Hong Kong Milk Tea

Hong Kong milk tea is a strong, deeply brewed black tea softened with evaporated or condensed milk into a smooth, robust, tan-brown drink — the everyday tea of the city's cha chaan teng diners. Its hallmark is texture: the tea is repeatedly pulled and strained through a cloth bag, so it pours silky and full-bodied, at once bracingly tannic and rounded, sweet and creamy over a bitter backbone.