The craze of inventive drinks piled on with buoyant whipped cream and colorful sprinkles consumes the beverage industry. But before buying that caloric rainbow unicorn or crystal ball frappucino, consider a simpler treat. Boba, or bubble, tea continues to please urban enclaves all over the US. This Thai milky tea concoction offers a smooth sip through a straw and surprises with a mouthful of tiny tapioca pearls. But why not take it to the next level? Infusing a refreshing drink like this with marijuana could only make it better. Here’s the low-down on bud boba or how to make weed-infused bubble tea.

The OG Bud Boba

Though bud-infused bubble tea obviously shines as a brilliant idea to potheads and boba fans everywhere— its origin stems from the butt of an April Fool’s Day joke. San Francisco’s Boba Guys tweeted their spin on bud boba, calling it Cannaboba.

But unfortunately, this green drink was only a myth in time for the prank-filled holiday and unavailable to customers. Nonetheless, the creative team at Boba Guys did cook up a single batch for the show BongAppetit.

In time, the dank delicacy might become available to Boba Guys customers where weed is legal, like California. But those frequenting Boba Guys in the state of New York may have to settle for stirring up their own batch weed-infused bubble tea.

Bursting the Bubble on Boba

Boba tea’s signature ingredient tapioca pearls prove essential to making the specialty beverage. These balls can be made at home by boiling water and then adding tapioca starch in a ratio of 1-part water to 2-parts tapioca.

Once the boiling water is added slowly to the starch, the mixture will form a dough. Roll this dough into long snakes and then cut into small sections. Roll these pieces into pearls with your hands.

Finally, the balls are ready to cook. Put these balls back into the pot of boiling water. Then, transition the stove’s heat to medium once the balls float to the surface.

The longer these balls are allowed to simmer, the more they will take on their distinctive translucent look and chewy texture. As they cook, they may fall to the bottom of the pot again, and this is the ideal moment to retrieve them.

Preserve these glossy pearls in honey to maintain their texture and composition as well as to promote a sweeter flavor.

Try seeping them in weed-infused honey, like the specialty honey from Bird and the Bee or Honey Pot, for an extra kick.

But be conscious that bud Boba also relies on weed-infused milk for its base.

Too much work to cook up a vat of tapioca pearls? Many stores on the internet sell bubble tea tapioca balls in a wide variety and assortment.

These balls also can and should soak in the same CBD honey as their at-home equivalents, especially if kept for a while. Try any number of flavors and skip this extra DIY step.

The (Canna)Milky Way

But what’s really going to make bud Boba the special treat everyone wants? To make edibles, it is important to remember that marijuana is fat soluble.

So, in order to effectively infuse milk with pot and absorb higher amounts of THC, it is important to use a type with higher fat content, like whole milk.

Also keep in mind that calculating dosages when making edibles keeps you safe and sane.

Start with around 0.5 to 1.0 grams of pot per quart of whole milk. The weed and milk can simply be added to a steel pot and boiled on the stovetop at a high temperature, stirring almost constantly. But be aware, this method could cause curdling.

Instead, boil a small-medium of water in this same pot first. Then, using a double boiler technique, place a medium-sized steel bowl over the boiling liquid.

Add the milk and weed to this bowl and stir very occasionally to infuse. Keep this bowl simmering for around 3 hours to ensure decarboxylation or heating the marijuana to activate the THC and CBD cannabinoids.

Once the milk is ready, filter through a cheesecloth to reduce the pieces of bud in the liquid. The finished weedy product can be used for more than just weed-infused bubble tea.

It works great in a variety of beverages, like matcha tea lattes or even your pre or post-workout protein shake.

Final Hit: Pouring Together Weed-Infused Bubble Tea

In the end, all that’s left for a DIY bud Boba is bringing all the components together. A simple recipe calls for:

1 packet instant Thai iced tea (flavor of your choosing)

½ cup water

1 cup canna-milk

¼ cup tapioca pearls

Ice

Honey or agave (for sweetener)

Put tapioca pearls at the bottom of a large glass. Add tea packet, water, canna-milk, water, and any desired sweetener to a larger glass and stir or shake to blend.

Finally, fill the glass with the tapioca pearls halfway with the tea mixture. Include ice at this point to cool the beverage. Then, fill the glass rest of the way with the weed-infused bubble tea, and enjoy.

But don’t stop experimenting with bud Boba there. Plenty of recipes from weed and bubble tea enthusiasts continue to emerge, especially in states where weed is legal.

Find your flavor with this higher-level beverage.