By Rachel Kubicek
It’s as easy as 1-2-3.
1. Boil water.
2. Add 1 teaspoon of tea per cup of water.
3. Brew 3 to 5 minutes.
Brewing your own tea is not only beneficial to your health, it is also more cost effective if you drink an abundance of tea, according to Diane Sneed, who handles education and customer service for Fox Farm Whole Food in Joplin, Mo.
“There isn’t a big difference between strained tea and tea bags, other than the fact that the tea bag has been processed one more step," Sneed said. "The loose tea will have a freshness to it and also, when you brew your own tea, the process can be therapeutic.”
There is a variety of strainers available for home tea-brewing, from plain with small screens to small, decorative items with tiny holes for the tea to seep through.
Sneed says the tea can be made by adding it to hot water, while other teas take more preparation.
“Valerian root has to be cooked or steeped,” she said. “A hard root needs to be cooked for 5 to 8 minutes and is great for anxiety.”
As a survivalist, hiker and educator with a degree in rehabilitation, Sneed brews green tea in her coffee pot because it doesn’t take as long to brew as other teas.
“People trying to learn to like the taste of green tea because it’s so good for you need to know that they might be brewing the tea too long. Green tea is a really light-colored tea and people are used to the darker-colored teas. It should only be brewed for about 3 minutes,” she said.
Sneed says that you can also mix other teas like raspberry, mango or peach to green tea to improve the taste.
Green tea is also safe for children to drink. Sneed suggests mixing the tea with fruit juice for taste so they can enjoy the antioxidant benefits of the tea.
“If you are interested in brewing your own tea, you can try out the tea in bags first to find out which ones you like best,” she said. “Then you can buy it by the ounce and brew it yourself, which is more inexpensive. Most of the herbal teas are very inexpensive.”
She also said that if you are interested in using herbal tea to treat ailments, you should always educate yourself before trying to self medicate with tea.
“You can harm yourself if you don’t know what you are doing because people think tea is gentle but teas actually have power to them. Always take your medical history into consideration,” said Sneed.
Rachel Kubicek writes for The Joplin (Mo.) Globe.
Tea times three
There are three kinds of teas:
White tea: A little bud; when it first opens, it is the highest in nutritional value.
Green tea: A tea picked when it is green.
Black tea: Fermented green tea.
Source: Diane Sneed
