Have you ever brought bubble tea (Boba), put it down for a few hours only to find it hardened and unenjoyable to drink? Here, we’ll show you how to soften hard boba and bring it back to its original soft, chewy texture. Boba is expensive, so it would make sense to save it when possible.
We’ve had boba harden on us all the time. Sometimes we’re just busy, or sometimes we want to bring some to friends we’re visiting. Since boba loses its softness so quickly, you can almost forget about purchasing boba and saving it for the next day. Even if you leave the drink sealed, the boba will harden and lose its chewiness.
Why Does Boba Get Hard
To understand why boba hardens, it helps to understand what makes up boba. Its purest form, boba, consists of tapioca flour and either brown or white sugar. Since boba is mainly made of starches, boba is soft when it’s warm but, as with all starch, loses its softness when it becomes cold. Boba acts the same way as other heavily starchy foods such as french fries and tater tots. Notice how they become crumbly after you leave french fries out for a while? The starch is nice and soft when warm but becomes crumbly when cold.
In the same sense, boba loses its softness when the water leaves the starch.
Here’s a great article on the science behind boba and it’s chemical structure.
Methods to Soften Boba That Has Gone Hard
The way you can soften hard boba is to bring heat and warmth back to the starch. In either of these methods, you will need to separate the boba from the rest of the drink. If you are working with home-made boba, you’re already set for this first step.
Soften Boba By Steaming It
Steaming the boba will help to reintroduce heat and moisture to soften the boba. First, start by separating the boba if it is already in the drink. Boil a pot of water and put the boba on a steaming tray. You should only need to steam the boba for a few minutes to soften it. When the boba gets it to the desired softness, put the boba back in the drink.
Soften Boba By Boiling It In Syrup
This method is possibly the best way to soften boba since it re-creates the same fresh boba recipe. In the cafe, boba is made by boiling the tapioca starch in a sugar syrup. To soften boba using this method, first separate the boba from the drink itself. Next, you’ll need to create a syrup mixture of water and sugar. Boil either brown or white sugar in water until it gets to a syrup consistency. You’ll want to use a 2:1 water to sugar mixture.
Heat the sugar or brown sugar and water mixture until it thickens. This will re-create the original syrup that was used to create the boba.
Add the boba to the syrup and gently stir until the boba has softened. Once it’s at the desired softness, you can add it to your drink.
Soften Bobs With Hot Water And Microwave
If you’re unable to make the sugar syrup, using hot water is a good substitute. If you are using a microwave, it’s best to use the microwave only to heat the water and then submerge the boba in the hot water to soften. Microwaving the boba itself might boil it accidentally if it becomes too hot.
Softening Boba FAQ’s
Q: How do I stop my boba from hardening
As we described before, boba hardens once it gets cold. The best way to keep boba softened for as long as possible would be to keep it as warm for as long as possible. When ordering your boba tea, you can put less ice in the drink so the boba will not cool down as fast. Depending on the cafe, they might use warm tea after putting boba in the cup. This deliberate process helps to preserve the boba softness for as long as possible. Ice is placed last in the drink to keep the cold temperature separated from the boba until the customer is ready to mix it. This way of keeping the boba as warm for as long as possible is the best-case scenario to preserve the boba’s softness for as long as possible.
It’s best to consume your drink right away. Putting it in the fridge will contribute to the boba hardening.
Q: How long does it take for boba to get hard
Boba gets hard within a few hours. The more you can slow the boba from getting cold, the longer it will last.
Bubble Tea (or Boba) is a refreshing drink. Too bad the boba gets hard so fast. With these methods we’ve shown, you can soften hard boba and not worry about drinking it at a later time.