Hong Kong Milk Tea
Hong Kong-style milk tea originates from British colonial rule over Hong Kong. The British practice of afternoon tea, where black tea is served withmilk and sugar, grew popular in Hong Kong. Milk tea is similar, except with evaporated or condensed milk instead of ordinary milk. It is called "milk tea" (Chinese: 奶茶, Cantonese naai5 cha4) to distinguish it from "Chinese tea" (Chinese: 茶, Cantonese cha4), which is served plain. Outside of Hong Kong it is referred to as Hong Kong-style milk tea.
The first criterion of a good cup of milk tea is its "smoothness" (香滑); in other words, how creamy and full-bodied it is.
Another criterion for tasty milk tea (and also bubble tea) is some white frothy residue inside the lip of the cup after some of it has been drunk. This white froth means that the concentration of butterfatin the evaporated milk used is high enough.
The taste and texture of 'Hong Kong' style milk tea might be influenced by the milk used. For example, some Hong Kong cafés prefer using a filled milk variant, meaning it is not purely evaporated milk (as with most retail brands) but a combination of skimmed milk and soybean oil.
Hand painting with digital editing
2011
2011
