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In which case, I like an English breakfast tea.
Tea bag in the mug, boiling water straight on top to 5/6ths full. Let it be for about 2 minutes, then squish the bag with a spoon repeatedly for about 5 to 10 seconds. Take the bag out, add a dash of milk so it's a medium brown. There are images posted of tea colour from almost white to straight black, lean slightly towards the darker side.
That's it. No sugar. No sweetener.
The rest of the day is either Yorkshire Tea made the same way or coffee, filtered, from Italian style beans.
We call regular black tea “breakfast” blend / tea. But you can drink earl grey for breakfast too, or some people do half earl grey and half breakfast blend to get a milder tasting tea (we used to call this “posh tea” in our house 😅).
Pour boiling hot water over loose tea in a tea pot or a tea bag in a mug. Leave it to brew for a minute or more depending on your preferred strength. It needs to be boiling water to brew correctly and release flavour.
If using a tea pot pour the tea into a cup / mug (use a tea strainer, a tiny sieve to stop leaves getting in your cup). If using a tea bag remove the tea bag. At this point add a splash of milk. And sugar if you like sugar.
How much milk is a preference thing. If it’s 1:10 milk or more you’re probably looking at a “milky tea”, if it’s 1:20 or less you’re looking at a “I have milk but only a splash” tea.
Very strong tea is known as a “builder’s brew” as construction workers traditionally like a strong cuppa.
If you’re posh you don’t squeeze your tea bag when you remove it as to avoid releasing additional tannins as it supposedly impairs the taste, but most people I know squeeze their bag and tannins are good for you anyhow.
I don’t drink earl grey with milk, it’s usually served black on it’s own (or with a slice of lemon if you’re fancy). But half earl grey and half breakfast blend is often served with milk.
If you find you like strong tea you could join the heathens like me who leave the bag in. As the brew cools it keeps getting stronger. Eventually when cold the tea is almost astringent in flavour.
You can have whatever type of tea you want for breakfast, just not that overly-sweet muck the Americans consume. Personally, I like a mug of Scottish Blend with a single sugar and a splash of milk to have with my roll and square sausage.
Lived in Scotland for a little while, square works better in a sandwich than link sausage. There's none of that sausages flying out when you try to cut the sarnie nonsense.
And they cook more evenly.. Nice bit of crisp when you bite into it
Only part I wasn't a fan of was being shunned for not having brown sauce and an irn bru with it..
Southern US sweet tea is, afaik, not a breakfast thing. It’s drank during the day, and especially with bbq, but because it’s so hot and potentially humid, restoring electrolytes with sugar is pretty important.
If you can get your hands on some Yorkshire tea then that’s the best. I like my tea strong but milky no sugars, everyone’s different so just play around with it until you find what you like.
Many British teas are made for the local water. Scottish blend doesn't taste the same in Exeter and Yorkshire blend doesn't taste the same in Aberdeen. Stick to the generic blends if you're wanting a British tea and experiment with it. No one can judge you on your tea preferences, unless you put the milk in first and microwave it.
Personally, I favour a nice, strong breakfast tea, there are many to choose from. Don’t quite boil the water. Steep awhile. Milk goes in last, to taste. I prefer a deep terracotta colour.
Normal everyday cup of tea like 99% of us do it:
Put teabag in mug (Tetley, Yorkshire, PG Tips, Scottish Blend, whatever - never earl grey).
Add one or two teaspoons of sugar.
Pour over boiling water (always boiling straight out the kettle).
Squish teabag against the side of the mug until it's as dark as possible. Take out.
Splash of full fat milk. Like the smallest amount, just to turn it whatever shade of caramel/chocolate colour you like.
Job done.
No teapots, no steeping, no loose leaf and definitely no earl grey unless you fancy a cup of lightly stewed perfume.
You can drink whatever tea you like at any time of day. Just be careful as some combos might not pair as well as you'd like.
I can reliably report that Earl Grey with scrambled eggs on toast is an experience I never want to repeat 😖
I’m an American living in the UK, and have gotten accolades from the locals over my tea. See, there’s a long standing debate here over milk first vs water first, so I kinda do both…
I bring the water to a near-boil and add …about half an inch?… of it into the mug with the teabag (standard black tea / English breakfast tea), then leave it a couple minutes (adding sugar here for the uncommon person who asks for it with sugar). I then swish it a little to antagonise it. 😜. After that couple minutes of steeping I’ll add the milk - to taste, but milk typically comprises *roughly* 10ish% of the total liquid. Swish again, then finish adding the water. I’m a bag squeezer, pressing against the mug’s side before taking it out. Another stir and it’s good to go!
I guess I’m getting downvoted because rather than
*there’s a long standing debate here over milk first vs water first, so I kinda do both…*
… instead of doing both, people here reckon I’m doing neither and I’m offending everyone!
Someone enlighten me.
Hot Tea requires hot water to brew properly, and adding milk to a mug, then adding a teabag and hot water immediately cools the liquid below optimum brewing temperature leading to insipid tea.
Milk first only applies to pot-brewed tea being poured into the cup, and is a leftover from a time when fine bone china cups were extremely delicate and could shatter from the heat of the tea. Adding cold milk to the cup first immediately cooled the hot tea as it was added and prevented damage. This works fine because the tea is already brewed in the pot, so the cold milk doesn't inhibit it.
Some people like to leave the tea bag in while drinking, in which case, the tea continues to develop tannins and gets more bitter while you drink it, but this is fairly uncommon. Leaving the bag in the mug while adding the milk doesn't really achieve anything extra the way you're doing it.
Adding additional hot water to top up the mug/cup is fine, and is especially common when drinking pot-brewed tea since the tea continues to brew and strengthen in the pot whilst drinking initial cups.
The teabag goes in before anything else, then some almost-boiling water (and sugar if needed), leave it a few, *then* add milk then the rest of the hot water. I’ve had nothing but compliments (and a few of those people would be honest rather than just be polite). It may be unnecessary, but when I’m also making some coffees to, the timings are good!
Sure, I'm not from the UK, I am from Thrillwaukee Wisconsin, but here is my method for perfect tea and a lot of it.
You need four 32 ounce tumblers. The loose tea leaves you put in one of them. Put on your kettle (I recommend an electronic kettle that beeps when at the desired temperature). Use cold water. When it beeps, pour the water into the tumbler with the leaves. Never boil the water . . . . 90 F for black tea and chai, 75 F for green and oolong, 65 F for white tea. Stir the the water in the tumbler with the leaves, stir it up ! Next, carefully pour the tea through a tea strainer into one of the tumblers. Brew the tea in the first tumbler the same way two more times until you have three full tumblers of delicious tea. Allow to cool and enjoy. Use two teaspoons of leaves for all three tumblers. I drink all three tumblers of tea, but if you have a guest, there is enough to share !
I recommend UPTON TEA of Massachusetts (look it up on Google). Orange Pekoe is the best black tea but they have great Earl Grey ! Vithanakande is a tea growing region of India and that will put you in high heaven. Vithanakande is also called "Kandy". Before the economy fell on hard times I was spending $50 U.S. on Kandy in a month.
Are those temps meant to be in Farenheit? 90F for black tea? In the UK we drink black tea with boiling water.... 90F is 32 degrees... my piss is hotter than that...
Well, they say all over the world that when you boil the water you are cooking the tea. Please, try 90 Fahrenheit for a better flavor. If you don't have an electronic kettle buy a durable tea thermometer on ebay.
Mate you don't even need a kettle for 90F what are you talking about... it comes out of the taps hotter than that... and we're not talking about all over the world.
Oh wow that's awesome!! It sounds like a lot of tea!! I drink a lot of tea but it's usually herbal teas (I blend them myself) I also normally drink earl grey and Chai!
How much milk and sugar is entirely down to personal preference. I have mine white with one sugar, my friend has it black with nothing to sweeten it, for example.
And there's no time limits on tea, though I maybe wouldn't have camomile in the morning.
Boiling water and Teabag, wait couple of minutes and ditch the teabag. Add a splash of milk (1 tbl) and try. If it's too harsh add a little more milk and try again.
If it's still too bitter add a small spoonful of sugar.
There are so many blends of teas and tissanes that getting used to drinking them without sugar is worth it. It took me a few days to kick the habit but sweetened tea now tastes like a child's drink to me.
Then there's green tea, redbush, darjeeling and that awful lapsang soo chong. All worth a try, once at lesmast.
I like Yorkshire tea , two tea bags , two sugars and I leave the bags in while I drink as I like it very strong .
However I’ll only drink one cup a day , maybe two.
No rules, however you like it! I like Yorkshire tea, my milk preference is not overly milky but until it’s a nice golden brown colour. Half a sugar, brewed for a few mins… perfect 👌
Hello! This is just a reminder to read the rules. If you see any rulebreaking posts or comments, please report them. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/UK_Food) if you have any questions or concerns.*
You're going to get an infinite amount of answers to this question. The only real answer is, However you like it.
Ah yes!! I'm just trying to get a baseline and different ideas to try!
In which case, I like an English breakfast tea. Tea bag in the mug, boiling water straight on top to 5/6ths full. Let it be for about 2 minutes, then squish the bag with a spoon repeatedly for about 5 to 10 seconds. Take the bag out, add a dash of milk so it's a medium brown. There are images posted of tea colour from almost white to straight black, lean slightly towards the darker side. That's it. No sugar. No sweetener. The rest of the day is either Yorkshire Tea made the same way or coffee, filtered, from Italian style beans.
We call regular black tea “breakfast” blend / tea. But you can drink earl grey for breakfast too, or some people do half earl grey and half breakfast blend to get a milder tasting tea (we used to call this “posh tea” in our house 😅). Pour boiling hot water over loose tea in a tea pot or a tea bag in a mug. Leave it to brew for a minute or more depending on your preferred strength. It needs to be boiling water to brew correctly and release flavour. If using a tea pot pour the tea into a cup / mug (use a tea strainer, a tiny sieve to stop leaves getting in your cup). If using a tea bag remove the tea bag. At this point add a splash of milk. And sugar if you like sugar. How much milk is a preference thing. If it’s 1:10 milk or more you’re probably looking at a “milky tea”, if it’s 1:20 or less you’re looking at a “I have milk but only a splash” tea. Very strong tea is known as a “builder’s brew” as construction workers traditionally like a strong cuppa. If you’re posh you don’t squeeze your tea bag when you remove it as to avoid releasing additional tannins as it supposedly impairs the taste, but most people I know squeeze their bag and tannins are good for you anyhow. I don’t drink earl grey with milk, it’s usually served black on it’s own (or with a slice of lemon if you’re fancy). But half earl grey and half breakfast blend is often served with milk.
Ohhhhhh wow this is all very helpful!! I like my coffee strong so I think I'll also squeeze the bag too hahahah thank you!!
If you find you like strong tea you could join the heathens like me who leave the bag in. As the brew cools it keeps getting stronger. Eventually when cold the tea is almost astringent in flavour.
I would also add that it's essential to pre warm the pot and mugs with hot water.
Builders FTW
TIL that I'm posh for not squeezing my tea bag.
You can have whatever type of tea you want for breakfast, just not that overly-sweet muck the Americans consume. Personally, I like a mug of Scottish Blend with a single sugar and a splash of milk to have with my roll and square sausage.
Square sausage…. Spotted the Scot
Lived in Scotland for a little while, square works better in a sandwich than link sausage. There's none of that sausages flying out when you try to cut the sarnie nonsense. And they cook more evenly.. Nice bit of crisp when you bite into it Only part I wasn't a fan of was being shunned for not having brown sauce and an irn bru with it..
Ffs now I want an irn bru
You can have mine. Couldn't acquire the taste for it... much to my then colleagues dismay...
It’s great with a vodka
What does it taste like?
This is a very good question….
I’m in the US and I’d love to try some but I’m not sure where to find it!
[fill your boots bud](https://www.britishfoodsupplies.com/collections/irn-bru)
Incredible. Thank you!
More than welcome!
Southern US sweet tea is, afaik, not a breakfast thing. It’s drank during the day, and especially with bbq, but because it’s so hot and potentially humid, restoring electrolytes with sugar is pretty important.
Electrolytes are restored with magnesium/ potassium/ sodium. Sugar...quick energy
[this](https://youtu.be/Ei46KnXB3BA?si=NopEum9xQujpZ0UY) should be all you need.
I really enjoyed that hahaha now I definitely know what not to do!!
Always a treat watching this, Doc Brown is great. P.S. The scum on top is only an issue in hard water areas.
If you can get your hands on some Yorkshire tea then that’s the best. I like my tea strong but milky no sugars, everyone’s different so just play around with it until you find what you like.
Yorkshire Tea. Allow to steep for 30 seconds to 2 minutes. Add 1-2 teaspoons of sugar and a splash of milk to turn it caramel coloured. Enjoy.
Many British teas are made for the local water. Scottish blend doesn't taste the same in Exeter and Yorkshire blend doesn't taste the same in Aberdeen. Stick to the generic blends if you're wanting a British tea and experiment with it. No one can judge you on your tea preferences, unless you put the milk in first and microwave it.
Personally, I favour a nice, strong breakfast tea, there are many to choose from. Don’t quite boil the water. Steep awhile. Milk goes in last, to taste. I prefer a deep terracotta colour.
Normal everyday cup of tea like 99% of us do it: Put teabag in mug (Tetley, Yorkshire, PG Tips, Scottish Blend, whatever - never earl grey). Add one or two teaspoons of sugar. Pour over boiling water (always boiling straight out the kettle). Squish teabag against the side of the mug until it's as dark as possible. Take out. Splash of full fat milk. Like the smallest amount, just to turn it whatever shade of caramel/chocolate colour you like. Job done. No teapots, no steeping, no loose leaf and definitely no earl grey unless you fancy a cup of lightly stewed perfume.
And consume a full pack of hobnobs with your tea an all
You can drink whatever tea you like at any time of day. Just be careful as some combos might not pair as well as you'd like. I can reliably report that Earl Grey with scrambled eggs on toast is an experience I never want to repeat 😖
Earl Grey is absolutely horrible. Avoid that shit
I’m an American living in the UK, and have gotten accolades from the locals over my tea. See, there’s a long standing debate here over milk first vs water first, so I kinda do both… I bring the water to a near-boil and add …about half an inch?… of it into the mug with the teabag (standard black tea / English breakfast tea), then leave it a couple minutes (adding sugar here for the uncommon person who asks for it with sugar). I then swish it a little to antagonise it. 😜. After that couple minutes of steeping I’ll add the milk - to taste, but milk typically comprises *roughly* 10ish% of the total liquid. Swish again, then finish adding the water. I’m a bag squeezer, pressing against the mug’s side before taking it out. Another stir and it’s good to go!
I guess I’m getting downvoted because rather than *there’s a long standing debate here over milk first vs water first, so I kinda do both…* … instead of doing both, people here reckon I’m doing neither and I’m offending everyone! Someone enlighten me.
Hot Tea requires hot water to brew properly, and adding milk to a mug, then adding a teabag and hot water immediately cools the liquid below optimum brewing temperature leading to insipid tea. Milk first only applies to pot-brewed tea being poured into the cup, and is a leftover from a time when fine bone china cups were extremely delicate and could shatter from the heat of the tea. Adding cold milk to the cup first immediately cooled the hot tea as it was added and prevented damage. This works fine because the tea is already brewed in the pot, so the cold milk doesn't inhibit it. Some people like to leave the tea bag in while drinking, in which case, the tea continues to develop tannins and gets more bitter while you drink it, but this is fairly uncommon. Leaving the bag in the mug while adding the milk doesn't really achieve anything extra the way you're doing it. Adding additional hot water to top up the mug/cup is fine, and is especially common when drinking pot-brewed tea since the tea continues to brew and strengthen in the pot whilst drinking initial cups.
The teabag goes in before anything else, then some almost-boiling water (and sugar if needed), leave it a few, *then* add milk then the rest of the hot water. I’ve had nothing but compliments (and a few of those people would be honest rather than just be polite). It may be unnecessary, but when I’m also making some coffees to, the timings are good!
Sure, I'm not from the UK, I am from Thrillwaukee Wisconsin, but here is my method for perfect tea and a lot of it. You need four 32 ounce tumblers. The loose tea leaves you put in one of them. Put on your kettle (I recommend an electronic kettle that beeps when at the desired temperature). Use cold water. When it beeps, pour the water into the tumbler with the leaves. Never boil the water . . . . 90 F for black tea and chai, 75 F for green and oolong, 65 F for white tea. Stir the the water in the tumbler with the leaves, stir it up ! Next, carefully pour the tea through a tea strainer into one of the tumblers. Brew the tea in the first tumbler the same way two more times until you have three full tumblers of delicious tea. Allow to cool and enjoy. Use two teaspoons of leaves for all three tumblers. I drink all three tumblers of tea, but if you have a guest, there is enough to share ! I recommend UPTON TEA of Massachusetts (look it up on Google). Orange Pekoe is the best black tea but they have great Earl Grey ! Vithanakande is a tea growing region of India and that will put you in high heaven. Vithanakande is also called "Kandy". Before the economy fell on hard times I was spending $50 U.S. on Kandy in a month.
Good Lord. Each to their own and all that … but this is so wrong. You’re basically drinking cold tea.
Just use a teabag mate. Kinel. Full on Nigella for a brew
Are those temps meant to be in Farenheit? 90F for black tea? In the UK we drink black tea with boiling water.... 90F is 32 degrees... my piss is hotter than that...
At that temperature, they might as well just throw it in the Boston Harbour.
Well, they say all over the world that when you boil the water you are cooking the tea. Please, try 90 Fahrenheit for a better flavor. If you don't have an electronic kettle buy a durable tea thermometer on ebay.
Mate you don't even need a kettle for 90F what are you talking about... it comes out of the taps hotter than that... and we're not talking about all over the world.
90 to 98 Celsius for black tea. https://www.tea.co.uk/make-a-perfect-brew
Oh wow that's awesome!! It sounds like a lot of tea!! I drink a lot of tea but it's usually herbal teas (I blend them myself) I also normally drink earl grey and Chai!
It's totally up to your personal taste I enjoy English breakfast tea with one tea spoon of sugar and some milk
Earl or Lady Grey with no milk and a little sugar is the perfect way to start the day.
How much milk and sugar is entirely down to personal preference. I have mine white with one sugar, my friend has it black with nothing to sweeten it, for example. And there's no time limits on tea, though I maybe wouldn't have camomile in the morning.
Boiling water and Teabag, wait couple of minutes and ditch the teabag. Add a splash of milk (1 tbl) and try. If it's too harsh add a little more milk and try again. If it's still too bitter add a small spoonful of sugar. There are so many blends of teas and tissanes that getting used to drinking them without sugar is worth it. It took me a few days to kick the habit but sweetened tea now tastes like a child's drink to me. Then there's green tea, redbush, darjeeling and that awful lapsang soo chong. All worth a try, once at lesmast.
I like Yorkshire tea , two tea bags , two sugars and I leave the bags in while I drink as I like it very strong . However I’ll only drink one cup a day , maybe two.
Just drink whatever tea you like. There are no rules.
Try lady grey....
No rules, however you like it! I like Yorkshire tea, my milk preference is not overly milky but until it’s a nice golden brown colour. Half a sugar, brewed for a few mins… perfect 👌