Many tea kettles will whistle when done, but some do not, so you may need to be vigilant. You could also use a small saucepan or electric hot pot to boil the water. Note that you can boil water in the microwave, but you should boil the water in short 1 to 2 minute intervals to avoid superheating it. You should also make sure that a wooden chopstick or other microwave-safe object is placed in the water as you heat it. [1] X Research source
For this type of tea, oolong tea tends to be the favored variety. You could also use green tea or black tea, but white tea tends to be too delicate. For a non-traditional yet appealing taste, you could also try an herbal tea blend. Floral teas, like rose tea, are especially suitable. For an herbal tea, you should add about 2 Tbsp (30 ml) of loose-leaf tea. [2] X Research source If you prefer a stronger tasting tea, add more leaves rather than steeping the tea for a longer period of time. If you do not have a teapot, you could add the leaves directly to a saucepan of boiling water. Turn the heat off when you add the tea leaves to the water, though.
Green tea should be steeped for roughly 1 minute, while black tea can be steeped for 2 to 3 minutes. Steeping these types of teas for a longer period of time can result in a bitter taste. Oolong tea should steep for 3 minutes ideally, but it responds better to being over-steeped and will not take on the same bitter taste that green tea or black tea will develop. Herbal tea will need to steep for 5 to 6 minutes and will not turn bitter if left unattended for slightly longer.
Do not add the milk all at once. Doing so will cause the tea to become watery. If possible, avoid letting the milk reach temperatures above 60 degrees Fahrenheit (15. 6 degrees Celsius). When milk heats for too long, the denaturation of protein causes it to develop an odor.
If you do not have a tea strainer, a sifter or any fine mesh strainer will work just as well. Some form of strainer is necessary, though, to prevent the tea leaves from entering your cup.
Most tea kettle whistle once your water is ready, but if yours does not, you will need to monitor it visually. If you do not have a tea kettle, you could use a small saucepan or electric hot pot to boil the water, instead. You could also boil water using your microwave, but there are a few precautions you should take to minimize the risk of superheating the water. Place a non-metallic object, like a set of wooden chopsticks, in the water as it heats, and only use a microwave-safe dish. Heat the water in short intervals, no longer than 1 or 2 minutes in length.
Black tea works best for iced milk tea prepared in this method, but oolong tea would also work well. Regardless of the tea you choose, it should be fairly strong. If using black tea leaves, place them in a mesh tea ball or clean nylon sock to form a “bag” of sorts. Use 2 to 4 tsp (10 to 20 ml) of loose-leaf tea for this method.
Since this will be an iced tea, you do not need to worry about the loss of heat caused by keeping the tea exposed as it steeps.
You can vary the amount of condensed milk based on your own individual tastes. Note that condensed milk is fairly sweet, so you will not need to add sugar or another sweetener after adding the milk.
While filling the glass to the top with ice will cause the tea to be diluted and watery, adding too little ice will not allow the tea to cool down fast enough. The glass should be about 1/2 to 3/4 full.
Try almond milk tea for something different. Almond milk tea is a specific type of bubble tea, so it has tapioca pearls mixed into it. This tea also uses homemade almond milk, but store-bought almond milk would make a suitable alternative.
Consider preparing a cup of ginger tea. Ginger tea is a variation of chai tea. Along with traditional chai flavors, the tea is steeped with fresh ginger.
Change things up by making vanilla cream tea. Vanilla cream tea is very similar to English tea, but instead of sugar, you add vanilla extract.
