If you keep adding water to your teapot, when will the tea leaves run out?!
If you keep adding water to your teapot, when will the tea leaves run out?
I put about a big table spoon in to steep. I get ten cups but it still seem strong, so why should I throw it away? Can I use it two day?
What about Pu erh tea? Can I just keep adding water for a week?
Answers:
You are breing your tea TOO LONG and TOO HOT and ruining it. Basically you are ruining the tea in the first place and diluting it to try and fix the problem! Here are some guidelines for how to make tea!
How long do I steep (or brew) the tea?
This can vary significantly from tea to tea, but there are rules of thumb. In general a black tea needs to brew 3-5 minutes for best flavor. They will often get bitter if you let them brew more than 6 or 7 minutes. Green teas often need only 1 minute, but 2-3 minutes is not unusual. Oolongs typically need 2-3 minutes. Herbals need 5-10 minutes, and they generally don't get bitter, so you can let them brew as long as you like. In general, finely cut teas, whether black, green, or herbal, require shorter brewing times than large leaf teas.
Why does green tea always taste bitter to me?
You may be brewing it too long or using water that is too hot. Green teas, as well as oolongs and white teas, are more sensitive than blacks and herbals, and boiling-hot water can scald the leaves. Water temperature should be between 160-180 degrees F (boiling is 212 degrees F at sea level, 202 degrees at 5000 feet). Also try a shorter brew time. Taste your green tea at one minute intervals, starting at one minute, to find out where you like it best. Good quality green tea should never be bitter when brewed properly.
10 cups out of a table spoon of tea? I suggest you try a mild white tea. Black tea is much stronger than white tea. You should not keep adding water and letting the tea sit. Bacteria will begin to grow and you'll probably get sick.
it will do a whole lot of nothing if you just keep adding water. next time, try a teaspoon instead of a tablespoon, if it's a naturally strong tea it will be better with a smaller amount of leaves.
usually a tea is a very unefficient way to get out the good things out of that specific plant/herb. Usually DNA and vitamins decompose tehir structure over 60-70 degrees Celsius (the water is boiling at 100 degrees Celsius) and all those fine Aminoacids taht could help you in a specific desease are ruined while boiling. effects are just arround 5%.
Now if u take a tea just 4 fun then it doesn't really matters how many times you boil the water with the same leaves.
But if u r trying to cure urself in a naturalistic way with medicine herbs, then it's better to try to hold the pure, unboiled, untreated herb under your tongue for 10-15 mins then to swallow the herbs. In this way u r getting upto 80% active substances out of that herb.
What is your purpose?
If you want the anti-oxidants from the tea, you have 85% of them out of the tea leaves and into the water within 5 minutes. And after 8 hours, the anti-oxidants in the brewed tea are gone.
Reusing the tea leaves more than 3-4 times only gives you bitter chemicals, no health or taste benefits. I would not do that unless in a position of extreme scarcity. Fresh tea is inexpensive.
Follow directions from tea retailers and maybe add one more infusion if you enjoy it, but if you want health benefits from the tea, stick with freshly made tea daily.
try adding milk!
first, you may be getting tea flavor out of reused leaves but you are also getting all the tannins and other compounds that cause astringency. second, letting wet tea leaves lay around is an easy and sure fire way to invite mold, wild yeast, bacteria and airborne virus's into your system. not to mention that once wet they will start to rot.