A bubble tea kit keeps for 18 months from packing, with the best before date printed on the outer box, and every kit leaves us with at least 12 months still to run on that date. Store it at room temperature, somewhere dry and out of direct sunlight. The drink is the opposite: milk tea keeps in the fridge for up to a day, and cooked tapioca pearls last about four hours, covered in sugar syrup.
Bubble tea is a fresh drink made from store cupboard ingredients, and almost every question about keeping it comes down to that split.
What is in the box, and how does it age?
Our Bubble Tea Kit makes four large glasses of Taiwanese style boba milk tea, hot or iced, with tapioca starch for making your own pearls, ready-made pearls for when you are short of time, and loose leaf black tea. You add milk and sugar.
The black and green tea kit with fruit syrups makes eight large glasses as milk tea or fruit tea, with tapioca starch, ready-made pearls, loose leaf black and green tea, and mango and strawberry syrups. You add milk or fruit juice, ice and sugar to taste.
Loose leaf tea is the part that shows its age first. Tea does not spoil, it fades: the aroma softens and the brew tastes flatter and less fragrant. Kept dry, dark and sealed, that happens slowly.
Tapioca starch is a dry starch and is very stable. It needs to stay dry, because damp starch clumps and is then difficult to work into a smooth dough.
The fruit syrups and ready-made pearls are sealed shelf-stable items, and the date on the box covers them.
Every ingredient is listed on the pack; if you have an allergy question, email hello@sandyleaffarm.com before ordering.
What happens after the best before date?
Quality declines rather than the kit becoming unsafe. Bubble tea kits are flavour-led, so the tea is the thing you would notice: an older kit brews a gentler cup. Brew it a touch stronger, or steep it a little longer, and you are most of the way back.
There is nothing in either box that can fail outright. That is different from our hedgerow wine kit, with its living yeast, and our cheese kits, with their rennet, where an ingredient past the date may stop working reliably and the batch simply does not happen.
How should you store an opened kit?
Reseal everything and keep it cool and dry. Loose leaf tea in particular wants an airtight tin or tub rather than a folded-over bag, because tea takes on smells from the cupboard around it as readily as it loses its own.
Keep the tapioca starch well sealed and well away from anything damp, and do not store it above the kettle where steam collects. Keep the ready-made pearls sealed in their packaging until the day you want them.
Both kits are designed to be spread out. Four glasses or eight glasses is several sittings for most households, and the kit is happiest made two glasses at a time anyway, so there is no reason to try to use everything in one go.
What do you do with leftover pearls?
Honestly, the best answer is to avoid having them. Cooked tapioca pearls last up to about four hours in the fridge when covered with sugar syrup, honey or agave, and they really are best fresh. Chilled for longer they go hard and lose the bounce that is the entire point of them.
So cook for the glasses you are actually going to drink. Make the pearls last, so they go straight into the glass while still warm, and make them in a slightly larger batch of about two glasses' worth, because the starch is easier to work with in a bigger quantity. If you want bigger, chewier pearls, boil them for longer than 15 minutes.
If you do end up with some left, put them in a tub, cover them with syrup, and treat them as this afternoon's snack rather than tomorrow's. Soaking them in syrup for about 15 minutes before serving also sweetens pearls that taste bland.
Two things that do keep. Uncooked tapioca starch keeps for the life of the kit, so the ability to make pearls is not on any sort of clock. And the simple syrup you make from the recipe keeps in the fridge for several weeks, so it is worth making a full batch and using it across several drinks.
How long does the made-up drink keep?
Milk tea keeps in the fridge as it is for up to a day, which makes it a reasonable thing to brew in the morning and drink in the afternoon, but not a thing to batch for the week. The tea base on its own is the most sensible thing to prepare ahead: brew it, cool it, keep it covered in the fridge and add milk, syrup, ice and freshly cooked pearls when you want a glass.
The pearls in the kits are vegan, and the milk tea works with evaporated milk for the classic version or with coconut, oat, soya, almond, rice or hemp milk. Coconut gives the richest result; the thinner milks give the drink less body. Home-made pearls come out naturally translucent, because there is no colouring in the kit, so pale pearls are not a sign of anything having gone wrong.
Bubble tea kit shelf life FAQs
How long does an unopened bubble tea kit last?
Eighteen months from packing, with the best before date printed on the outer box. Kits leave us with at least 12 months still to run on that date.
How long do cooked tapioca pearls last?
Up to about four hours in the fridge when covered with sugar syrup, honey or agave. They are much better fresh, so cook only what you plan to drink.
Can I keep made-up bubble tea in the fridge?
Milk tea keeps as it is for up to a day. For anything longer, keep the brewed tea base covered in the fridge and add milk, ice and fresh pearls when you pour.
Does loose leaf tea go off?
It does not spoil, it fades. Keep it sealed, cool, dry and away from strong smells, and brew it a little stronger if an older kit tastes flat.
How should I store leftover tapioca starch?
Sealed and dry, at room temperature, away from steam. Dry starch keeps for the life of the kit, so you can make pearls whenever you fancy them.
Fancy a proper glass of boba at home? Take a look at our bubble tea kits.
