WomensDeals Perfect Tea

How to Make a Perfect Pot of Tea

Empty your kettle, then fill it with freshly drawn water from the cold tap. Put the kettle on. Just before it comes to the boil, pour a generous dash of the hot water into your teapot (glazed china or earthenware, by preference), swirling it round and round inside the pot before pouring it away. Warming the pot is not a meaningless ritual, but ensures that the water stays at boiling point when it hits the tea, encouraging the proper opening of the leaves.

Dole out one heaped teaspoon of tealeaves for each person, and one for the pot, straight into the warmed teapot. (Large-leafed teas -- such as jasmine -- are comparatively light for their volume, so add an extra spoon or so of these.) The kettle will have reached a galloping boil by this time, so pour the water over the tea. Take care that the water is not long boiling; over-boiled water loses its oxygen and results in a bitter, muddy brew of tea.

Allow the tea to stand and brew for anything from three to six minutes, according to the leaf size (less time for small leaves, more for large ones). Give the tea a good stir, and pour, using a strainer to catch leaves. If you take your tea with milk, you should add it to the cup, cold and fresh, before pouring the tea. (P.S. Tea bags are never a good idea. The tea they produce is simply not the same.)

The Secret to Making Clear Iced Tea

Q What is the secret to making clear iced tea? I've tried using hot and cold water, instant and regular tea, and different brewing methods, but my iced tea is always cloudy.
--Donna Larson, Minneapolis

A Being a Texas gal, I brew and drink iced tea year-round. Cloudy iced tea could be caused by minerals in the water or by refrigerating it too soon after brewing. Try using bottled or filtered water and let the tea stand at room temperature for an hour after steeping. If the tea turns murky in the refrigerator, add a cup of boiling water to one quart of tea -- it should clear up the cloudiness. Remember, it will also dilute the tea, so add less ice.

Some hints: Make your own ginger tea by putting a small piece of fresh peeled ginger into the pot when brewing. A small piece of candied ginger works well, too. When lemons are expensive, add a half teaspoon of powdered lemonade mix to a glass of tea to give it a zingy, lemony taste.

Green tea: What are the benefits?

Q I have heard that drinking green tea may be beneficial. Can you tell me what those benefits are?

Sue Gilbert

Sue is a consulting nutritionist. For many years she worked with Earth's Best Organic Baby Food, integrating nutrition and product development. She has written numerous articles on children's health and nutrition for parenting publications.

A Green and black teas both seem to have health benefits. I am referring to the nonherbal black and green teas. These teas contain an potent antioxidant compound known as polyphenols. These polyphenols are being linked with anti-cancer and anti-heart disease effects. Studies are still incomplete and inconclusive, but are pointing strongly toward having a protective effect against these two deadly diseases.

Green and black teas are the same plant processed in a different way. This difference in processing results in more of the polyphenols being destroyed in the black teas. Green teas therefore seem to have more of the beneficial effects mentioned, but black teas still retain some of the benefits.

Laboratory studies are showing the polyphenols in tea can help prevent cancer from forming and may stabilize or shrink present cancers, keeping them from spreading. This effect seems to lie in polyphenol's ability to prevent the oxidation that causes damage to DNA, turning normal cells into cancer cells. It can also inhibit enzyme activity that potentiates the malignancy of carcinogenic compounds. Most studies are laboratory based, and results in humans are inconclusive, but observational evidence is beginning to prove a link.

There is also evidence suggesting that tea may protect against heart disease, although the link is not yet as strong as that for cancer. It may be that tea polyphenols reduce blood cholesterol and reduce blood pressure. It may also prevent the formation of clots that can lead to heart attack or stroke. Both regular and decaffeinated tea, as well as iced tea have comparable levels of polyphenols, so pick your favorite brew, and begin to enjoy your daily 'tea time'