Why Is There a Cow on Hong Kong Milk Tea Cups?
From the MolalaCook kitchen · 烘焙手記
Why Is There a Cow on Hong Kong Milk Tea Cups?
茶餐廳奶茶杯點解有隻牛？
Put the cup beside the milk tin and the cow gives the game away. The familiar Black & White design carries the evaporated milk label from the tea counter to the table.
Take a closer look ↓
Read the cup before you take a sip
Look just beneath the rim in the cover photo. The black lettering, the cow in a green field and the strip of red turn up twice: once on the cup, once on the tin behind it. That little bit of packaging is the answer to the question. A visitor who remembers the picture but can’t quite remember the name of the drink has remembered one of its ingredients.
From tin to table 由奶罐到茶杯
What does Black & White have to do with the tea?
Black & White is a brand of full-cream evaporated milk. Its maker, FrieslandCampina, dates its connection with Hong Kong milk tea to the 1940s. That date belongs to the milk’s story; the picture on a cup cannot tell you when that particular cup was made.
There is a lovely reason the crockery is familiar even beyond the cafés. The company has given out milk tea cups at its Milk Tea Month events. The design lives on both sides of the counter, in cafés and in people’s cupboards. Black & White’s brand history.
What makes the tea taste like a cha chaan teng?
The dark brew does the heavy lifting. Tea leaves sit in a cloth filter, and the brewer passes the hot tea through it repeatedly before combining it with evaporated milk. The tea needs enough flavour to come through the dairy. A lovely cup can set the scene, but it takes the brewing to get that taste.
If you’ve seen it called “silk-stocking tea”, look at the stained cloth filter: the nickname comes from its resemblance to a stocking. For a closer look at the technique, see the Hong Kong heritage centre’s account of the brewing method.
Which cup do you remember?
The Classic Set in the first photo has the cow facing you above a red band. In the Chinese Zodiac edition pictured here, a gold dragon takes up that space. Look at the saucer as well as the side of the cup when comparing the two designs. Each of these shop options pairs one handled ceramic cup with its matching saucer.
If it’s the cow you came looking for, choose the Classic cup and saucer. If you remember a dragon, open the Chinese Zodiac edition to see its pattern.
What would you put beside it?
A warm egg tart makes a good tea break: a bite of sweet custard, a sip of strong tea, then the last crumb of pastry. The tart in this photograph comes from the salted-butter Hong Kong egg tart recipe. If you’d rather make something on the hob, try Hong Kong French toast with peanut butter to go with your tea.
✦Is evaporated milk the same as sweetened condensed milk?+
Evaporated milk is concentrated milk without added sugar. Sweetened condensed milk brings its own sweetness and a much thicker texture. Swapping one for the other changes the drink before you add any sugar at the table.
✦Does every Hong Kong café use this cup?+
Cafés choose their own crockery and their own milk. The cow is a recognisable design; you can still have a beautifully brewed cup of Hong Kong milk tea in plain china.
On the tea table
Classic or Zodiac cup and saucer
Compare the two printed ceramic sets shown here.
Stainless steel café cup
An alternative for an iced tea break.
350 ml ceramic cup with lid
A handle-free option if you prefer a covered cup.
Hong Kong egg tart moulds
For baking the tart to serve alongside your tea.
