Grass Jelly Drink

Black grass jelly (xiāncǎo, immortality grass) — the Chinese herbal remedy for summer heat, Taiwan's bubble tea culture turning it into a commercial drink category.

Grass Jelly Drink is prepared from the Platostoma palustre plant — a herbaceous annual in the mint family (Lamiaceae) native to tropical and subtropical Asia, known in Chinese as xiāncǎo (仙草) meaning immortality grass or divine herb — whose stems and leaves are dried, boiled, and combined with starch to produce the characteristic dark, slightly bitter jelly used in the drink. The plant's association with cooling and detoxifying properties in traditional Chinese medicine gave it the immortality name, and its consumption is specifically recommended in hot summer months as a remedy for heat-related illness. The jelly-making process involves extended simmering of the dried plant material, straining the liquid, and mixing with tapioca starch or rice starch before allowing it to cool and set into a firm, dark block that is then cut or shaved into the drink. The drink originated in southern China — particularly in Fujian, Guangdong, and Taiwan — before spreading through Southeast Asian communities as Chinese migration brought the preparation to Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, and beyond. In Taiwan, grass jelly drinks became a commercial category of their own, sold bottled and in tea shops as xiāncǎo chá (grass jelly tea) and combined with milk tea, fruit syrups, and tapioca pearls in the elaborate drink formats characteristic of Taiwanese bubble tea culture.