Someone tell me how to make tea please

[Halcyon]

Hi,

I was wondering if someone could tell me how to make tea.
I have a plumber downstairs and I am going to have to offer him a drink and he says he drinks tea.
Anyway, I dont drink any hot drinks and sort of know how to make tea but am not too sure.

I have a tea strainer and this powder that I think is tea, but it could be coffee powder I'm not sure.
He says he wants milk in it. How much should I put in ?

Could you tell me how you lot do it ?

And if you have coffee, tell me how you make that too as I havent a clue and its about time I learnt.

Thanks to you all.

[zoombini]

Ask the plumber...

[Nugget]

Just tell him to get back to work - you're not paying him to drink tea. Get him to fix your washing machine (or whatever) and then go and buy a cup of tea!

[skyblueheroes]

Originally Posted by Halcyon

Hi,

I was wondering if someone could tell me how to make tea.
I have a plumber downstairs and I am going to have to offer him a drink and he says he drinks tea.
Anyway, I dont drink any hot drinks and sort of know how to make tea but am not too sure.

I have a tea strainer and this powder that I think is tea, but it could be coffee powder I'm not sure.
He says he wants milk in it. How much should I put in ?

Could you tell me how you lot do it ?

And if you have coffee, tell me how you make that too as I havent a clue and its about time I learnt.

Thanks to you all.

Doesn't everyone know how to make tea !

[Chris]

Originally Posted by Halcyon

Hi,

I was wondering if someone could tell me how to make tea.
I have a plumber downstairs and I am going to have to offer him a drink and he says he drinks tea.
Anyway, I dont drink any hot drinks and sort of know how to make tea but am not too sure.

I have a tea strainer and this powder that I think is tea, but it could be coffee powder I'm not sure.
He says he wants milk in it. How much should I put in ?

Could you tell me how you lot do it ?

And if you have coffee, tell me how you make that too as I havent a clue and its about time I learnt.

Thanks to you all.

Well, that's got to be the oddest technical support query I've ever seen on this board ...

OK:

1. Put the kettle on.
2. Smell the brown powder. Surely you must know what tea and coffee smell like ... ?
3. Get your tea pot out.
4. When the kettle boils, slosh a little water into the pot and wash it around.
5. Empty the teapot and re-boil the kettle.
6. Put three very heaped teaspoons of tealeaves into the teapot.
7. Half-fill the teapot with boiling water. This is very important. The water must be poured immediately after the kettle switches off.
8. Wait about 5 minutes.
9. Put some milk in the mug. If you're using an average size mug I'd guess you need about 2cm of milk in the bottom of it.
10. Put the tea strainer over the mug and pour the tea through it.
11. Ask the plumber how many sugars he wants!
12. Add sugar, stir well and serve.
13. Pour yourself one, you don't know what you're missing!

HTH

[Plonking]

Don't forget the rich tea biscuits, they are great in cups of tea! he will be your friend for life if you give him some as well!

[bbwannabe]

Coffees a lot easier and cleaner
get a cup/mug
get a spoon
put 2 rounded teaspoons of sugar
and one teaspoon of coffee powder in the mug (level it (the amount) to the spoon...a heap of it is too much).
pour water (hot of course)
add milk (for white coffee or none for black)

never drink hot drinks? what do u drink.

never seen any tea powder before, only tea leaves. You'll know coffee over tea, as its a stronger smell.

[Halcyon]

Just seen all your replies. Thats great help.
Green reps coming your way.
I guess I just forget as I never drink tea of coffee. Most people find it strange but even in cold weather I still only have cold drinks.

Thanks everyone.

Originally Posted by towny

Well, that's got to be the oddest technical support query I've ever seen on this board ...

OK:

1. Put the kettle on.
2. Smell the brown powder. Surely you must know what tea and coffee smell like ... ?
3. Get your tea pot out.
4. When the kettle boils, slosh a little water into the pot and wash it around.
5. Empty the teapot and re-boil the kettle.
6. Put three very heaped teaspoons of tealeaves into the teapot.
7. Half-fill the teapot with boiling water. This is very important. The water must be poured immediately after the kettle switches off.
8. Wait about 5 minutes.
9. Put some milk in the mug. If you're using an average size mug I'd guess you need about 2cm of milk in the bottom of it.
10. Put the tea strainer over the mug and pour the tea through it.
11. Ask the plumber how many sugars he wants!
12. Add sugar, stir well and serve.
13. Pour yourself one, you don't know what you're missing!

HTH

3 heaped teaspoons of tea but no mention of the pot size?? The type of tea can also make a difference.

Also you should NEVER put hot liquid onto a small amount of milk as this can cause it to curdle. Better to put the tea into the mug and put the milk in after. Added benefit is you can add milk until you get the right colour.

[Bifta]

Heh, I've seen it all now, this must be a joke thread, but if it's not.

Tea = boil kettle, put milk in cup, add teabag, add hot water, jiggle teabag to achieve required brownness, add sugar if necessary.

[Plonking]

Originally Posted by gary_580

Also you should NEVER put hot liquid onto a small amount of milk as this can cause it to curdle. Better to put the tea into the mug and put the milk in after. Added benefit is you can add milk until you get the right colour.

At last! someone who agrees with my style of making tea! my whole family put the milk in first, followed by the water, but that makes it go all weird! and it is indeed easier to balance the amount of milk you need if you do it afer

this thread has got very random now, perhaps we should start another on 'how to do shoelaces' haha , well maybe...

[Nugget]

Originally Posted by Bifta

Heh, I've seen it all now, this must be a joke thread, but if it's not.

Tea = boil kettle, put milk in cup, add teabag, add hot water, jiggle teabag to achieve required brownness, add sugar if necessary.

Now that's how to make tea (unless, like me, you only drink it at work, and get somebody else to make it for you - cheers homealone )

[Wolf]

this is how i do it. Tea for 1. tea bag first then add boiling water slowly over the tea bag as not to fil it with to much air. Let it stand for about 10-15 seconds then stir it around a little then start to gently squize the tea bag against the cup. Watch the colour of the water until the teabag almost dissapears because the water is so dark. Remove teabag and then add your sugar. i prefer 3 heaped medicine spoons. Milk has to be full fat. semi is for girls. tea must be milky to give it that creamy taste.

Always make tea then add sugar and milk. Milk will coat tea leafs preventing the flavour getting out. Sugar will make it harder to dissolve the tea flavour into the water. I make this tea for my friends in work and they love it. Coffee is simple. Coffee sugar water stir then add the cream or full cream milk. Or heat up a mug of milk, add coffee and sugar and a great cuppa.

[Chris]

Originally Posted by gary_580

3 heaped teaspoons of tea but no mention of the pot size?? The type of tea can also make a difference.

Also you should NEVER put hot liquid onto a small amount of milk as this can cause it to curdle. Better to put the tea into the mug and put the milk in after. Added benefit is you can add milk until you get the right colour.

Oh man, you've done it now ...

3 heaped spoons is a guess based on what I imagine to be an 'average' pot size. With the plumber sitting waiting I didn't imagine Halcyon had time to be answering supplementary questions before getting his teamaking instructions.

I agree type of tea makes a difference but again, without waiting for clarification it's best to assume it's just bog-standard typhoo or PG tips (the biggest assumption, of course, is that the mysterious 'brown powder is in fact tea at all, and not coffee, or worse, gravy powder )

And as for whether milk goes in first or last ... putting the milk into a cup full of hot tea can scald it and ruin the flavour (makes it taste like it does out of a flask, which in turn reminds me of huddling behind a damp rock halfway up some fell in the Lake District). Putting the milk in first and pouring the tea slowly allows the milk to gradually come up to temperature as the mug fills. Much nicer that way, and nobody is going to convince me otherwise!

Of course, if you get your preparation technique right, then you will know what colour the tea is going to come out before you even pour it, so you won't need to wait to see how much milk you need. This is a far better approach, because weak tea with a little milk and strong tea with a lot of milk might look a similar colour but they certainly don't taste the same.

[ian@huth]

If you are living alone and never drink hot drinks it is doubtful that you would have either tea or coffee on hand. If you live with someone who drinks tea or coffee then you surely must have seen them making it at some point. What did the powder turn out to be?

I go with the view that the milk should go in the last. Tea making is an art if you want to do it properly. There are many different types of tea and each has its own best way of brewing. One of the most important aspects of brewing tea is to have the right sort of water. It is amazing how much the water affects the taste of the tea. The best water I have found for tea is that from West Yorkshire.