Kopitiam Icon · Hand-Pulled Milk Tea
Teh Tarik
Photo: Azreey / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
The frothy top comes from theatrically pouring the tea between two cups held arm's length apart — the 'pulling' that gives it its name.
Teh tarik is a sweet, milky black tea vigorously poured back and forth between two vessels to build a thick foam and cool it to drinking temperature. It's made fresh at mamak stalls and kopitiams (coffee shops) across Malaysia, often by baristas who perform the pull as street theater.
Why it's made this way: It's widely considered Malaysia's unofficial national drink, born from the country's Indian-Muslim mamak stall culture and now a symbol of everyday multicultural street life.
More from Malaysia
Part of World of Street Food — 690 dishes from 118 countries.
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