Cooking and storing tapioca pearls

3 oz. dry tapioca pearls

2 tbsp. sugar

boiling water

Add tapioca pearls and one tablespoon sugar to boiling water in a large bowl.Stir quickly to separate pearls and to dissolve sugar. Let stand at least two hours or thirty minutes more. Check if pearls are squishy on the outside and pasty in the
center. Do not soak any longer since pearls tend to get too mushy.

Drain pearls. Keep the water that it has been soaked in and add remaining sugar to mixture. Boil. Add in soaked pearls and lower heat to medium.

Simmer for a few minutes till center of tapioca balls come out clean. Most check for doneness by sampling the balls every so often.

Cooked tapioca balls are chewy and gooey soft.

Drain pearls and pour in cold water over them to stop them from cooking.

Refrigerate cooked pearls and use by the next day. Some keep the pearls in water but i prefer to just cook them till tender , drain them and store pearls without the water. I try to separate them before using by pouring lukewarm water over it and then draining them.