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Recipe: Milk Tea Panna Cotta
Cook with us. Learn to make Milk Tea Panna Cotta - a delicious, make-in-advance dessert that will simultaneously wow guests and simplify your next dinner party.

Recipe + Photography:
Chef Vicky Tran
for ENSEMBL
Our “Return of the Dinner Party” menu was inspired by memories of past adventures – melded with the places we can be in, now.
Shanghai. A city we’ve visited countless times and the centre of Stackware production. Toronto. The location of our first Canadian retail store.
Chef Vicky Tran took Shanghai-staples and put a Toronto spin on them, transforming foods we feel nostalgic for into something new.
This Milk Tea Panna Cotta transforms the Panna Cotta you might find in Toronto’s Little Italy into a bitter milk tea, reminiscent of the milky drink found in pop-up shops and corner street stalls around Shanghai. Topped with perfectly sweet Tapioca Pearls, there is no mistaking it: this is a new way to enjoy the flavours of Bubble Tea.
Balanced, unexpected, and easy to make the night before.
Milk Tea Panna Cotta with Brown Sugar Tapioca
Yield: 6 x 4 oz ramekins
Prep time: 30 minutes
Cook time: 40 minutes
Gluten Free, Vegetarian
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cup water
- 10 bags black Ceylon tea
- 1 cup 35% cream
- ½ cup evaporated milk
- 3 tablespoon condensed milk
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 8 grams gelatin powder
- 3 tablespoon water ( to bloom the gelatin powder)
- 1 ½ cup tapioca pearls, cooked according to packaged directions, rinsed and drained
- 3 tablespoon brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract


Method
- Bring the 1 ½ cups water to a boil, add in the black Ceylon tea bags, simmer for 5 minutes and then remove from the heat and allow to steep for 10 minutes.
- While the tea is steeping, prepare the gelatin by combining it with the 3 tablespoons of water, mix well and allow to bloom (the gelatin will absorb the water) for at least 10 minutes.
- Strain the tea into a small saucepan, discarding the tea bags, add in the 35 % cream, evaporated milk, condensed milk, kosher salt and heat until just about to boil.
- Incorporate the bloomed gelatin powder, whisk to combine and divide the panna cotta mixture evenly amongst 4-5 oz ramekins. Allow the panna cotta to cool in the ramekins at room temperature before wrapping and then chilling in the fridge overnight.
- The next day, cook the tapioca according to package directions, rinse and drain. In a small saucepan combine the brown sugar and vanilla extract. Cook on medium heat until the sugar has melted then mix in the drained and cooked tapioca pearls off the heat.
- To serve, top each ramekin of panna cotta with approximately 2 tablespoons of the brown sugar tapioca.


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