How to brew loose leaf tea

01/28/2021
by Nick Scheindelen
pouring loose leaf tea


Loose leaf tea is brewed without the tea bag. For steeping loose leaf tea you use a tea infuser. This to ensure the leaves don’t roam freely in your cup when drinking the loose leaf tea.

It is said that the advantages of making loose leaf tea versus tea bags is the taste. Loose tea infuses the tea more where tea bags aren’t able to do so.

Get your favorite tea pot and boil the water. Add the amount of loose leaves to the tea infuser needed for your type of tea. Place the tea infuser in your teapot. You can also directly place the tea infuser into your mug. However be sure to change the amount of loose leaf tea to your liking.

When the hot water reaches the desired temperature, pour the hot water over the tea infuser into your teapot or mug.

Tip: In general you can use 1 teaspoon of loose leaf tea per 1 cup of water. 

To get more into the specifics of how to make loose leaf tea. Steep your tea for 1.5 to 2 minutes. This gives it a full taste of loose leaves and spring teas. If you increase the time of steeping you will add more body, fuller notes and more bitterness to it’s taste.

Water temperature for white and green teas in general should be 170 to 185 degrees Fahrenheit (70 celcius). For oolong tea it should be brewed around 180 to 190 degrees (85 celsius). Black and herbal teas are generally brewed in temperatures between 208 and 212 degrees Fahrenheit (100 celcius).



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Tip: Do not reboil your water. The water gets concentrated when boiled. When you reboil your water you also again concentrate the water. You do not want this reboiled water into your body as it isn’t healthy for you. 

Also do not leave the water for too long in the kettle. There is a process that will speed up the forming of limescale. 

Another reason for drinking loose leaves is the benefits of drinking it as tea. There is even research done on drinking fresh tea leaves. Tea has antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties. The highest concentration of healthy antioxidants are found in fresh tea leaves.

Loose leaf teas are available online at our webshop. The Seasoning Pantry specializes in finding the best loose leaf teas for you to enjoy.