Trying to make a perfect cup of tea? Perhaps you're looking to make one without a fancy set or any money down. Well, ancient people did it 5,000 years ago, so can we.
After years of drinking tea, here is a simple truth to steeping perfect tea.
Along with good quality tea leaves and water, all you need to steep perfect tea are steeping time, water amount, and water temperature.
Yes, that's all to it.
In this article, we will dive into the tools, step-by-step guide, and our top tips to make a perfect cup of tea!
What You Need
A good cup of tea can kick-start your early morning, keep you warm when you're out and about, or relax you at night.
You will need the following items to make one for yourself (or others!).
| Required | Preferred |
| Water | Filtered and purified water |
| Tea leaves | Quality loose leaf tea |
| Heating Source | Electric kettle with thermostats |
| Timer | Your phone |
| Filter | French press, strainer, tea infuser |
We recommend using loose leaf tea instead of tea bags. Most tea bags are made with dust/fanning grade tea leaves, which are the left-over from the manufacturing process. They tend to be much bitter and lack of flavors.
Electric kettle with thermostats can help you measure the tea precisely. But, no need to worry. If you don't have one, we will teach you what ancient tea lovers did 5,000 years ago.
Last but not least, let's use a timer to check the steeping time. Over-steeping the tea will actually make your tea bitter. This is the part where your phone could come in handy.
Steeping Guide
Method #1) Bubble check
|
Shrimp eyes (slow simmer) 160F / 71C |
Crab eyes (simmer) 175F / 79C |
|
Fish eyes (rapid simmer) 185F / 85C |
Boiling 212F / 100C |
Method #2) Pour to cool
Pour the boiling water into a cold cup. It should bring down the water temperature about 20F per cup. Repeat this until you get to your desired temperature.
Step 3: Pour the water into the filter/cup and start the timer
| Tea | Time | Temperature |
| Green | 3 minutes | 160 - 185F |
| Oolong | 3 minutes | 185F |
| Black | 3 minutes | 212F |
| Herbal | 5 minutes | 212F |
Step 4: Filter out the tea leaves
Step 5: Enjoy your tea!
Additional Tips
When using the microwave, avoid brewing the tea straight from the microwave. Microwave have cold spot and will not brew tea thoroughly. Instead, try heating the water separately then add it to tea leaves.
To reduce the bitterness, take out the tea leave from over-steeping and avoid squeezing the tea leaves.
Add milk and sugar after steeping.
In Short
To make a perfect cup of tea, you need to monitor water amount, temperature, and steeping time.
Try to use loose leaf tea instead of tea bag to bring out more flavors.
Making tea should be easy and accessible to anyone, Zana Tea offers minimalistic teaware (easy to use/portable) and loose leaf tea with the customized steeping method.