First things first! Green tea is brewed differently than black tea. Even the nicest green tea will taste terrible if brewed with boiling water (just order a cup of jasmine at Starbucks and you’ll see what I mean.) Green tea requires a lower steeping temperature than black tea (and certainly less than coffee). Consequently, I typically do not order green tea when I am out. Here’s how to brew a nice cup of green tea at home:
Step One: Choose Your Tea and Tea Brewing items
There are an endless variety of green teas out there, so I will charge you with discovering your favorite. If you need a place to get started, my pick is a jasmine scented green tea called Dragon Pearl. Matcha is brewed in a unique way which we will save for another post. You can brew green tea in the same vessel you brew your black tea in, though I find it preferable to have a dedicated teapot. Green tea flavors can be especially delicate and it’s important to make sure there are no residual flavors affecting your brew. To brew a single cup, tea baskets and disposable paper tea bags work well and of course you could use a tea bag (though I wouldn’t). I use a traditional cast iron pot which will become seasoned after using for some time which is why I only ever use it to brew green tea. As with all types of tea, choose a method that allows for the tea leaves to expand so that you get the best flavor.
Step Two: Heat Your Water
Filtered water is a good choice for green tea. Again you are looking to taste the tea and a high mineral content or, heaven forbid, chlorine will alter the flavor. (Btw, please don’t drink chlorinated water, it’s not good for you or your tea. Ask the internet if unsure). Do not use boiling water to brew green tea. The water should be heated to around 170 degrees. I’ve got a kettle that will heat the water a set temperature. If you do not have a way to measure the temperature refer to the section below, “Pour Water Over Tea,” for two work-arounds.
Step Three: Pre-heat Teapot or Teacup
This is optional for green tea, but it can be nice to give a quick swirl of warm water to your teapot or teacup. You’ll do that automatically if you are using the temperature hack below.
Step Four: Add Tea to Vessel
For each 8 oz serving of water, add one heaping teaspoon of loose leaf tea to tea pot or tea basket. An equivalent serving is one tea bag. Increase quantity of tea in accordance to desired servings.
Step Five: Pour Water Over Tea
For the sake of absolute clarity, the water must not be at a rolling boil when you pour it over the tea. This will make the tea bitter. The water is ready to use about 170-175 degrees (each variety of green tea will have slightly different temperature needs – defer to the brewing instructions of your tea when available). If you don’t have a thermometer there are two other ways to assess the temperature:
- Judge the temperature of the water by the size of the bubbles. Cai Xiang, a Chinese politician, calligrapher and author, eloquently described the stages of water boiling back in the 1000’s(!). This blog post has great pictures to illustrate the size you want for most types of green tea – crab eyes.
- Heat the water to boiling, pour the water into a teacup then immediately pour the water from the teacup into your teapot or another teacup (wherever you plan to steep your tea). I learned this hack from the tea tasting room at Harney & Sons. It takes the temperature of the boiling water down just enough for green tea.
However you’ve gotten your water to the right temperature, now is the time to pour it on your tea.
Step Six: Steep Your Tea
Place the cover on your teapot or place a plate on top of your teacup. Wait 1-2 minutes before drinking your tea to allow the full flavor of your tea to develop. You’ll want to experiment to see what steeping length you prefer. Once steeping time is complete, remove your tea basket or tea bag, or if using a teapot, pour yourself a cup 0f tea through a strainer into your cup. Green tea tastes nice when re-steeped again for a second, third, even fourth infusion so feel free to go through the steps again.
Step Seven: Enjoy Your Tea
Green tea tastes best unadorned and when given your attention. Make sure to be aware of your first sip. Notice the temperature and the variety of flavors that are present. Notice the difference in flavor between the first and second steep. Tea drunk in this manner is a ceremony that honors you, the tea, and your relationship. You may not have time to drink a whole pot this way, or even a cup, but surely there is time for one conscious sip? xxoo