The cuppa, it turns out, can be much more than a steaming brew of tea leaves. If made right, it can be a potent shot of antioxidant theaflavins, and with a little infusion of herbs or spice, tea can be elevated to a fragrant, delicious beverage. Sample these teas transformed with a twist of lemon, a stick of cinnamon, or a pinch of mint.
Darjeeling Honey Tea
One Sunday morning, after some hectic paperback-browsing at Oxford Bookshop on Kolkata’s Park Street, I felt it was the perfect time to walk down to Flury’s patisserie for a cup of Darjeeling black tea. As I sat sipping the tea, my mind travelled back to the 18th century when Darjeeling black tea was the preferred brew of the British colonials.
Back home, I decided to give a healthy twist to the famous tea, and added a dollop of honey. Darjeeling honey tea is known to be packed with anti-oxidant polyphenols like theaflavins as well as flavonol glycosides.
Polyphenols help lower cholesterol, control blood pressure and even help fight cancer. Besides, the addition of honey to this tea helps prevent throat infection and enhances the anti-oxidant properties of Darjeeling black tea.
Preparation time: 3 minutes
Total brewing time: 5 minutes
Makes: 2 servings
Ingredients: 2 teaspoons full of Lipton’s Darjeeling Leaf Black Tea; 2 cups of just-boiled water and 2 teaspoons of honey.
Preparation: Warm a heat-proof glass teapot by rinsing it with a little warm water. Next, add the tea leaves to the teapot. Pour over the just-boiled water. Cover and brew the tea for two minutes. Add the honey and stir. Cover the pot and brew again for three minutes. Finally, strain the tea into cups and serve immediately.
Oolong Lemon Tea
A healthy tea is oolong lemon tea. From the health perspective, a cup of this tea is rich in essential polyphenolic anti-oxidants. These anti-oxidants have been shown to protect our body against various chronic diseases. In addition, brewed oolong tea helps control body weight, reduce inflammatory disorders and control diabetes. Also, sufficiently high levels of phytochemicals in the lemon juice help stabilise the functioning of catechins in oolong tea.
Preparation time: 3 minutes
Total brewing time: 7 minutes
Makes: 3 servings
Ingredients: 3 teaspoons of Twinings of London Darjeeling Oolong Loose Leaf Tea, 3 cups of freshly boiled water, juice of 1 lemon and sugar (as desired).
Preparation: Rinse a heat-proof teapot with a little warm water. Add the oolong tea leaves. Pour boiled water, cover and brew for at least 6-7 minutes. Add lemon juice and mix. Finally, strain the tea mixture into cups. Add sugar as desired, stir and serve.
Green Jasmine Cinnamon Tea
Jasmine tea was a popular beverage during the Qing dynasty in China in 1900. In fact, for a healthy version of jasmine tea, green tea is beautifully blended with aromatic jasmine and cinnamon sticks. This tea releases the fragrant cinnamaldehyde scent of cinnamon sticks and a sweet aroma from the jasmine oil molecules. The scent of jasmine and cinnamon sticks is believed to help reduce stress.
Preparation time: 2-3 minutes
Total brewing time: 5 minutes
Makes: 2 servings
Ingredients: 3 Twinings of London Green Jasmine tea bags, one 1 1/2 inch-long cinnamon stick, chopped; 2 1/2 cups of freshly boiled water and 2 teaspoons of honey.
Preparation: In a heat-proof teapot, place the green jasmine tea bags, cinnamon sticks and the honey. Add boiled water, cover and brew for at least five minutes. Then remove the tea bags, strain out the cinnamon sticks and pour the tea into cups.
Iced Mint Tea
And then there is the option of going in for a chilled brew of black tea with mint leaves. Iced Mint Tea has the advantage of folate-rich fresh mint leaves that help in healthy functioning of the heart and the nervous system.
Preparation time: 5 minutes
Total time (including brewing & cooling time): 15 minutes
Makes: 2 servings
Ingredients: 3 black tea bags (preferably Taj Mahal Tea Bags); 2 1/2 cups of freshly boiled water; 2 1/2 cups of cold water; 1/4 cup of fresh mint leaves, chopped; sugar as desired and ice cubes.
Preparation: Place the black tea bags as well as the chopped mint leaves in a heat-resistant teapot. Add boiled water. Cover and brew for at least five minutes. Remove the tea bags and strain the mixture, while pressing the mint leaves to extract all of the liquid. Let the tea mixture cool completely for 10 minutes. Finally, serve the tea over ice cubes placed in glasses.
Saffron and Cardamom Tea
Saffron and cardamom tea is a popular rejuvenating tea in the Middle East. In terms of health, this tea contains brewed black tea that has significant levels of the essential amino acid L-theanine, saffron strands with high concentrations of safranal as well as the essential oil linalool present in the fragrant green cardamom. These constituents increase the production of serotonin and this invigorates the mind and and ups the body’s energy levels.
Preparation time: 2 minutes
Total time (including cooking & brewing time): 7 minutes
Makes: 4 servings
Ingredients: 4 black tea bags (I used Twinings of London Classic Assam Black tea bags); 4 cups water, 1/2 cup of milk; 5 green cardamoms, crushed; 5 saffron strands, soaked in warm water and sugar cubes (as desired).
Preparation: Add the crushed cardamom pods, soaked saffron strands, milk and water to a saucepan placed over a medium flame. Bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the flame and allow the mixture to simmer for at least five minutes until the mixture turns golden brown and the aroma of the crushed cardamoms is released. Remove the saucepan from the flame. Add the tea bags, cover and brew for two minutes. Discard the tea bags and pour the tea mixture into cups. Sweeten with sugar cubes and serve.
Iced Green Pomegranate Tea
You could go for a refreshing anti-oxidant-rich tea combination such as iced green pomegranate tea. As for health benefits, this type of tea combination contains brewed green tea that has high levels of anti-oxidant flavonoids like catechin and EPCG (epicatechin gallate), which have been shown to detox the body as well as control diabetes. In addition, the powerful anti-oxidant, punicalagin, in pomegranate juice helps prevent blood platelet clots, thereby reducing the risks of coronary heart diseases.
Preparation time: 5 minutes
Total time (including brewing and cooling time): 15 minutes
Makes: 4 servings
Ingredients: 3 Lipton Pure Green Tea Bags, 3 cups of freshly boiled water, 1 cup of pomegranate juice (any brand), 3 cups of cold water and ice cubes.
Preparation: Place the tea bags in a heat-resistant teapot. Add the boiled water, cover and brew for 4-5 minutes. Discard the tea bags and allow the tea to cool completely for at least 10 minutes. Next, transfer the tea into a medium-sized serving jug. Stir in the pomegranate juice as well as the cold water. Finally, serve the tea over ice cubes.
