How to enjoy tea like a pro?

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A delicious cup of tea can relieve the cold of winter, energize the body during the day or help relax at night. To make tea, users need to steep the tea in hot water for a certain amount of time. Brewing tea is the process that helps to extract the flavors and helps the healthy compounds to be released into the water.

1. Fresh tea or herbal tea

Fresh teas harvested from the Camellia sinensis tea tree, including black, green, oolong and white teas. The flavor, color, and antioxidant composition of these teas are different, depending on the process of drying the tea leaves before use. These fresh teas are sold as filter bags, dried packs or whole leaves.
Herbal teas or Tisanes are not considered fresh tea. They are usually injected with extracts from the stems, leaves, and roots of floral herbs such as mint, hibiscus, chamomile, turmeric, or ginger. This tea is usually sold as a dry tea.
The brewing technique for both teas is the same, but the amount of tea needed to brew one cup fluctuates depending on whether the ingredients are fresh or dry. The steeping time and water temperature required to best extract the tea's flavor also vary widely.

2. Use fresh ingredients

Some people make their own herbal teas from fresh ingredients, such as ginger or turmeric. For the best flavor of these teas, they should be used immediately after purchase or after harvesting.
Dried tea leaves usually have a long shelf life when they are stored in an airtight, dry container and out of direct light. However, prolonged storage time can negatively affect the quality, taste and aroma of the tea. The quality of the water used to brew the tea also affects the taste. Tap water is often high in minerals and has been treated with chlorine that can cause unpleasant flavors, so ideally users should use clean, cold, and filtered water to make tea.

3. Time and temperature factors

To brew the tea, pour hot water over the ingredients and let them rest for a few minutes. The brewing process often varies between the types of tea used, but here are some general guidelines that should apply to most teas.
Long brewing time and too hot temperature are not always good. Studies show that green tea brewed this way achieves lower levels of color, flavor, and aroma.
Conversely, a tea brewing time that is too short may not be able to extract enough flavor and antioxidants from the tea. Some tests have shown that the average time for tea to release its full flavor and nutrients ranges from 6 to 8 minutes.
It should be noted that, the longer the brewing time, the higher the amount of caffeine secreted. A 178ml cup of black tea contains 35mg of caffeine, while a similar serving of green tea contains only 21mg.

4. Brew hot tea and brew cold tea

4.1 Brewing Hot Tea Brewing tea with hot water is the fastest way to a good cup of tea, here are some guidelines for brewing times and temperatures for each.

4.2 Cold brewing If the need is for iced tea, cold brewing is the best way to reduce the bitterness of the tea, increase the flavor, and ensure a high level of antioxidants. However, brewing cold tea takes longer, the colder the water, the longer it takes to brew, up to 12 hours.
One study found that steeping tea at 4 degrees Celsius for 12 hours helps tea to fully extract its flavor and retain more polyphenol antioxidants than steeping for 3 minutes and 4 minutes in hot water. .
Incubating tea with hot water for 3 to 5 minutes and then immediately giving ice can produce the same product as 12 hours of cold brewing. This is a good solution for those who are busy but still want a good cup of tea.

5. Tools and techniques for brewing tea with some notes

Although there are special tools to help brew tea, simple traditional ways can still produce a delicious product.
To start the brewing process, the user needs a teacup, tea bag and kettle. Place the tea bag in the tea cup. Fill the kettle with clean, cold filtered water then bring to a boil. Next, pour water over the tea bag in the teacup. Covering the teacup with a saucer is optional, but doing so will help retain more of the aroma. Stew the tea for about 5 minutes on average.
For loose tea leaves that are not in the filter bag, the user needs a metal tea ball or special set to hold the leaves. Then measure out 1 teaspoon of dried tea leaves or 1 tablespoon of fresh ingredients for each 177 to 237ml serving. Place the tea leaves in a tea ball or special tool and steep in a cup of hot water for the appropriate amount of time for each type of tea.
Using loose tea leaves requires a few more tools to brew tea, but in return, users have more options than packaged tea, allowing many tea flavors to be combined.
For cold brew tea, users can process a large portion to save brewing time. For a 177ml pot, pour 1 teaspoon of tea leaves or 1 tea bag with cold water. Brew the tea for an average of 12 hours before enjoying.

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Healthline.com Reference Article