The 4 Best Ways to Make Tea with Loose Leaves

Welcome back to beyond the bag. One of the most common questions I get asked by newcomers to loose leaf teas is how to steep them well. So today I am going to show you 4 different ways to make amazing loose leaf tea. Stay tuned to the end for my personal favorite method. By the end of this video, you will be steeping like a pro! Let's jump right in.

We are going to start off with a classic, the teapot. Most modern teapots like this one from IKEA come with a metal or plastic infuser which makes them quite easy to use. Simply, place the infuser into the teapot and add the loose leaf tea of your choice. Here we are using a light Ceylon black tea. Once the tea is in the infuser follow up by filling the teapot with hot water and allow to sit for the recommended steeping time. And thanks to the magic of editing, we now have a wonderful cup of tea. Now, if your teapot doesn't have an infuser don't despair. All you need is a tea strainer to keep the leaves in check. This is also quite easy to use. Simply pour the tea straight into the pot with no containment device and follow up with some hot water. Again were going to let this steep for the recommended amount of time. As you can see the tea leaves are swirling around quite freely. And again thanks to the magic of editing were going to jump ahead a few min to once the tea has finished steeping. Now, to serve. Take your mug or teacup and place the tea strainer on top. Simply pour the tea through the strainer into the cup. The leaves get caught in the strainer and the tasty tea passes right on thru. Tea pots are a great way to steep multiple cups of tea but if you are making a single serving there are more elegant options as we will soon see.

Now if you have been around my channel for a while you have probably seen me use one of these. This is a tea ball. A metal mesh ball that splits open. Think of them as a reusable tea bag. To use, load whatever kind of loose-leaf you like into the ball and close it with the clasp. Place the tea ball in a cup or mug and add hot water. Tea balls are ideal for making single servings but unless you are using multiple ones they struggle to be big enough for a larger volume. However, they are still a must-have for any tea lover's collection.

This next one might be a bit of a shocker, but the french press is amazing for making loose leaf tea. It is comprised of a glass or plastic cylinder and a special lid with a mesh plunger. The plunger moves up and down on a rod that runs out the top of the lid. The fine mesh of the plunger can filter out coffee or tea with excellent precision. There is also a rubber ring around the outside of the plunger head that forms a seal around the interior of the cylinder. Much like a teapot without an infuser, to use add the loose tea of your choice to the cylinder before dousing in hot water. Place the lid on with the handle pulled all the way up. Allow the tea to swirl and steep for the recommended amount of time. Once you are ready to serve, press down on the rod. As the plunger descends to the bottom of the vessel, the leaves get trapped and the tea is left on top. From there the tea is ready to be served straight from the french press. It is a pretty satisfying pour. One of the advantages of a french press is you can dial in how much tea you want to make by adding more or less water. This makes it quite flexible and versatile. I would highly recommend giving it a try. It is an easy elegant way to make great tea.

Lastly, we have tea filters. These are paper bags that can be filled with loose tea for steeping. They come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. there are a few different designs. To use one with an open pocket, fill it with tea, and then place it in a cup or mug. I put the opening towards the rim and fold the extra over the side. Follow up with some hot water. If the filter falls off the edge make sure to put it back up. Let that steep for the recommended steeping time. Tea filters come in lots of different sizes which make them useful for steeping almost any amount of tea. Also, there are some with drawstrings that are even easier to use. After loading the tea, simply pull the string to keep closed and you are good to go. Also with tea filters, clean-up is super easy. Simply take out the filter after steeping and the entire thing is bio-degradable and can even be composed. Super easy and guilt-free. All of this comes together to make them my go-to way to make tea. I hope you will give them a try.

And there you have it! 4 easy ways to get you steeping like a pro! These methods will serve you no matter what exciting part of the loose leaf tea world you are exploring. I am curious what are your favorite ways to make tea or what methods are you excited to try. Let me know in the comments below.

[pj-light-glass]

My dear sweet neighbor travels to Tibet often and gifts me with Tea treasures. Last week she gave me a beautiful black box of Himalayan Holy Tea. I used a special Chinese tea pot with matching cups. Just made 3 cups of a wonderful, smooth tea. So good.

[trustnostarbuck]

Great video. Perfectly explained and good options. I'll be trying the steeper for one cup. Thank you.

[phoenyxrising]

I thought I was ghetto for using the french press for tea!!🤣🤣🤣 Thanks for teaching me that I was thinking outside of the box 💪💪

[sfstone]

im planning on trying some loose leave tea and i wasn't sure what brewing method to use but thanks to you now i know that you can brew loose leave tea in a french press

[KlavierGayming]

If you do the second method, have both a brewing and serving vessel and strain all the tea once it’s done steeping, otherwise it’ll oversteep and become bitter

[taggie_]

I find that the tea steeper is much more universal. Playing around with temperature, amount and time can make a single type of loose tea feel and taste quite different.

[naomiestefaniacabadalopez]

I love your videos! Thanks for the info!

[mcnabli]

Lovely video, I like so much the way you explain and talk. Thank you

[bustabee]

Such a cool video, I think your voice is perfect for this kinda video

[SufficientUsIsAllah]

If I was travelling, I’d use the paper filters. If I was home alone, I’d use the teaball. If I had guests, I’d use the French press. If none of the above were available, I’d use the tea strainer. This is my least preferred method for one cup because it means using two separate vessels to make one cup of tea. This was a great video as I had no idea how to use a French press or that paper filters existed. Thank you.

[matthijsvanwijhe]

Gongfu brewing you guys! 150 ml gaiwan, cup, fairnesspitcher, filter and (in the case of black tea) 4~5 gr of real loose tea (whole leaf, not crushed) in 100ml of water for 10~15 seconds, about 9 infusions every time + 5 sec ;)

[imbored]

Here I am just using a kettle but this was still relaxing and entertaining to watch. Much love from Sweden

[Bibliotecanatalie]

I have the same one from Ikea great info thanks!

[markroberts]

Thank you. Where do you purchase the paper tea filters with the fold-over flaps? We can only find the ones with drawstrings, which we do not want.

[bjoyce]

Very informative. Thank you so much. 🙂

[terryguberman]

Classy. Love it. Your voice is lovely and soothing.

[williamjaeger]

Great video! What's the background music?

[zaimhilmi]

Hi. Thanks for the video! How many gram of tea per 100ml of water?

[Upcycled_by_Michelle]

Thankyou!! I have been using way too many tea leaves, now how do I keep my tea from going cold lol

[Upcycled_by_Michelle]

Also can you reuse the leaves or does it make it bitter?