- Make It Yourself Lavender Heart-Shaped Bath Bombs!
- 20 Things You Never Knew About “Down There”
- 12 Best Foods For Those Suffering From Arthritis Pain
- 12 Personal Hygiene Mistakes Almost Everyone Makes (Mom Never Told You About #4!)
- 15 Medicinal Plants And Herbs From The Cherokee People
- 12 Mind-Blowing Benefits Of Drinking Coconut Water During Pregnancy
- 12 Outstanding Winter Foods That Won’t Fatten You Up Like A Christmas Turkey
Cold Brewed Tea: Everything You Need To Know
Fruit Infused Teas
Cold-brew doesn’t have to be just with tea leaves though – if you want to get really technical and fancy, consider adding fruit infusions to your tea as well. Some of the best fruit infusions for iced tea are strawberry, peach, blackberry, plum, orange, and mango. The same goes for cold-brews as well, although they might have to be tweaked a little. Most iced teas that are fruit infused have the fruit added in after the tea is brewed and the two mixtures are just combined. This can be done with cold-brewed tea as well. Start with a basic tea, such as oolong or jasmine tea, and brew it overnight. The next day, add in the fruit component and let the mix sit for a while before serving.
Alternatively, the cold-brewed tea can also be made all together. Add the tea to the water along with the fruit, just as you would for fruit-infused waters. Let it all sit together overnight. This will infuse the water with both the fruit flavor and the tea at the same time. The tea can then be strained the next day and you can add in any fruit garnish that you desire. Some great flavor combinations include black tea with strawberries and basil, chai or black tea with peaches and mint, blackberry with mint and jasmine tea, mango and orange with jasmine tea, or oolong tea with raspberries and lemon.
Above and Beyond Cold-Brewed
Cold-brewed tea can also be tweaked a little more – into ice-brewed tea, or a method called the Kouridashi method. This involves adding ice, preferably one big cube, to a glass and sprinkling a teaspoon of tea leaves over it. You then add a few tablespoons of water to get the ice melting and give it about 30 minutes to “brew” the tea. This type of tea results in very concentrated and strong tasting tea and can be infused with fruits just as the cold-brew method. Add the fruit to the cup at the same time that you start the brewing process or freeze the fruit within the ice cube to get a more spectacular effect when the tea is brewing. This process can be speeded up if you don’t have enough time to wait by adding a quarter cup of just below boiling point of water on top of the ice cube. This will help the tea to brew in a matter of ten minutes or so instead of the regular 30 minutes.
READ MORE: Amazing Uses Of Green Tea In Skincare
Conclusion
Whichever method of cold-brewing you choose, cold tea will never be the same. Cold-brewed tea is much sweeter and more pleasant in taste than its hot-brewed and cooled counterpart as there are less tannins released during the brewing process. This ensures a tea that is less caffeinated but also less acidic. Infusing the tea with extra fruit garnishes will give you even more of a spectacular outcome and you and any guests are sure to love the combinations. If you really want to wow your guest, try the Kouridashi method of brewing. No matter the way, enjoying a cold glass of tea in the summer months is almost mandatory, so keep your kitchen cool too by cold-brewing your tea.
References:
