Improperly prepared tea causes deep regret – said the ancient Chinese sages. Tea requires a special relationship – only so you can get an excellent drink with a bright taste and aroma.
What mistakes in cooking spoil the pleasure of a drink and even undermine a person’s health? Tells MedAboutMe.
Three schools of tea drinking
Japanese art critic, writer Okakura Kakudzo singled out three schools of tea drinking. The first one gave preference to boiled tea. In ancient times, tea leaves and all kinds of additives – mint, cinnamon, ginger and orange peel were cooked together, after which the drink was poured into cups. Today, this tradition is observed in Tibet and Mongolia.
The second school of tea drinking arose in the tenth century, at which time the so-called “whipped tea” became popular. Tea leaves, ground to a powder, were poured with boiling water and whipped with a bamboo panicle. Such tea ceremony is still practiced in Japan.
Approximately from the fifteenth century, tea began to brew as we used to do now – pouring hot water and insisting. And this is the last – the third school of tea drinking, according to the Japanese critic.
The last version of the preparation of tea has become ubiquitous. However, over time, the emergence of new, exquisite varieties of tea and kitchen utensils, there was a completely new way of brewing a drink, where every little thing matters.
Where the tea ceremony is not just a way to enjoy the taste of the drink and pleasant communication, and art – with its rules and laws.
Common mistakes in making tea
If the true master of tea drinking asks the question – how to brew tea correctly, he will tire out with a long story about the boiling point of water, special movements that are used during the fall of tea leaves into the brewer, and many other subtleties that certainly affect the taste of the product, but are so insignificant that “mistakes” can be recognized only by a professional taster.
We’ll tell you about the mistakes that turn tea from a healthy drink into a dangerous potion that it is better not to try.
Mistake 1: Purchase poor quality products
The more expensive the tea, the better the taste? And here not! Products of high quality differ from budgetary not so much taste, as content. In 2013, the publication of the Journal of Toxicology published the results of monitoring 30 different types of tea. Studies have shown that all samples contained a high concentration of lead, and in some cases also aluminum. Both substances increase the likelihood of heart, kidney and reproductive system diseases.
Another study, conducted two years later, and published in the Journal of Food Composition and Analysis, confirmed the available data and supplemented them. It turns out that the most dangerous is a packet of tea with the content of citric acid (that is, tea with the aroma of citrus). In them, the amount of aluminum, cadmium, and lead is 70 times higher than in un-flavored types of tea.
Did you know?
Green tea is considered to be the most useful sort of drink because it has the most polyphenols – powerful antioxidants, valuable for maintaining health.
Mistake 2: Using hard water
To tea leaves could give the drink the whole range of taste and aroma, brew them with water without foreign impurities. Before preparing tea, it is important to pour fresh water into the kettle, you can not use previously boiled.
Due to the chemical characteristics of hard water (calcium, iron and magnesium content), the infusion is obtained in a brownish-black hue and gives an unpleasant metallic taste. Essential oils from tea leaves do not reveal a flavor bouquet, making tea fresh or acquiring an unpleasant astringent aftertaste.
Fact!
According to professional tasters, the best option for making tea is soft bottled water from wells and springs.
Mistake 3: Boiling Water
The ideal temperature of water, which is able to open the entire flavor bouquet, hidden in tea leaves, is called a “white key”. Recognize it is simple: on the surface of water small bubbles form which tears upward. If the water is boiled, it will ruin the tea taste and aroma – tender leaves simply boil in steep boiling water. In addition, with high water temperatures, caffeine is easily released, giving the tea a bitter taste.
Fact!
For each type of tea, there is a temperature of water for brewing. So, black tea will please with a richness of taste at a water temperature of 95-100 ° C, oolong tea – 87-94 ° C, green tea will open at a temperature of 71-80 C, white tea – 68-74 ° C, puer – 97-100 ° C C, and herbal – 100 ° C.
Mistake 4: Incorrect brewing time
Ideally, brew tea leaves should be immediately after they put them in the kettle. Some tasters advise doing this in two steps. First, in a circular motion, fill the teapot with a third, simultaneously warming the walls of the dishes, letting the leaves swell. Then add water to the top. But all this is not important! It is much more important how long the tea leaves will languish in the teapot.
Black tea is brewed 3-5 minutes, and green 2-3 minutes. If the temperature is colder than the optimum, the infusion time can be increased. Immediately after the tea is brewed, the raw materials must be removed, otherwise, the tea will turn out to be too strong and bitter.
Caution!
The use of hot tea increases the risk of esophageal cancer and exacerbation of chronic skin diseases (eg, rosacea). From hot drinks it is also worth giving up to people suffering from nosebleeds – such recommendations are given by the East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust.
Mistake 5: Using kitchen appliances
Incorrect dishes can kill the taste of even an exquisite tea. It is best to brew raw materials in a teapot made of porcelain, faience, heat-resistant glass or clay. But consider that the Isin clay absorbs odors. If it brews different types of tea, the fragrance will mix. For example, a rich black Ceylon tea will spoil the flavor of choice green tea if brewed immediately after black.
On the cover of the teapot, there must necessarily be a hole in order for the tea to “breathe”, otherwise, its taste will deteriorate.
Warm water for brewing tea is best on the stove, and not in an electric kettle. The fact is that in the latter the temperature indicator is only approximate, as a result – water often boils over, which can spoil the taste of the drink.
Fact!
How much to take tea leaves?
For each type of tea leaves, there are their proportions, they are usually indicated on the packaging. The average formula looks like this: on 200 ml of water 3 g of tea leaves, which is approximately equal to a teaspoonful. Puerta always puts twice as much – that is, 6 g.
Mistake 6: Multiple brewing
Quality teas can be brewed several times. To a greater extent, this is important for green tea and oolong tea. Rare black tea can withstand more than two infusions.
There are rules for re-brewing: you can do this only within the first 15 minutes after the first brew. At the bottom of the teapot should remain a liquid that barely covers the tea leaves. It is to it that water is added to the top of the teapot.
It should be borne in mind that the water for re-brewing should be hotter than normal – for better extraction of active substances. And to insist the drink in this case also needs longer.
Did you know?
The study, published in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, showed that three cups of black tea a day reduce the likelihood of heart disease. However, still do not strongly lean on your favorite drink. A safe dose of tea a day in all respects is one liter.
Instead of concluding
In the East, it is believed that the taste of cooked tea depends on the mood of the person who prepares it, as well as the degree of its concentration. “Tea is a work of art that requires the hand of a master.”
Therefore, drink tea, when you really want it and only the one to which the soul lies. And it will certainly turn out delicious and fragrant!
Expert’s comment: Jamil Atabieva, nutritional nutritionist, obstetrician-gynecologist, certified psychologist; the world champion in karate
Tea is a traditional drink that is daily and repeatedly present on the table.
The Kazakhs say “You do not drink tea, where do you get the strength?”.
But in different cultures, there are different methods of brewing tea. Somewhere more popular is black, somewhere green tea, somewhere tea with milk, tea with salt, sweet tea. There are countries where there are special tea drinking rituals – Japan, China, England, where tea has always been given special attention.
Few people know that black and green tea is made from a single plant. Only the method/process of fermentation differs. Black tea undergoes more manipulations/treatments, and that is why the beneficial properties in green tea are greater.
What is in the tea? Theophylline, which dilates the blood vessels, improves blood circulation, normalizes the level of bad cholesterol in the blood, it relaxes the musculature of the bronchi and has a diuretic effect. Caffeine is a natural energy. Essential oils and tannin, removing heavy metals from the body, as well as antioxidants, helping to clean the vessels of cholesterol plaques.
Green tea clears the body of toxins, helps the work of the stomach, intestines, kidneys, has a bactericidal effect, helps to normalize digestion. Reduces the risk of oncology, strengthens blood vessels, is useful in losing weight.
But there are tea and minuses. Green tea interferes with the absorption of folic acid and contains caffeine, which is why, during pregnancy, it should be used in moderation and not drink strong infusion. In addition, green tea flushes magnesium and calcium from the body. Tannin should be avoided with peptic ulcer of the stomach and duodenum. Also, any tea is not recommended for hypertension.
The stronger the tea – black and green, the higher the risk of gout and kidney stones. Due to taurine. Drinking tea is not recommended for glaucoma (intraocular pressure). The strong infusion should not be taken before bedtime, as it increases excitability.
Remember: do not drink very hot tea (hot drinks), because they form microcracks on internal organs and burns, which increases the risk of oncology. And do not brew tea with steep boiling water, it will reduce the beneficial properties of the drink.
Method of brewing black and green are different. Green tea should be brewed in hot water, which will not exceed 100 ° C – from 70 to 90 ° C. You need to insist longer, it can be brewed several times, but this is not recommended with black tea. Welding time is 2-5 minutes for black tea and 8-10 minutes for green tea. One should be careful: if you brew tea too hard, the level of caffeine in it can exceed the level of caffeine in coffee.
The most useful – herbal tea, is a healing drink that preserves the beneficial properties of herbs, vitamins, antioxidants. In this case, a complete lack of caffeine. But here you need to take into account the individual reaction, possible intolerance/allergy. The most popular herbal tea is chamomile, it has a soothing effect, lowers blood sugar levels. Such tea is recommended for colds, for rinsing the mouth. Melissa tea reduces anxiety. Mint tea helps with nausea, but they should not get carried away by nursing mothers, as it reduces lactation.
One of the most popular and “trendy” now teas is “Matcha tea”, it is very rich in antioxidants, and “Milk Oolong” – which helps to lose weight, improve the skin condition and lower the level of cholesterol in the blood, does not lag behind.
Can I drink tea with milk? This is a controversial issue. On the one hand, milk neutralizes the effect of tea on blood vessels, that is, neutralizes the harm caused by caffeine, and on the other hand, many adults have lactose deficiency, in which milk must be excluded from their diet. Moreover, the catechin, useful in tea, begins to disintegrate from the effect of casein contained in milk.
Expert’s comment
Useful properties of tea are known since antiquity. In many countries, tea ceremonies have emerged, related to the studied useful properties of this drink. Tea contains useful biologically active substances and antioxidants, vitamins B1, B2, P, PP, essential oils, mineral salts, tannin, caffeine. The drink has a tonic and invigorating effect. However, to drink tea liters is not necessary – from an overabundance of tannins in the body the balance of iron can break down – it is better to limit 4 cups a day.
Now the choice of tea is so diverse that it must be understood that:
- Cold tea sold in bottles is not tea, but a drink consisting of dyes and flavor enhancers;
- The most useful tea – leaf;
- The lowest quality – tea in bags, in which tea dust accumulated after processing the sheet is collected in the production;
- To make tea it is necessary for once and to drink only fresh;
- Green tea is a natural antioxidant, regulates cholesterol levels, prevents thrombosis, has a diuretic effect;
- Black tea has an antitoxic effect, improves memory and vision;
- Tea with honey and lemon or with raspberry jam – the best grandmother’s recipe for a cold;
- Herbal tea has medicinal properties;
- Tea with milk – an excellent tool for weight loss;
- Tea with ginger and sea-buckthorn strengthens immunity;
- Berry teas also have a restorative effect;
- Cold tea with ice will perfectly quench your thirst during the heat.
Expert’s comment
Anna Sivachenko, wellness coach, nutrition expert:
The most useful tea is green, of course. But this is about tea, the leaves of a tea bush. Black tea, white and various oolongs are also made from it. But it is the green that undergoes the least fermentation, therefore contains more useful substances than other teas.
Thanks to tea catechins, which have antioxidant properties, green tea protects against cancer. Primarily, from prostate cancer and breast cancer – the most common cancer in the world in men and women, respectively.
Together, caffeine and catechins stimulate immunity, reduce the risk of heart disease and type 2 diabetes. In addition, according to research, green tea is effective in combating obesity and helps burn an additional 75-100 kcal.
In a day it is useful to drink three to five cups of green tea. But you need to remember about caffeine, the excess of which leads to disturbances in sleep, anxiety, and headaches. According to a survey of 400 studies, for a healthy adult, a safe dose is 400 mg of caffeine. And in the middle circle of green tea about 30 mg.
Also, people with iron deficiency need to be more careful, since large doses of catechins prevent the absorption of iron from food. In this case, you do not need to drink green tea while eating, and best of all an hour after. It is necessary to remember this for women during menstruation and pregnancy, for children.
Such famous types of tea as Te Guanyin and Da Hong Pao belong to the class of oolong tea – half-fermented teas, occupying an intermediate position between green and black teas.
Of the green, the most famous Chinese variety is lunging. Still, it is possible to allocate bilochun and maofen. A good option – teas with the addition of jasmine flowers. But you need to be careful, as in ordinary supermarkets jasmine teas are flavored artificially and the tea itself is of poor quality. Advantage should be given to leaf tea, not packets.
Separately it is necessary to say about herbal teas. This, of course, is not a tea in the strict sense of the word, since it consists of dried fruit, flowers and herbs.
Karkade, made from flowers of the Sudanese rose, in addition to the unique taste also has medicinal properties. Helps reduce blood pressure and antiviral effects.
Its soothing effect is known for chamomile, which also helps to solve problems with falling asleep and on the whole normalizes sleep. It is enough to drink a decoction of chamomile before going to bed for two weeks to improve the quality of sleep and reduce the symptoms of depression. Chamomile also has antibacterial, anti-inflammatory and hepatoprotective effects. This is the best option for an evening tea party.
To maintain the health of the digestive system, mint tea is recommended, it has antioxidant, antitumor, antibacterial and antiviral effects. This is an excellent additive to paired beverages. For example, black or green tea.
Another useful addition to tea is fresh ginger. It is a good source of antioxidants that help fight inflammation and stimulate immunity. As an anti-inflammatory and anesthetic, ginger is also effective as the drug ibuprofen.
You can not go past a lemon – one of the most popular and useful additives to tea. It is an excellent source of vitamin C, which we can only get from the outside since our body does not produce it. Among other things, this vitamin is involved in the synthesis of collagen, which provides elasticity and elasticity of the skin.
