Tea makes water taste better. It's a common fact all tea drinkers know. But a less common one is that tea can make any milk taste better too. Yes, you can steep tea in milk and you should definitely try it.
Tea steeped in milk can have dozens of different uses. You can simply enjoy it cold, or use it for recipes that include milk – and make a truly unique dessert.
What is a milk steeped tea?
Milk steeped tea is simply a tea infused milk – instead of water, you use milk to allow tea leaves to release their flavour. Now, maybe you ask yourself why would you steep tea in milk in the first place? Because it can give a whole new flavour profile to many regular dishes or desserts. Combinations are countless and so are the tea flavours.
Tea infused milk can both have a strong or weak flavour, depending on the way you infuse it, tea and milk type.
What are the best teas for steeping in milk?
The best tea types for steeping in milk are stronger, flavourful teas.
Some of the best tea choices for steeping in milk
- Earl Grey black tea
- Strong malty Assam tea
- Masala Chai blend
- Pure or flavoured rooibos tea
- Fruit flavoured black teas
Use only the tea that is strong enough to go well with milk. Teas with strong broken leaves will release more flavour than teas with unbroken leaves. You can gently crush the leaves before steeping them to release more flavour.
What is the best milk for steeping tea?
You can steep tea in any milk. Depending on the milk you want to use, there are two methods you can use. Different types of milk have different flavours, so it's always good to match the flavour profile of your tea with the milk you are using. Cow's milk is the most neutral, and there are many plant-based alternatives that have a neutral flavour too.
Check out the test with 5 different plant-based alternatives for black tea.
1. Simmering method
For regular cow's milk, the best way to steep tea in milk is by simmering it on low heat for 5 minutes, removing from the heat and steeping for another 5 minutes. Do not add water. Strain the tea and store milk in the fridge.
2. Cold brewing method
Plant-based milk alternatives may curdle if you boil them. The best way to steep tea in plant-based milk is to cold-brew it in the fridge. You can use regular dairy milk for cold brewing too. Add 1 heaped spoon of tea leaves per 0.5 litres of milk at room temperature. For this method, always use teas with smaller broken leaves. Cold brew tea in milk overnight in the fridge. It may take longer for tea to cold steep in milk than it would in water, and it works best with stronger black teas.
How to use tea infused milk?
Always strain the milk before storing it in the fridge and use it within expiry date.
You can use tea infused milk for making:
- Pancakes – for example a maple, chocolate or caramel flavoured teas
- Milkshakes – for example, fruit based black tea blends
- Whipped cream – for example, fruity rooibos blends or fruit teas
- Ice-creams – for example citrus flavoured black tea blends
- Savoy dishes – for example, smoky lapsang souchong in mushroom pasta with a milk-based sauce
Or drink it on its own.
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