🍵 Black tea
Black tea is made from tea leaves that are fully oxidised before drying, which gives them their dark colour and a brisk, full-bodied, slightly malty taste. Brewed in hot water, it turns a deep amber-red. It is drunk plain or with lemon or sugar, from small glasses in the Middle East to large mugs in Britain, and is the most widely drunk type of tea in the world.
Diets
Allergens
None of the 14 major allergens in a typical recipe.
What it is made of
Recipe
Ingredients
- 250 ml freshly boiled water
- 2–3 g loose black tea leaves (1 tsp) or 1 tea bag
- Lemon slice or sugar to taste (optional)
Method
- Warm the cup or teapot with a little hot water and pour it out.
- Add the tea leaves and pour over water just off the boil (about 95 °C).
- Steep for 3–5 minutes, depending on the strength you like, then strain.
- Add lemon or sugar if you wish and drink hot.
How to make it lighter
- Plain black tea has almost no calories — the extras are what count.
- Each teaspoon of sugar adds about 16 kcal; try cutting down by half a spoon at a time.
- A slice of lemon adds flavour for practically no calories.
History
Black tea is usually traced to the Wuyi mountains of Fujian in China, where fully oxidised teas were developed around the 17th century; in Chinese it is called hong cha, “red tea”, after the colour of the brew. Dutch and British trade carried it to Europe, and in the 19th century large plantations were established in India and Sri Lanka. Today black tea is grown and drunk on every continent.
Count it in one photo
Point your camera at the table — Me Nutrition recognises Black tea and every other dish, with calories and macros for each. Ate only half? Slide it.
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Values are estimates per 100 g for a typical recipe; home and restaurant versions vary. Diets and allergens are worked out from the ingredients of a typical recipe — always check with whoever cooked the dish. Not medical advice. Nutrition data: Me Nutrition dish database v13. How we count →