, your oil may be too cold. Either let it sit out a minute or stir in a tablespoon of room temperature oil to bring down the temp.
Once you get the hang of it, continue with the rest of the gelatin mixture. If the gelatin gets a little too thick to drop, just pop it in the microwave for 5 seconds to warm and stir. Then continue.
TIP: If the gelatin bubbles are “growing tails” as they fall to the bottom of the jar your oil has become too warm. Either put it back in the freezer for a bit. Having a few jars to switch out can make the process faster. You can also have the jar sitting in an ice bath before starting to help keep the temperature of the oil cold.
When you’re done, drain the gelatin “pearls” with a strainer reserving oil for later use. Rinse them well under cold water to remove surface oil. Keep in an air-tight container until ready to use. For best results use within 3-4 days in your favorite bubble tea recipes.
Notes
SERVINGS: ¾ cup of gelatin pearls (80 calories, 0 carbs, 22 g protein)To make the gelatin pearls almost black like tapioca pearls we used 3 black tea bags. If you’re concerned about caffeine, use decaf instead.For different flavors, experiment with different tea types (including herbal) to make your bubble tea gelatin pearls. We made one batch of pearls with a chocolate hazelnut tea that came out delicious. For concentrated flavor use 3-4 tea bags per cup of water.To keep these gelatin pearls sugar-free, sweeten the tea with your favorite healthy sugar-free substitute like stevia, monk fruit, or erythritolFor super black gelatin boba pearls without adding food coloring, try adding a pinch of activated charcoal to the warm gelatin tea mixture before dropping into the oil.To serve, be sure to pick up some reusable or biodegradable boba tea straws, which are extra wide for slurping up your bubble tea pearls.