Nov 13, 2008

Did You Know...

...that when you steep tea you're supposed to cover it? Apparently this is to prevent the essential oils from evaporating. And apparently the essential oils are where all the really great flavor and nutritional benefits come from, so it's reasonable to not want them to evaporate.

I'm not a huge tea person, but lately I've been drinking peppermint tea for its tummy-soothing effects and sugar free, yet minty fresh flavor. After I read about covering the tea during steeping I gave it a shot, and ZING--yummy! It was, in fact quite a bit more minty and refreshing than before. So now I am a huge fan of covering the steeping tea...
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9 comments:

  1. Anonymous11/13/2008

    I did not know that! And I'm a HUGE tea drinker!

    Do you steep it in a cup, or in a teapot?

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  2. Skerrib11/13/2008

    In a cup...I don't even own a teapot!

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  3. Anonymous11/13/2008

    Neither do I; I was wondering if I needed to buy one. ;^)

    Do you just cover the cup with a saucer or something while it's steeping?

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  4. linda t11/13/2008

    I just read today about the benefits of drinking black tea... so I will for sure cover when I am steeping my tea.
    Don't you just love that about the blogging community? All the things we are learning from each other!!
    Thanks!

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  5. Bee11/13/2008

    I didn't know that, either.

    I wonder if this is the reason for my french press coffee lid. hmmm.

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  6. Skerrib11/13/2008

    dsilkotch, thus far I've just used a folded paper towel. I'm thinking a coaster or something might work well...

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  7. Anonymous11/13/2008

    Thanks for the tip -- I have some of those teapot shaped teabag holders -- one of those would cover the cup nicely.

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  8. Anonymous11/15/2008

    I kept meaning to come back and tell you that this really works and thank you for posting it, but every time the thought came to me it was immediately followed by an urge to go fix myself a nice cup of covered tea and then I'd get all distracted by my yummy yummy hot herbal beverage....

    But! I have finally returned, tea in hand, to thank you. This was a great bit of info. The blogoshpere is truly a marvelous thing.

    Thanks! :^)

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  9. John Shore11/20/2008

    The depth of your worldly knowledge continues to astound all who are fortunate enough to benefit from it.

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