--- slug: how_to_steep_loose_leaf_tea category_path: home_kitchen/kitchen_dining/coffee_tea_espresso/tea_infusers title: "How to Steep Loose-Leaf Tea" lead: "Give the leaves room to unfurl in a basket infuser or a pot, use about a teaspoon per cup, and match the water temperature to the tea — cooler for green, boiling for black and herbal. Pull the leaves out when the time is up so it doesn't turn bitter; good leaves steep two or three times." recommendation: name: "Give the leaves room, match the water temperature to the tea, and remove them on time so it doesn't over-steep" reason: "Loose tea tastes best when the leaves have space and the water is the right temperature, so the two levers are room and heat, not fancy gear. Use roughly one teaspoon (2-3 g) of leaf per cup in a wide basket infuser, a teapot, or loose in the pot — anywhere the leaves can triple in size and move freely, since a cramped tea ball brews weak. Match the temperature to the type: green and white teas want cooler water, about 70-80 °C, or they turn bitter and grassy; oolong around 85-90 °C; black, pu-erh, and herbal teas want a full boil, 95-100 °C. Time by type too — green 1-2 minutes, black 3-5, herbal 5 or more — and taste toward the end, because leaving leaves in too long pulls harsh tannins. Lift the infuser or pour the tea off the leaves when it's ready, and re-steep good leaves two or three times, adding a little time each round." published: 2026-07-08 updated: 2026-07-08 ---