Black tea is delightful on its own, but adding a few natural ingredients can enhance its flavor and elevate your tea-drinking experience.
According to the family magazine service of Saed News, tea is the most consumed beverage in the world and the most popular drink among Iranians, who consume it daily. A cup of tea can wash away the fatigue and stress of a long workday. If you're a fan of tea, you can add various flavors like cardamom, cinnamon, saffron, dried fruits, and more to make your tea more enjoyable and beneficial. In this section, we'll introduce some flavorings you can add to black tea and their benefits.
Cardamom
Cardamom tea is a staple in Middle Eastern countries. To make it, add your desired amount of cardamom to the teapot and let it steep. Cardamom, the second most expensive spice globally, has a warm and dry nature. It soothes irritable bowel syndrome, eliminates bad breath, helps maintain a balanced weight, promotes heart health, and brings joy and a sense of well-being.
Cinnamon
Cinnamon enhances the taste of tea beautifully. To make cinnamon tea, simply add cinnamon to the dry tea leaves in the teapot, pour boiling water over them, and let it steep for 10 minutes. Cinnamon has a warm and dry nature and is beneficial for weight loss, individuals with cold temperaments, and various ailments such as cancer, fever, malaria, and nausea.
Saffron
Saffron tea is one of the most delicious and popular teas. Mix some saffron with regular tea and steep it. The amount of saffron can vary based on personal taste. Saffron has a warm and dry nature, offering numerous benefits. It is a significant mood booster and antidepressant, positively impacting one's mood.
Rose
Many people add rose petals or buds to black tea to enhance its flavor. To make rose tea, add some rose petals to black tea and let it steep. Rose petals and rose water have a warm nature, providing various therapeutic benefits such as alleviating bad breath, relieving constipation, combating infections, and aiding weight loss.
Dried Fruits
You can use various dried fruits to flavor your tea. One common method is to add dried fruit flavors to standard teas like black tea. Teas made from dried fruits are rich sources of vitamin C, which helps boost your immune system. Adding dried fruit to tea can also eliminate the need for sugar, making it beneficial for those with diabetes and individuals who want to manage their weight.
Ginger
Ginger tea is popular worldwide for its warm, slightly spicy taste and pleasant aroma. To make ginger tea, peel fresh ginger, slice it thinly, and add it to black tea in hot water. Let it steep for 20 minutes over low heat. Ginger has a warm nature and is ideal for those with cold and moist temperaments. Ginger tea aids digestion, reduces nausea, soothes cold and flu symptoms, and has anti-inflammatory properties.
Citrus
Citrus fruits are among the most popular flavorings for black tea. Adding a slice of lemon, orange, or other citrus fruits can soften the tea's bitterness. Enjoy it with honey for added flavor and benefits.
Mint
Add mint to black tea and let it steep to enjoy its refreshing taste and benefits. Mint has a warm and dry nature, offering numerous medicinal properties. It helps eliminate bad breath, prevent gum disease, and treat bloating, stomach cramps, nausea, and diarrhea.
Milk
Milk tea is a drink made from a blend of tea and milk. Traditionally made with black tea, adding milk reduces the tea's bitterness. Use a small amount of milk as a flavoring rather than the main ingredient. You can also use plant-based milk like almond, soy, or coconut milk to make milk tea.
Jasmine
Add jasmine flowers to tea for a fragrant, sweet, and delicate flavor. Drinking jasmine tea reduces the risk of heart disease, brain failure, and certain cancers. It also aids weight loss, improves oral health, and boosts brain function.
Maple Syrup
Maple trees store starch during the cold seasons, which eventually turns into sap. This sap can be extracted by drilling holes in the tree trunk in late winter or early spring. Maple syrup offers numerous benefits, including heart protection, antioxidant properties, cancer prevention, anti-aging, improved digestion, and cold relief.
Berries
Many people use various berries like strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries to flavor black tea. Adding berries to black tea creates a sweet and tangy flavor, giving the tea a spring or summer vibe.
Stevia
Stevia is a natural sweetener derived from the leaves of the Stevia plant. If you love black tea and consume it daily with sugar, stevia is an excellent substitute. Stevia, with zero sugar and calories, is the best choice for everyone, especially those with diabetes, heart disease, and weight issues.
