The teapot has been around for as long as we can remember, and even now, it is considered one of the most important utensils.
A good teapot can make a difference in the flavour and preservation of the properties of tea.
Although the preparation of tea is considered quite simple, there are some techniques involved.
Whether it is a traditional ceramic teapot, a sleek glass teapot, or a purple clay pot, the correct use of a teapot can maximise the experience each time you sit down to have a cuppa.
Introducing a teapot into your routine can be an amazing change, because it gives the tea time to properly infuse into the water, improving the taste.
In this article, we will talk you through the process of brewing your tea using a teapot.
How Much Tea Should You Use Per Person?
You should use one tea bag per cup or 1 teaspoon of loose-leaf tea per cup.
Depending on the strength of the tea you prefer, you decide how long you would like to brew it and the amount you would like to put into the cup.
Steep time is one of the most important things to nail when it comes to brewing up a delicious, balanced cup of tea.
Steep for too long, and you’ll be left with an unpleasantly strong taste. Steep the tea for too little, you’ll have a weak, flavourless cup of tea.
Step-by-Step to Brewing Tea in a Teapot
If they have been used for that long, they must be good.
Below we have listed a number of steps to hopefully improve your tea ritual and allow you to create your ideal cup of tea.
Clean The Teapot
New or old, every teapot needs to be cleaned as this guarantees a hygienic brewing process.
To clean a brand-new teapot, submerge it in warm water for about 15-20 minutes, this will remove any dust or impurities that may still be there from the manufacturing process.
Lastly, rinse with clean water, carefully rinsing the pot inside and out.
To clean an old teapot, rinse the inside with warm water to remove any tea scale and residual leaves.
Then gently use a clean cloth to wipe the inside, removing any leftover stains.
Heat The Pot
Before starting your process, pour boiling water into the teapot, swirl it around gently for a few seconds and then pour it out to ensure that the inside is also warmed up.
The reasoning behind doing this is to enhance the aroma of the tea leaves and prevent the quality of the tea broth from being affected by the drastic temperature difference.
Heat Water
We highly encourage you to only boil your water, do not microwave it.
Microwaving your water results in uneven heating which will affect the result.
Water temperature has a large impact on the infusion quality so this step is crucial to get right.
It can help to have a tea thermometer or a digital thermometer to brew at the perfect temperature.
- White teas: brewing time 3+ minutes at 85°C
- Green teas: brewing time 2+ minutes at 79° – 93°C
- Black teas: brewing time 3+ minutes at 100°C
- Oolong teas: brewing time 2+ minutes at 85 °C
- Herbal teas: brewing time 3+ minutes at 100 °C
Infusing & Preparing Tea Leaves
The main purpose of infusing tea is to let your leaves expand fully so that the nutrients present in the tea can be infused into the water.
There are many methods for infusing tea, as well as hundreds of different teas to accompany it.
No matter the method you use, if executed properly, you will receive high-quality results.
The quality of the loose-leaf tea can impact the depth of flavour and aromas, so try and find high-quality teas like the ones on our online shop.
Tea Bags
Teabags are the easiest way to infuse tea. They’re cheap, convenient, and easily disposable.
If you are using this method, steep the tea for the amount of time mentioned.
Make sure to look out for these high-quality tea bags;
- Loose leaf pyramid-shaped bags
- Oversized bags
- Silk bags
- Unbleached cotton bags
Good-quality tea bags are usually made from high-quality tea leaves that are carefully processed to preserve their flavour and aroma.
In contrast to this, cheaper brands may use lower-quality tea leaves mixed with other ingredients to cut costs.
This can result in a less complex flavour.
Strainers
If you are using this method, filler your infuser with your tea of choice.
Place it in the teapot and top with boiling water. Allow the tea to release its flavours into the teapot.
There are a variety of strainers all over the world, which means you have the ability to try and find one that suits your preferences.
There are about 200 basic forms of teapots. This means that there will be strainers to suit each one, such as glass pots that have metal basket strainers.
In some countries, the leaves are left to infuse in a separate pot that has water in it and then poured into individual cups using a strainer.
Paper Tea Filter
If you would like to try out using a paper tea filter, keep in mind the recommended amount of tea per cup, which usually varies between 2 and 4 grams depending on the type.
You put your leaves in and then fold the bag over. Then, place it in hot water, which can filter through the bag freely without letting the leaves escape.
The advantage of using this method is that you can adjust how much tea is in the filter, meaning you can use more or less, depending on the amount you’d like.
Brewing Steps
Monitor the brewing time, according to the time we have previously mentioned.
Once the time is up, remove the leaves from the teapot.
For some fermented teas, you can first rinse the tea leaves with a small amount of boiling water and pour it out quickly to remove any impurities from the leaves.
Adding Lemon, Sugar, or Milk
If you add lemon and sugar to your tea, add the sugar first, since the citric acid from the lemon will prevent the sugar from dissolving.
It is common for milk to be used in full-bodied teas such as Indian and Ceylon teas.
We recommend pouring your milk first, this will reduce bitterness.
Pouring Tea
Finally, you’re ready to pour.
After you have finished brewing your tea, pour carefully into each cup ensuring you don’t overfill, and enjoy!
Making Tea a Ritual to Enjoy More
Creating a time out of the day to sit back and relax with a teapot full of tea can do wonders for the mind.
Tea rituals encourage us to slow down, be fully present and appreciate the current moment.
By taking the time out of the day to prepare and savour a teapot of tea, we shift our attention away from the stress of life.
In the act of steeping tea, a teapot within a ritual teaches us patience.
If you are patient enough with your steeping and monitor it correctly, you will receive the outcome taste you wanted.
If you attempt to rush, the taste will be affected.
Why You Should Use High-quality Tea Leaves
If you decide to start drinking higher-quality leaves, there are a lot of benefits to this.
Higher quality leaves are less processed, preserving more antioxidants which are great for health.
Low-grade tea may be cheaper, but if you look deeper into the benefits of higher-quality tea, you will begin to realise it may not be worth the few pennies you’re saving.
Higher quality teas are grown in richer soil, without the use of chemical pesticides or fertilisers, and are also harvested from the top part of the plant.
All of these factors will result in a better-tasting tea, as well as do wonders for your body.
Get Started On Brewing With Leaf Tea Shop
Understanding the process of using a teapot can be quite tricky, so we hope that this article has helped you with this process.
Here at Leaf Tea Shop, we stock a wide selection of loose-leaf teas, including our very own teapot with a built-in infuser.
If you’d like to take a deeper look into the products we offer, visit our online tea store to buy high-quality teas.
