A massive amount of tea waste was generated in tea processing. In order to fully utilize tea waste, tea waste microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) was used as stabilizer without any other treatment to fabricate Pickering emulsion. Emulsion was produced by high pressure homogenization and characterized in terms of physicochemical parameters, morphologies and stabilities. High MCC concentration, high pH, low oil-water ratio and low ionic strength were benefited for emulsion stability. Pickering emulsions stabilized by MCC were stable for 42 days with the MCC concentration of 1.00% and 2.00%, oil-water ratio of 1:9, pH of 7.0 and ionic strength of 0 mM. Encapsulation in Pickering emulsion stabilized by MCC enhanced the stability of lycopene against photodegradation and thermal degradation, and high concentration of MCC promoted protection. Lycopene loaded in Pickering emulsion showed high stability and bioaccessibility during simulated digestion in vitro. Tea waste MCC could be used to prepare low fat and low salt Pickering emulsions, and provided perspective on high value-added utilization of tea waste.