Salt in your tea: research says it’s a very good idea, and here’s why
A cup of tea, with sugar or milk… Or salt? If you suggest that last one to your guests, I think you’ll get a very strange look in return, and yet it’s exactly how we should be drinking it. If scientist Michelle Francl is to be believed. She is a chemistry professor with a PhD from Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania, and published a book called Steeped: The Chemistry of Tea. And people in London are not at all happy about it.
Because the British obviously take their tea extremely seriously, and the suggestion that salt should be added simply does not go down well — it’s sacrilege. But why is Francl convinced of this?
Salt in your tea
You probably know the feeling: you’ve left your teabag steeping for too long, and your tea is now on the bitter side. Some people do this deliberately, such as the British, who like strong, bitter tea. And they often add milk. Not a fan of that bitterness? Then salt is your salvation. According to Francl, the sodium in salt blocks the receptors on our tongues, meaning you don’t taste the bitterness as strongly. And it doesn’t take much salt: the tiniest amount is enough.
But even though it’s only a pinch of salt, such a suggestion causes complete chaos in England, and The Guardian immediately jumped on it. They described Francl’s tactic as a ‘disgraceful tea recipe’ written by ‘a scientist from the country where they make tea with lukewarm tap water who claims to know the recipe for a perfect cup.’ HAHA. Okay, it’s clear — don’t mess with British tea, because you’ll have a real uproar on your hands.
Even more tips
But besides the solution for overly bitter tea, Francl has more tips that people in England want nothing to do with. For example, she recommends squeezing a lemon into your cup of tea, because that way you’ll never again get that unpleasant substance that can form on the surface of your tea (this may be a reaction between the chemicals in the tea and the water). Francl also says you should press the teabag flat while it steeps, because this would also bring out the acidity nicely.
And then there’s the perfect cup according to this scientist: pour boiling water into a mug, let the teabag steep for 30 seconds, throw the water away (the logic behind this completely escapes me, but I’m not a scientist), pour fresh boiling water into the mug and then let the teabag steep for 5 minutes. It all seems like an awful lot of work and a very long time, but I’m going to give it a try. With salt.
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Source: Food and Wine
