What is a 3-in-1 bubble tea premix? Milk tea powder explained

The short answer

A 3-in-1 bubble tea premix is a powder that has the tea, the creamer and the sugar already mixed in one pouch. You dissolve it in warm water or milk, pour it over ice and add toppings, and the drink is ready in under two minutes. Cafés use it because every cup tastes the same, whoever makes it. People also search for it as milk tea powder, boba powder or milk tea premix.

What “3-in-1” means

The three are tea, creamer and sugar. In our Classic Milk Tea 3-in-1, the ingredients are sugar, dairy creamer, black tea extract, permitted flavour and an anticaking agent. In our Classic Matcha 3-in-1, matcha powder takes the place of black tea, and in Green Tea Latte 3-in-1 it is green tea extract. The one exception in our range is Mango Cheese Cake 3-in-1, a dessert-style premix that uses mango powder instead of tea. Because all three are in the pouch, you do not brew tea, boil milk with leaves or measure sugar.

A 3-in-1 is a milk-tea base, which is why it is dosed into water or milk rather than brewed.

How to make milk tea from a premix

1. Weigh 15–30 g of premix into a shaker or cup.
2. Add 100 ml of warm water or milk and stir until no powder is left.
3. Pour it over 5–10 ice cubes.
4. Add tea if you like. 10–15 ml of black tea concentrate gives a stronger tea taste. It is optional.
5. Add toppings. 30–40 g of tapioca pearls, popping boba or nata de coco.

Start at 15 g and taste. More premix gives a sweeter, stronger cup. The toppings are separate products: see how to cook tapioca pearls or instant vs regular tapioca pearls.

3-in-1 premix vs brewing tea yourself

Many cafés do both: a premix for speed, plus a splash of brewed tea or tea concentrate for a stronger tea taste. If you prefer to brew, read about the best black tea for milk tea.

3-in-1, flavour premix or fruit premix?

Our boba premix range has three kinds of powder:

• 3-in-1 milk tea and matcha premixes. Tea, creamer and sugar in one pouch. Dissolve in warm water or milk.
• Flavour milk premixes, such as Taro, Chocolate and Cookies & Cream. Sugar, creamer and flavour, dissolved in warm water or milk. Add black tea concentrate if you want a tea taste.
• Fruit premixes, such as Lemon or Mango & Peach. Dissolve 15–30 g in 100 ml of cold water. They are not recommended as hot drinks.

Our 3-in-1 premixes

Each is a 1 kg pouch at ₹1,599 MRP including GST. Mango Cheese Cake has no tea; the others do.

For drinks built on these, see Hong Kong milk tea, Thai milk tea, iced matcha latte and brown sugar boba.

Buying 3-in-1 premix for a café

Every premix is made at our FSSC 22000 certified plant in Hyderabad. The 3-in-1 premixes come in 1 kg pouches, 10 to a case, and keep 12 months sealed. They contain dairy creamer, so they are not dairy-free, and the plant also handles milk solids, nuts and soy.

Cafés buying by the case get 10% off MRP with a GSTIN, and 20% off with free ground shipping on orders of ₹19,999 and above. Want to taste before you order? Use our sampling programme. Opening a new counter? See the Boba Business Package.

Making it at home? A DIY Boba Cup has a single serve of premix and pearls in one cup.