By Magdalene Ko, Staff Writer
My all time go-to drink is boba milk tea. These sweet, chewy, circle toppings from Taiwan are a must for any flavor of milk tea, especially since all boba shops carry it. But, to my surprise, there’s a nationwide boba shortage.
As absurd as it sounds, it’s true. We are about to drink our precious milk tea without the most important part: the boba. A multitude of reasons has ultimately caused the shortage. For one, demand has gone up during the pandemic. With many of the usual activities closed due to the pandemic, people have gone out for boba more often than before, especially since it has gained recognition on social media platforms such as TikTok. The main reason, however, is the sea jam. With COVID restrictions in place on both eastern and western ports, all goods shipped from Asia to the U.S. are coming especially slowly. Shortage of workers due to COVID, quarantine, and social distancing guidelines have only added to the delays. Unfortunately, since these tapioca pearls rely so heavily on ingredients from Asia, the industry was hit especially hard.
Boba seems to be just a trivial treat, but for boba lovers and even regular teens like me, life without boba would be boring indeed. Although I myself don’t get boba very often, I know some people who have to drink it everyday, or at the very least, every other day. A shortage would definitely cause them to suffer boba withdrawals, as improbable as that might seem. For others, going out and grabbing a milk tea is a way of socializing with friends. It represents times when we could go out and sit together without masks or distancing, just talking and enjoying our drinks. Boba ties everyone together, as one can tell from the many boba phone cases, stickers, keychains, and other merchandise sold and used. Even though I’m not an avid milk tea drinker, I myself have several boba keychains and cases.
Without their main ingredient, many boba shops would suffer greatly. For them, the absence of boba would force them to rely on other tactics to keep people coming to buy tea. Some only allow customers to have boba in one drink per order, while others no longer allow extra orders of boba. Sadly, it seems the delay of boba could quite possibly last until summer. This would mean inconvenience to the many boba fans, but more importantly, could cost many people their jobs. It’s easy for us to overlook how heavily boba shops rely on selling their trademark. Many of the bigger stores sell other food and drinks as well, like the smoothies my friend loves from Eggettes, or the basil popcorn chicken my friends and I grab from T4U. However, without boba, it is very difficult for businesses to attract customers.
The selling point of all these shops are boba. However, boba is just one of the many toppings these stores offer. One of my favorite toppings is grass jelly. This sweet desert, which originates from China, is an herb jelly, normally served in cold squares on its own or as a topping for other deserts. When made well, it’s very refreshing and slippery, easily sliding up the straw. Some other toppings I like to pair with my tea are jellies. Personally, my favorites are mango and lychee, but there are an abundance of flavors. These are normally small chewy rectangles, so if you miss the chewy texture of boba, here’s the perfect substitute. Another addition I’ve tried is red bean. Admittedly, like grass jelly, it can be hard to find made well. The red bean must be cooked properly to become soft and flavorful. On the flip side, red beans add a unique taste to most tea, and are a fun change from the usual toppings. Some people don’t like red bean, but I love both the taste and texture. As an added bonus, red beans are high in nutritional value. I’ve also seen that popping boba has become quite popular. I tried it once, and decided it wasn’t for me. However, the tiny spheres that burst open in your mouth are quite fun and bring variety to the drink. Like jelly, popping boba comes in different flavors, so you can pick to match the type of tea you order. Another fad I’ve heard about is salted cheese foam and sea salt foam. I’ve never tried either of them, but heard it brings a good balance to an otherwise very sweet drink. It also originates from Taiwan, and is a whipped form of milk and cream cheese. The foam is layered on top of the tea and requires a specific drinking process to get the full experience. A straw would be unable to get both tea and cheese in one sip, so the proper method is to tilt the cup at a 40 degree angle. It sounds quite precise, but I’m sure foam fans would say it’s worth it.
Hopefully, the boba shortage will end quickly, like the rest of the pandemic, and life can return to normal. Even if some shops run out of boba, there are plenty of other changes we can branch out to for our favorite drinks. Who knows, maybe during this boba shortage you’ll find a topping you like even more than boba!
