How to make a 'proper' cup of tea!

It is a well-known fact that since the Americans tried to make tea in Boston Harbor, using harbour water, they have had a hard time making a 'proper' cup of tea!

As a 'proper' Englishwoman, I will instruct those of you (especially all my friends in the Boston area) that wish to learn, how to make a 'proper' cup of tea the English way.

You will need

A kettle (no microwaves, please)
A proper tea pot (with more than one hole inside the spout!)
A tea cosy, to keep the tea pot warm (which can also warm your hands on a cold day)
Loose tea, or tea bags (tea bags with no tags, strings or outer wrappings)
A tea strainer if you use loose tea. I don't use mine much any more now that I have found the round tea bags that don't have the excessive outer wrappings, string and staples!

Step 1: Boil the water

Boil the water in the kettle. THE WATER MUST BE BOILING!
Take your 'proper' tea pot (one which has several holes inside the spout) to the kettle and put a small amount of boiling water into it. Replace the lid.

Empty out the hot water from the tea pot. This is called 'warming the pot' and is absolutely essential. You cannot make a nice cup of tea in a cold pot.

Comments

[postmaan paat]

A few points that you need to be aware of in making a proper cup of tea.

The water must not be reboiled before it is poured into the teapot. The process is a chemical reaction which requires oxygen in the water and reboiled water does not have this in sufficient quantity.

Being a chemical reaction over time the amount of time for brewing is essential. On pouring the water onto the tea leaves caffeine will be produced which gives the feel good factor. But after about 3 mins tannin starts to be produced which gives the bitter taste of stewed tea. So for best tea a brewing time of between 3 and 4 mins is optimal.

It is irrelevant as to whether the milk should be put in before or after the tea but it was considered common to put the milk in first and posh to put the milk in after. I drink my tea without milk anyway.

Hope that this helps with your proper cup of tea.

[KittyF]

Does a british cup REQUIRE milk? I've never liked milk in my tea.

[KittyF]

Grandpa always had Grandma make his with a spoonful for each cup and one for the pot. He was from south of London. Wonder if he'd be a lost breed if I'd ever get over there. LOL

[frenchie16]

If I have no tea cozy, will a hat work?

[praise_song]

I just posted my very first instructable ... "How to make a tea cosy" ... check it out:
http://www.instructables.com/id/Making-a-Tea-Cosy-also-spelled-cozy/?ALLSTEPS

[stinkymum]

a hat would work, but you would not have a hole for the spout or handle - but could take the hat off the teapot before you pour the tea!

[frenchie16]

Oops. Like caitlinsdad, I have mis-spelled cosy. Sorry!

[harry_osullivan]

If it is Earl Grey Tea, then the correct way of serving is with NO milk and a slice of Lemon to taste

[stinkymum]

Absolutely correct - if you like Earl Grey

[Rjdsmith]

I like Grey and realize that no milk is nessicary but like it with a bit of milk.

[praise_song]

I'm an avid tea drinker. I prefer Earl Grey over all other teas ... and I drink it with a small splash of milk, and a 1/2 tsp. of sugar (or agavé nectar). There really are no "rights" nor "wrongs" ... it's all dependent on YOUR tastebuds! :o)
No lemon in any hot tea, and some hot teas don't need any milk or anything in them ... I only take lemon in a big glass of iced tea! To each his own, right?

[doomsdayltd]

one can never go wrong with a cup of tea!

[starfleet4u2]

It has been a couple of years since you wrote this, but I enjoyed the instruction immensely! Bravo!

[hazode]

Good instructable, but I much prefer making my tea the basic "half arsed" way. Bag in cup, add sugar, add boiling water, stir, and milk, stir, remove bag, stir, drink!

[redhed60]

Ah, tea!  Is there any more comforting and companiable beverage in the world?  I already knew how to make a "proper" cup of tea (thanks, Pax Lodge Staff!), but I thoroughly enjoyed your entertaining tea instructable. 

I have a tea cosy in the works, but where did I put all those souvenir tea towels I brought back from the UK?

[rajeswari.arun]

Hi,
I just made tea according to your instructions.(I didnt have a proper tea pot,so i used a clean glass jar.But i have ordered  my tea pot already!) It was the most wonderful cup of tea i have ever had! Took me back to childhood when there used to be a whole flask full of sweet smelling tea all day round in my house ...Thank you so much for passing on this much needed information.My husband and i are "tea-nuts" ,so this was extremely helpful.
Thanks again

[dinosaurus]

You forgot one thing. The best tea is brewed with soft water. Water in the North of England is soft - great for brewing tea. And water in the South is hard - best for brewing beer. Apparently... Not quite sure what kind of water is in America though.

[potrocks420]

here in the back woods of Oklahoma we have nothing but hard water...went outta state once, and after i took a shower i felt all slimy like cause the soft water

[stinkymum]

Water where I am on Long Island is softish - where I am staying in England at the moment is hard - but I bought the special Yorkshire tea for hard water! A new one on me, but delish!

[alexhalford]

I will start by mentioning that I very much enjoyed your instructable. However, I have a slight quibble with it; one that I would not have brought up had I not noticed Caitlindad's care in spelling the word "cosy" with an "s", rather than with a "z". In reference to step two, the word "emphasise" is, in England, more correctly spelt with an "s" rather than with a "z".
Pedantic, I know, but since this is proper English tea, I thought I ought to mention.
Otherwise, a very informative instructable.

[stickmop]

I forgot where I read it (not Douglas Adams I don't think), but the suggestion was not to cover the tea in the pot, either with the lid or a cozy. This lets the tea breathe while it's steeping. I've tried it both ways and I think my Red Rose black tea tastes better this way. After my first cup, I'll keep the rest warm with a towel wrapped around the pot.

[lilpepsikraker]

I make tea and let it steep overnight. MMMM strong tea! 2 Luzianne and a Constant Comment with a cuppa sugar makes a gallon. And damned it's strong!

[15zhangfra]

heres chinese tea, get loose tea, break it off the cake of tea, stick it in hot water, steep for 10 minutes, let cool a bit, drink, repeat

[capn_midnight]

Is there an instructable for teaching the British how to make coffee? Cuz guys, ya kinda need it :)

[Bigev]

I've always puzzled over the British tea thing. Since I'm from America, the only tea I've had is the put-teabag-in-mug, pour-in-hot-water junk. It's pretty gross. Unfortunately I also dislike the taste of coffee and hot chocolate, so my experience in hot drinks has been limited to warm milk. But that is only good at about three AM after a fitful sleep. Seeing this, really makes me want to try a cup of English tea. But I have no supplies. Oh well...

[aetherwolf]

I must like mine strong too, because always do one spoonful per cup and one spoon "for the pot"

[isurudikkumbura]

Thanks for giving this

[isurudikkumbura]

Very gradual Thanks for giving this

[rwctea]

love it - thanks!!!

[DELETED_coco_baby]

(removed by author or community request)

[stinkymum]

Yes, the kettle is where you boil the water and the pot is where you actually brew the tea. I've spotted the Indian tea link - and I'm off to learn about that too!

[caitlinsdad]

Madam, should tea be poured from high up or gently? There is that flourish and show with pouring tea Turkish/Middle Eastern style but I always felt that the water needed to be aerated after boiling for that extra ooomph. And should the pinky be extended whilst drinking tea? Across the pond we only get our etiquette lessons from Spongebob shows.

[stinkymum]

Hi there Caitlinsdad (love the eggs by the way) The pinky should indeed be extended, or rather slightly crooked. (This is one of the main functions of the pinky in my book! although in England it is often refered to as the little finger!) Also the tea can be poured from a height of about six inches so that you can admire the arc it forms between spout and cup! However, it depends if you have a leaky tea pot or not.... Finally - hurrah for Sponge Bob!

[caitlinsdad]

Thanks. By the way, you should make some of your own Collegg-tibles so that you can knit a proper egg cosy for them. :-)

[stinkymum]

I knitted my egg cosy and posted it today!

[stinkymum]

Ah ha! I already have egg cosies and of course they are very proper!! Even as we speak my egg is recovering from having its innards removed! I am thinking how I can decorate it and waiting for inspiration........

[caitlinsdad]

I would have to say an Instructables Robot egg cozy would be quite proper!

[caitlinsdad]

Oops, cosy _{before I invite the wrath of Khiteman}

[brightest_cyan]

I am a little confused on the number of pots and kettles you are using for this instructable. In the final photo of the tea setting you show what looks like a metal teapot with cosy. Was the porcelain teapot only used temporarily to steep the tea for a while, then you transfer it into a serving pot? Because it looks like you used 3 pots, total, one on the stove, one porcelain one, then a smaller metal one for the table.

[stinkymum]

Step 4 shows the actual kettle and tea pot that I used. I only used the white ceramic tea pot in the photo to demonstrate pouring the boiling water into the tea pot (to make more interesting photos) and also used the ceramic one to photograph the holes inside the spout. I have many tea pots by the way, but only use them one at a time. I hope this clarifies things for you.